| This dissertation investigates semantic and syntactic properties of the forms –te iru and –te aru in Japanese, as well as pragmatic effects of statements with these forms.;With an activity verb in the –te iru form, progressive, experiential, and habitual readings are available. With an achievement verb in the –te iru form, perfective, experiential, and habitual readings are available. I address specifically the difference between perfective and experiential readings. After reviewing the literature, where it seems that the distinction is not clear, I give a series of empirical tests and argue that experiential sentences exhibit properties of individual-level predicates, while perfective (as well as progressive) sentences exhibit properties of stage-level predicates.;There are two types of –te aru sentences, intransitivizing and non-intransitivizing –te aru, both of which have been claimed to yield perfective readings. However, I argue that all – te aru sentences are experiential and exhibit properties that parallel individual-level predicates.;This dissertation investigates semantic and syntactic properties of the forms –te iru and –te aru in Japanese, as well as pragmatic effects of statements with these forms. With an activity verb in the –te iru form, progressive, experiential, and habitual readings are available. With an achievement verb in the –te iru form, perfective, experiential, and habitual readings are available. I address specifically the difference between perfective and experiential readings. After reviewing the literature, where it seems that the distinction is not clear, I give a series of empirical tests and argue that experiential sentences exhibit properties of individual-level predicates, while perfective (as well as progressive) sentences exhibit properties of stage-level predicates.;There are two types of –te aru sentences, intransitivizing and non-intransitivizing –te aru, both of which have been claimed to yield perfective readings. However, I argue that all – te aru sentences are experiential and exhibit properties that parallel individual-level predicates. |
