A Construction Grammar Approach To The Yào X Jiù X In Modern Chinese

The yào X jiù X in modern Chinese is frequently used in daily communication.Some researchers have analyzed it from different linguistic perspectives,characterizing its syntactic,semantic and pragmatic features.But in general,most of the previous researches on the yào X jiù X in academia are descriptive,without in-depth explanative efforts made from cognitive perspectives.Little attention has been paid to its generative mechanism and motivation,which leaves room for further research.Under the theoretical guidance of Goldberg’s Construction Grammar,the construction yào X jiù X can be given a more comprehensive and systematic analysis involving both a description of its linguistic features and an explanation of its generative mechanism and motivation.In this thesis,this study attempts to answer the following questions:(1)What’s the constructional meaning of this construction?(2)What are the syntactic,semantic and pragmatic features of this construction?(3)What are the mechanisms and motivations for this construction?Accordingly,this thesis collects 458 authentic instances of the construction yào X jiù X from Beijing Language and Culture University Chinese Corpus and Center for Chinese Linguistics PKU,applying Goldberg’s Construction Grammar and construction coercion to carry out a relatively systematic and comprehensive research on the construction yào X jiù X,encompassing an elaborate description of linguistic features and an elucidative exploration of generative mechanisms and motivations for this target construction.The major findings are as follows:First,this study verifies the yào X jiù X as a construction and discovers that its constructional meaning is to express speaker’s affirmative or contemptuous attitude towards the immediacy of the X.Second,syntactically,the variable X is restricted to certain conditions.In terms of part of speech,the slot X is chiefly occupied by verbs,verb phrases,adjectives and adjective phrases.It is worth noting that only attributive adjectives are licensed to enter the slot X when the X is filled by adjectives.As for the syntactic functions of the construction yào X jiù X as a whole,it can function as syntactic constituents of predicate,object and attribute,as well as it can be used as an independent sentence or appears behind the main clause,acting as a sub-clause.Seen from collocations,the yào X jiù X is often used in series,contributing to form a juxtaposition relation and an additive relation among instances of this construction.Semantically,the two slots X share the common semantic features of [+controllable] and [+alterable] in most cases.With respect to the semantic feature of the construction yào X jiù X,there is a condition-hypothesis relationship between the yào X and the jiù X.Pragmatically,the construction yào X jiù X is able to manifest subjective modalities such as affirmation,concession,indifference and discontent in specific contexts.In addition,this construction possesses the pragmatic function of keeping discourse cohesive.Third,ellipsis and contraction,along with construction coercion are applied as mechanisms to elucidate how this construction comes into being.The yào X jiù X construction omits the associated word rú guǒ(if)and the pause between the yào X and the jiù X,which can be demonstrated in its first instance in Yuan Dynasty.In addition,the production of atypical instances of this construction can be interpreted by resorting to construction coercion.Last but not least,the principle of economy,the subjectivity,the principle of prominence and the principle of iconicity are employed as pragmatic and cognitive motivations to explore why this construction comes into being to help people better understand its usage and meaning.Under the theory of Construction Grammar,this study deems the modern Chinese expression yào X jiù X a construction and investigates its constructional meaning,its syntactic,semantic,and pragmatic features in a more comprehensive,systematic and up-to-date way compared with previous studies.More crucially,the exploration of the generative mechanism and motivations for the yào X jiù X construction can,to some extent,make up for the deficiency and gaps of previous research.