Dimensional Adjectives : Grammatical Structure and Conceptual Interpretation

The present volume is the result of a project which concentrated on a selected subset of linguistic knowledge with the aim of giving a systematic account of the various aspects of structure and process in this subset and the interpretation of these. The subset that for a number of reasons appeared appropriate to this undertaking centres around the dimensional adjectives of German. That the en­ terprise ultimately produced a less integrated and complete result than expected is due to several reasons. Some of these are of an intrinsic nature, ever present, and not particularly surprising. Some, however, are related to the character of the project itself and are worth commenting upon, as they reflect specific expe­ riences and difficulties which we encountered during several years of working on the project. We started from the assumption that the dimensional adjectives constitute a sufficiently rich, but nevertheless limited domain of grammatical and concep­ tual structure which is fairly well understood and explored in relevant aspects. Consequently we expected that summarizing, integrating, and extending the nu­ merous results that were available should quickly lead to a more complete picture of the interaction of the components involved. However, even had the premise of this assumption been correct, the conclusion turned out to be wrong fairly early in the project. On closer inspection, the investigations of the phenomena were much less complete, the facts agreed upon less systematic, and the proposed anal­ yses far less convincing than supposed initially.

Focussing on Dimensional Adjectives: Introductory Remarks.- 1 Background and Orientation.- 2 Framework and Topics.- 3 Limits and Perspectives.- The Syntax of Comparative Constructions.- 1 Positioning in the Theory of Grammar.- 2 Assumptions and the Problem Context.- 3 Assumptions about the Base Structure of Adjectival Constructions.- 4 Lexically Realized Comparatives.- 5 Morphologically Realized Comparatives.- 6 Syntactic Structure of the Comparans Phrase.- 7 Concluding Comments.- The Semantics of Gradation.- 1 Introduction.- 2 Technical Preliminaries.- 2.1 The Nature of SF.- 2.2 The Relation Between LF and SF.- 3 Analyses of Comparison.- 3.1 Some Basic Assumptions Concerning the Relevant Facts.- 3.2 The Basic Structure of Existing Analyses.- 4 More Facts and Distinctions.- 4.1 Classes of Adjectives.- 4.2 Determining the Comparison Class.- 4.3 Wonders of Contrastiveness.- 4.4 Riddles of Measure and Factor Phrases.- 4.5 Mis-construed Complements.- 4.6 Negated Complements.- 4.7 Consequences for the Formation of a Theory.- 5 The Conceptual Basis of Gradation.- 5.1 Preliminary Remarks on the Structure of the Operation of Comparison.- 5.2 Canonical Scales.- 5.3 Norm Values and Measurement Units.- 6 The Semantic Form of the Dimensional Adjectives.- 6.1 The Structure of Lexical Entries.- 6.2 The Interpretation and Categorization of the SF Constants.- 6.3 Conditions on SF Constants.- 6.4 Interim Balance.- 7 The Semantic Form of the Comparative and the Equative.- 7.1 The Structure of Degree Complements.- 7.2 Equative Constructions.- 7.3 Comparative Constructions.- 7.4 The Superlative.- 7.5 Second Interim Balance.- 8 Problems with Quantifiers.- 8.1 The Semantic Form of the Degree Constituent ‘viel’.- 8.2 Adjectival ‘viel’ and ‘wenig’.- 8.3 The Scope of Quantifiers in Degree Complement Clauses.- 9 More Degree Items.- 9.1 The Structure of ‘zu’ and ‘genug’.- 9.2 Complex Gradation.- 10 The Semantic Form of Evaluative Adjectives.- 10.1 The Structure of the Lexical Entries.- 10.2 Antonymy in Evaluative Adjectives.- 10.3 Dimensional Adjectives as Evaluative Adjectives.- 10.4 Final Balance.- 11 Outlook.- 11.1 Possible Extensions of the Analysis.- 11.2 Open Questions.- 11.3 Prospects.- The Semantics of Dimensional Designation of Spatial Objects.- 1 Introduction and Overview.- 2 Dimensional Designation: Facts and Problems.- 2.1 Combination and Distribution of Das.- 2.2 Semantic Properties of DAs and Relations between Das.- 2.3 Types of Context Determination in the Interpretation of Das.- 3 Dimensional Designation: Perceptual Basis and Conceptual , Categorization.- 3.1 Conceptions of Space and Categorization Grids.- 3.2 Inherent Proportion Schema (IPS): Object Delimitation and Gestalt Properties.- 3.3 Primary Perceptual Space: Position Properties.- 4 Conceptual Representation of Spatial Objects.- 4.1 Object Schemata (OS).- 4.2 Conditions for Parameter Fixing (CPF).- 4.3 A Précis of the Semantics of Dimensional Designation.- 5 An Outline of the Semantics of ‘groß-klein’.- 5.1 The Data Base.- 5.2 Some Heuristic Assumptions.- 5.3 ‘Groß’ Between DIM and QUANT.- 5.4 ‘Groß-klein’: Dimensioning a Global Impression.- 5.5 Integration Cue: Normal Proportion.- 6 Conclusion.- Language Acquisition and Development of Children’s “bigger” and “more” Judgements.- 1 Introduction.- 2 On the Semantics of “bigger”.- 3 On the Semantic Development of “bigger”.- 4 On Relations Between “bigger” and “more” Judgements.- 5 Concluding Remarks.- Comprehension of Comparatives: The Process of Conceptual Interpretation.- 1 The Problem.- 2 Theoretical Framework.- 3 Structural Assumptions.- 4 Experiment 1: Verification Problems.- 5 Experiments 2–5: Question-Answering Problems.- 6 Concluding Remarks.- Somewhat Longer ― Much Deeper ― Further and Further: Epilogue to the Dimensional Adjective Project.- 1 Semantic Form - The Interface Between the Grammar G and the Conceptual System C.- 1.1 The Problem.- 1.2 Basic Elements and Relations in SF.- 1.3 The Interpretation of SF.- 1.4 SF as a Component of Grammar.- 1.5 Parallels Between SF and PF.- 1.6 The Status of SF Conditions.- 1.7 Notes on the Autonomy of Subsystems.- 2 (+Pol)/(?Pol)-Asymmetries, Semantic vs. Conceptual Complexity, and Markedness.- 2.1 The Problem.- 2.2 The Incorporation and Evaluation of Asymmetries.- 2.3 (+Pol) (?Pol)-Asymmetries Regarding Gradation and Norm Relatednes.- 2.4 (+Pol)/(?Pol)-Asymmetries in Dimensional Designation and Scale Determination.- 3 Some Prospects and Outlooks.- 3.1 Analysis of the Spatial Lexicon.- 3.2 Assumptions on Universality.- 3.3 Spatial Orientation as a Basic Pattern.- Author Index.