• Title/Summary/Keyword: ellipsis

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VP-ellipsis, Stripping, and the Functions of the Delimiter -to in Korean

  • Kim, So-Jee;Cho, Sae-Youn
    • Language and Information
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    • v.20 no.1
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    • pp.93-110
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    • 2016
  • VP-ellipsis constructions in English can be schematized as S + [NP finite-AUX __ ] where the underlined part is understood to be a VP. Similarly, the pattern S + NP[-to] can be observed in Korean colloquial contexts. Though the English VP-ellipsis sentence pattern and the Korean pattern superficially seem to be similar, the Korean pattern exhibits peculiar properties: Syntactically, the NP of the pattern should have the delimiter -to. Semantically, it may convey ambiguous readings: VP-ellipsis-like and/or Stripping-like interpretation. To account for the pattern at issue, we propose a base-generated analysis driven by the delimiter -to within a construction grammar. We claim that the mother of the NP[-to] in this pattern is an S whose meaning is ambiguous between a VP-ellipsis-like and a Stripping-like reading. Consequently, the code of the VP-ellipsis in English is finite auxiliary verbs while that of the pattern S + NP[-to] in Korean is the delimiter -to.

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Focus Types and Gradients in Korean Case Ellipsis

  • Lee, Han-Jung
    • Language and Information
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    • v.12 no.2
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    • pp.1-20
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    • 2008
  • This paper examines the effects of focus types on case ellipsis in Korean. A number of previous studies have suggested that accusative case markers in Korean and Japanese cannot be dropped when the object they mark is contrastively focused (Masunaga, 1988; Yatabe, 1999; Ko, 2000; Lee, 2002). Using experimental evidence, we argue against the view that case ellipsis in Korean is sensitive to the distinction between contrastive vs. non-contrastive focus. An alternative analysis is proposed which accounts for the phenomenon of variable case marking in terms of the interaction between the contrastive strength and the discourse accessibility of focused object NPs. By viewing patterns of case ellipsis as the result of balancing between these two forces, such an analysis can correctly predict the gradient pattern of case ellipsis shown by the three types of focused objects tested in the experiment (contrastive replacing focus, contrastive selecting focus and non-contrastive, informational focus), while at the same time offering an explanation for why subtypes of focus exert distinct influences on case ellipsis.

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A Study on the Ellipsis of Case markers through the Hangul letters of Hyun-Poong Kwak's family (현풍(玄風) 곽씨(郭氏) 언간(諺簡)의 격조사(格助詞) 생략(省略)에 대한 고찰(考察))

  • Jeon, Byeong-Yong
    • (The)Study of the Eastern Classic
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    • no.33
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    • pp.413-435
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    • 2008
  • This study is purposed to analyze the appearances and functions of ellipsis of case markers through the Hangul letters of Hyun-Poong Kwak's family in the early 17th century. Hangul letters appear more colloquial than typography, and ellipsis is the one of main features of it. Generally, 'ellipsis' occurs when a constituent of a sentence deliberately leaves out of a sentence, because it is repeated or can be deduced by the context or occasion. As Hangul letter is written for a specific person, 'ellipsis' occurs more often than typography written for unspecified individuals. The ellipsis of case markers are not an exception. The ellipsis has functions as follow. The first, function is 'brevity.' Communication can be more convenient by ellipsis. Next will be 'informality.' Informality caused by ellipsis can make people express their thoughts and feelings fluently and naturally. It is the reason that spoken language has more frequently occurred ellipses than written language. The third function is 'quickness.' The same information can be delivered more quickly by the sentence using ellipsis than not using. In the 21st Century, ellipsis is misused in netizen communication owing to the quickness. The last function should be 'the effect of a literary style.' The effects can embody through ellipsis such as 'rhythm effect', 'letter style effect', 'translation style effect.' As a result of analyzing ellipsis of case markers, frequency follows the order below.[subjective objective > Locative > Dative > Commutative > Instrumental]

A Pragmatic Approach to Ellipsis in Russian and Polish Colloquial and Informal Texts of the Novel "Exit to the South" (러시아어와 폴란드어 문학텍스트 내 생략의 화용적 분석 - 므로제크의 "남쪽으로의 도주"를 중심으로 -)

  • Chung, Jung Won
    • Cross-Cultural Studies
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    • v.33
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    • pp.407-459
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    • 2013
  • The paper pragmatically analyzes ellipsis in Russian and Polish colloquial and informal texts. The famous Polish writer Sławomir $Mro{\dot{z}}ek^{\prime}s$ "Exit to the South", written in Polish and Russian is used as a material for the analysis. Russian and Polish ellipsis in colloquial and informal texts have in common that the givenness and subjecthood of the elliptical co-referent play a crucial role. However, the ellipsis in two languages also has differences in many ways. Above all, in the Polish texts of colloquial and informal style, a theme is likely to be elliptical and the coreferential relation reaches to an extra-sentential antecedent, while the ellipsis in analysed Russian texts in most cases requires coordinate, subordinate or relative clauses, and the elliptical co-referent tends to have an intra-sentential antecedent. The ellipsis of the theme-subject is unmarked in Polish, where every verbal form has an ending denoting person. Unlike formal style which often allows explicit noun subject, Polish text of colloquial and informal style prefer null form of the subject in most cases. If Polish sentences have explicit theme-subjects, they disambiguate intervening and main themes, and indicate the contrast, the focus, the introduction of new narratives or the change of speaker's point of view. Sometimes direct speeches and deictic pronouns also need explicit theme-subjects in Polish sentences. On the other hand, the ellipsis of the theme-subject is marked in Russian even in colloquial and informal texts. The theme-subject can be deleted in Russian colloquial and informal texts, if the subject is a form of the first or the second person, or if the aspect and the tense of the antecedent sentence's verb are the same as those of the given sentence's verb and both the antecedent and the coreferential word have the nominative case.

Acoustic Characteristics and Pitch Accent Realization in English Elliptical Sentences - VP-ellipsis, sluicing, gapping - (영어 생략구문의 음성적 특성과 피치악센트 실현 양상-동사구 생략, 슬루싱, 공소화를 중심으로-)

  • Kim, Hee-Sung
    • Speech Sciences
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    • v.11 no.2
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    • pp.119-136
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    • 2004
  • Ellipsis is the figure of speech characterized by the deliberate omission of words that are obviously understood, but that must be supplied to make a construction grammatically or semantically complete. The purpose of this study is to examine how ellipsis affects its adjacent elements acoustically and phonologically in English VP-ellipsis, sluicing and gapping. In the experiment, the realizations by English native speakers are set as the criteria for the observing point and are compared to Korean speakers' realizations. For the results, while English native speakers utilized various acoustic information such as word duration and pitch range and phonological information such as pith accent realization in order to intend the cues for decoding the missing constituent, Korean English learners relied on only duration information and could not use various information effectively.

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Realization of Focal Accent in VP-ellipsis (동사구 생략에서의 초점억양 실현양상)

  • Kim, Hee-Sung;Lee, Young-Jae;Kim, Kee-Ho
    • Speech Sciences
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    • v.9 no.3
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    • pp.237-250
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    • 2002
  • Linguistically, 'Focus' is the element which includes new or unpresupposed information. It is usually signalled by prosodic prominence called the 'pitch accent'. The purpose of this study is to observe the realization of the focal accent in VP-ellipsis, especially, to affect the meaning recovery of elided VP. Asher (1999) gave evidence that focal stress should be on the higher verb and the AUX in order to recover the elided VP to the lower one. In this paper, the systematic patterning of focal accent to decide the elided meaning in VP-ellipsis is to be observed. The realization of focal accent by English native speakers is set as the criteria for the meaning recovery of the elided VP and is compared to Koreans'. Moreover, the focal accents of Koreans are observed and compared with respect to their English proficiency levels.

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Silent Verbs in Northern Mandarin: A Silence Neither Gaps Nor Emptiness Can Fill

  • Kim, Ji-Yung
    • Language and Information
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    • v.11 no.2
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    • pp.87-103
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    • 2007
  • This paper reanalyzes examples with missing verbs. Northern Mandarin rejects argument nominal phrases after a silent verb, as well as silent verbs inside islands. These restrictions suggest a grammatical process which silences verbs. I propose that these restrictions are the result of VP-topicalization followed by ellipsis. This analysis accounts for the island sensitivity of these constructions: since VP-topicalization feeds ellipsis, constructions with elided VPs are not derivable from configurations where movement is impossible. Also, to avoid topicalization along with the VP, the argument must move out of VP; the subsequent topicalization of the VP containing the argument's trace would then give rise to a configuration where that trace c-commands the moved-out DP. Adjuncts do not pose a problem because they are located outside of that smallest VP-shell. The data presented here are accommodated by neither of Tang's (2001) proposals for silent verbs (gapping and empty verbs). Instead, they provide support for a third source for silent verbs, VP-ellipsis via topicalization.

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The Characteristics of Cohesion in the Narratives of Fluent Aphasics (유창성 실어증 환자의 이야기 결속표지 사용 특성)

  • Yoon, Ji-Yeon;Lee, Yoon-Kyoung
    • Speech Sciences
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    • v.12 no.4
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    • pp.237-245
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    • 2005
  • The purpose of this study was to investigate the characteristics for cohesion in the narratives of fluent aphasics. Ten fluent aphasics and ten normal adults matched chronological-age and education level with aphasics participated in this study. Story retelling task was given to the participants individually. And all narratives they produced were recorded and transcribed for analysis. The frequency of cohesive markers and the rate of accuracy were analyzed. The result were as follows; (1) The fluent aphasics used cohesive devices significantly less than the normal adult group, and the rate of accuracy of cohesive devices used was lower than the normal adults. (2) Both groups used lexical cohesion more than pro-forms and ellipsis, and the difference of two groups was larger in lexical cohesion than pro-forms and ellipsis. (3) The fluent aphasics used lexical cohesion more accurately than pro-forms and ellipsis but the normal adults used all three cohesive markers accurately. The difference of two groups was large in pro-forms and ellipsis.

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Anaphoric Reference Resolution in Expository Text: The Effects of Ellipsis (설명문의 대용어 참조해결과정: 대용어와 지시사 생략 효과)

  • Lee, Jae-Ho
    • Korean Journal of Cognitive Science
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    • v.21 no.2
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    • pp.253-282
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    • 2010
  • Two experiments were conducted to explore the effects of anaphora and demonstrative ellipsis on reference resolution. This study assumed that two type of ellipsis could be sensitive to antecedents' saliency: the reverse typicality and mention order of antecedents. The muti-task approach measured the antecedent's activation level and processing load for the conflict resolution of theories of anaphoric resolution. In Experiment 1, using ellipsis for anaphora, participants read a series of sentence pairs by self-paced and performed a probe recognition test. The results showed the main effects of antecedent's typicality and mention order in both tasks. In Experiment 2, using noun phrase without demonstrative for anaphora, participants read a series of sentence pairs by self-paced and performed a probe recognition test. The results showed main effects of mention order of antecedents for probe recognition task only. The first antecedent was recognized faster than the second one. The results of two experiments suggested that anaphora type and antecedent's saliency were dynamically interact in reference resolution for Korean.

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Contrastive Focus and Variable Case Marking: A Comparison between Subjects and Objects

  • Lee, Han-Jung
    • Language and Information
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    • v.13 no.2
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    • pp.1-27
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    • 2009
  • This paper examines the (a)symmetries in the realization of focused subjects and objects in Korean. Through rating experiments, we demonstrate that native speakers' judgments of acceptability of sentences containing case-marked or case-ellipsed subjects and objects are sensitive to the contrastiveness strength and the discourse accessibility of focused arguments. However, our experiments also show that focused subjects exhibit stronger preference for explicit case marking over case ellipsis and that contrastiveness strength and discourse accessibility have weaker influence on the case marking and ellipsis of focused subjects compared to focused objects. We propose an account of variable case marking that is capable of subsuming both the similarities and differences between focused subjects and objects under the universal theory of markedness. In particular, it is shown that the similarities between focused subjects and objects are predicted by the proposed account based on the contrastiveness strength and the discourse accessibility of focused arguments and that the differences between focused subjects and objects follow naturally from the relative markedness of focus as subjects.

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