Vasiliki Nikiforidou - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
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Papers by Vasiliki Nikiforidou
Handbook of pragmatics online, Aug 15, 2022
Greek relative clauses introduced by pu have been described as structurally determined constructi... more Greek relative clauses introduced by pu have been described as structurally determined constructions in which interpretation is precisely guided by the syntax of the clause. In contrast to this oversimplified view, I show that pu relatives regularly underspecify the intended interpretation, incorporating instead a great deal of indeterminacy (in the sense of Langacker) in the way(s) the meaning of the head is integrated with the content of the relative clause. The factors which influence the construction of meaning include the lexical (in frame semantic terms) and constructional properties of the head and the relative clause predicate, but extend further to completely pragmatic and context-specific motivations; in the latter case, the head and the overt constituents in the relative clause function simply as clues for the final interpretation. The inherent indeterminacy of the relative construction can be captured in terms of conceptual integration theory, where the blended space may be shown to contain more structure than that in the input spaces and/or the alternate construals of a sentence may yield more than one blend. Finally I suggest that, while indeterminate, the interpretation of pu relatives is sensitive to constraints deriving from the prototypical meaning of restrictive relatives and from conceptual structure as such.
Studying Language Change in the 21st Century
Studying Language Change in the 21st Century
1st International Conference of Cultural Linguistics, 2016
![Research paper thumbnail of A constructional approach to the marker (o)pu [(ό)που)]: Diachronic evidence for the relativizer to adverbial polysemy](https://attachments.academia-assets.com/108662988/thumbnails/1.jpg)
](Στην eργασία αυτή eρeυνούμe τη διαχρονική eξέλιξη του δeίκτη (ό)που από αναφορική σe eπιρρηματική... more Στην eργασία αυτή eρeυνούμe τη διαχρονική eξέλιξη του δeίκτη (ό)που από αναφορική σe eπιρρηματική λeιτουργία κατά τη Μeσαιωνική Eλληνική, υποστηρίζοντας ότι η eπανανάλυση πραγματοποιeίται μέσα από μeταβατικές χρήσeις που καθορίζονται eξίσου από συντακτικά και πραγματολογικά χαρακτηριστικά και eπιδέχονται διπλή eρμηνeία. Η συνύπαρξη συντακτικο-πραγματολογικών παραγόντων στα καίρια για την αλλαγή πeριβάλλοντα αναδeικνύeι την ανάγκη να αναλυθούν αυτά ως γραμματικές δομές. Η διαχρονική έρeυνα σe σώματα κeιμένων της μeσαιωνικής δημώδους eνισχύeι eμπeιρικά την ύπαρξη τέτοιων μeταβατικών δομών, δeίχνοντας ότι η eπιρρηματική λeιτουργία eξαρτάται από την eμφάνιση και καθιέρωσή τους. Οι μeταβατικές δομές αφορούν και την ανάλυση του (ό)που ως πολυλeιτουργικού γραμματικού δeίκτη αφού eνσωματώνουν τα κοινά χαρακτηριστικά διαφορeτικών συντακτικών λeιτουργιών.
Review of Cognitive Linguistics, 2020
Adopting a constructionally-oriented analysis, the present paper examines the pattern ‘think agai... more Adopting a constructionally-oriented analysis, the present paper examines the pattern ‘think again’ (i.e. an instance of a mental state verb + adverbial adjunct) in synchronic, corpus-derived data. On the basis of both qualitative and quantitative analyses we show that THINK AGAIN merits constructional status in language; while it inherits features of fully-compositional meaning from its constituents it has also developed its own idiosyncratic properties. We further argue that THINK AGAIN may ultimately function as a discourse marker of challenge that regulates the relationship between Speaker (S) and Addressee (A), correlating with certain contextual regularities and interdependencies. It thus qualifies as a discourse construction that imposes a dialogic construal on its context and contributes fundamentally to discourse unit delimitation.
Pragmatics and Cognition, 2018
Constructional approaches to genre model genre knowledge in terms of genre-based constructions. L... more Constructional approaches to genre model genre knowledge in terms of genre-based constructions. Like all constructions, these represent conventionalized pairings of meaning and form, of varying degrees of length and schematicity, whose pragmatic specifications include their association with a particular socio-cultural context. In this state-of-the-art article I review genre-related constructional work, discussing grammatical patterns that are licensed only in particular contexts, including conversational genres, as well as expressions that qualify as constructions simply on the basis of socio-cultural currency. The appropriateness of constructional analysis for the language of genre derives from the definitional incorporation of discourse-pragmatic information in constructional descriptions and the possibility of relating genre-bound, idiosyncratic patterns to the rest of the constructions in a language through relations of inheritance. I further highlight the compatibility of Frame...
Constructions and Frames, 2016
This paper investigates two tense-based constructions in English and Greek and one complementatio... more This paper investigates two tense-based constructions in English and Greek and one complementation construction in Greek, whose import is to effect a deictic shift and allow narration to proceed from the point of view of the narrated events and a participant therein. In addition to the individual formal and discourse-pragmatic properties of the patterns at hand, I focus on properties of the embedding context, showing that these unrelated constructions impose similar formal and interpretational requirements. This, in turn, supports the statement of generalizations at the level of genre, in this case empathetic narration as a special kind of narration that departs from the default past narrative which is deictically anchored to the narrator and the conversational coordinates. While the analysis adopts a bottom-up, language-driven approach to genre, it also refutes its exhaustive equation with linguistic conventions, arguing that a Bakhtinian view of genre, which includes both linguist...
Reviewing Linguistic Thought
Genre in Language, Discourse and Cognition, 2016
Constructions and Frames, 2016
Reviewing Linguistic Thought
Converging Trends for the 21st Century
Cognitive Linguistics and Humor Research, 2015
Converging Trends for the 21st Century
Pragmatics. Quarterly Publication of the International Pragmatics Association (IPrA), 2002
In this paper we examine the semantics-pragmatics of the deictic motion verberxome‘come’ in centr... more In this paper we examine the semantics-pragmatics of the deictic motion verberxome‘come’ in central and extended uses. We argue that a detailed language-specific analysis oferxomeand its systemic counterpartpijeno‘go’ is necessary, since even at the level of basic appropriateness conditions, there are significant differences from other languages. Based on extensive corpus data, we further argue that in third-person discourseerxomeis a conventional means of adopting perspective. In particular, we show that the factors which are relevant to the speaker’s/narrator’s choice to identify with a particular point of view are amenable to a principled description which relies both on discoursal parameters and text-sensitive generalizations. Motivating the adoption-of-perspective uses is a subjectification shift whereby the speaker’s presence at the goal of motion becomes increasingly more implicit. Our results, therefore, add to the study of deixis in natural languages, point to the existence...
Handbook of pragmatics online, Aug 15, 2022
Greek relative clauses introduced by pu have been described as structurally determined constructi... more Greek relative clauses introduced by pu have been described as structurally determined constructions in which interpretation is precisely guided by the syntax of the clause. In contrast to this oversimplified view, I show that pu relatives regularly underspecify the intended interpretation, incorporating instead a great deal of indeterminacy (in the sense of Langacker) in the way(s) the meaning of the head is integrated with the content of the relative clause. The factors which influence the construction of meaning include the lexical (in frame semantic terms) and constructional properties of the head and the relative clause predicate, but extend further to completely pragmatic and context-specific motivations; in the latter case, the head and the overt constituents in the relative clause function simply as clues for the final interpretation. The inherent indeterminacy of the relative construction can be captured in terms of conceptual integration theory, where the blended space may be shown to contain more structure than that in the input spaces and/or the alternate construals of a sentence may yield more than one blend. Finally I suggest that, while indeterminate, the interpretation of pu relatives is sensitive to constraints deriving from the prototypical meaning of restrictive relatives and from conceptual structure as such.
Studying Language Change in the 21st Century
Studying Language Change in the 21st Century
1st International Conference of Cultural Linguistics, 2016
Στην eργασία αυτή eρeυνούμe τη διαχρονική eξέλιξη του δeίκτη (ό)που από αναφορική σe eπιρρηματική... more Στην eργασία αυτή eρeυνούμe τη διαχρονική eξέλιξη του δeίκτη (ό)που από αναφορική σe eπιρρηματική λeιτουργία κατά τη Μeσαιωνική Eλληνική, υποστηρίζοντας ότι η eπανανάλυση πραγματοποιeίται μέσα από μeταβατικές χρήσeις που καθορίζονται eξίσου από συντακτικά και πραγματολογικά χαρακτηριστικά και eπιδέχονται διπλή eρμηνeία. Η συνύπαρξη συντακτικο-πραγματολογικών παραγόντων στα καίρια για την αλλαγή πeριβάλλοντα αναδeικνύeι την ανάγκη να αναλυθούν αυτά ως γραμματικές δομές. Η διαχρονική έρeυνα σe σώματα κeιμένων της μeσαιωνικής δημώδους eνισχύeι eμπeιρικά την ύπαρξη τέτοιων μeταβατικών δομών, δeίχνοντας ότι η eπιρρηματική λeιτουργία eξαρτάται από την eμφάνιση και καθιέρωσή τους. Οι μeταβατικές δομές αφορούν και την ανάλυση του (ό)που ως πολυλeιτουργικού γραμματικού δeίκτη αφού eνσωματώνουν τα κοινά χαρακτηριστικά διαφορeτικών συντακτικών λeιτουργιών.
Review of Cognitive Linguistics, 2020
Adopting a constructionally-oriented analysis, the present paper examines the pattern ‘think agai... more Adopting a constructionally-oriented analysis, the present paper examines the pattern ‘think again’ (i.e. an instance of a mental state verb + adverbial adjunct) in synchronic, corpus-derived data. On the basis of both qualitative and quantitative analyses we show that THINK AGAIN merits constructional status in language; while it inherits features of fully-compositional meaning from its constituents it has also developed its own idiosyncratic properties. We further argue that THINK AGAIN may ultimately function as a discourse marker of challenge that regulates the relationship between Speaker (S) and Addressee (A), correlating with certain contextual regularities and interdependencies. It thus qualifies as a discourse construction that imposes a dialogic construal on its context and contributes fundamentally to discourse unit delimitation.
Pragmatics and Cognition, 2018
Constructional approaches to genre model genre knowledge in terms of genre-based constructions. L... more Constructional approaches to genre model genre knowledge in terms of genre-based constructions. Like all constructions, these represent conventionalized pairings of meaning and form, of varying degrees of length and schematicity, whose pragmatic specifications include their association with a particular socio-cultural context. In this state-of-the-art article I review genre-related constructional work, discussing grammatical patterns that are licensed only in particular contexts, including conversational genres, as well as expressions that qualify as constructions simply on the basis of socio-cultural currency. The appropriateness of constructional analysis for the language of genre derives from the definitional incorporation of discourse-pragmatic information in constructional descriptions and the possibility of relating genre-bound, idiosyncratic patterns to the rest of the constructions in a language through relations of inheritance. I further highlight the compatibility of Frame...
Constructions and Frames, 2016
This paper investigates two tense-based constructions in English and Greek and one complementatio... more This paper investigates two tense-based constructions in English and Greek and one complementation construction in Greek, whose import is to effect a deictic shift and allow narration to proceed from the point of view of the narrated events and a participant therein. In addition to the individual formal and discourse-pragmatic properties of the patterns at hand, I focus on properties of the embedding context, showing that these unrelated constructions impose similar formal and interpretational requirements. This, in turn, supports the statement of generalizations at the level of genre, in this case empathetic narration as a special kind of narration that departs from the default past narrative which is deictically anchored to the narrator and the conversational coordinates. While the analysis adopts a bottom-up, language-driven approach to genre, it also refutes its exhaustive equation with linguistic conventions, arguing that a Bakhtinian view of genre, which includes both linguist...
Reviewing Linguistic Thought
Genre in Language, Discourse and Cognition, 2016
Constructions and Frames, 2016
Reviewing Linguistic Thought
Converging Trends for the 21st Century
Cognitive Linguistics and Humor Research, 2015
Converging Trends for the 21st Century
Pragmatics. Quarterly Publication of the International Pragmatics Association (IPrA), 2002
In this paper we examine the semantics-pragmatics of the deictic motion verberxome‘come’ in centr... more In this paper we examine the semantics-pragmatics of the deictic motion verberxome‘come’ in central and extended uses. We argue that a detailed language-specific analysis oferxomeand its systemic counterpartpijeno‘go’ is necessary, since even at the level of basic appropriateness conditions, there are significant differences from other languages. Based on extensive corpus data, we further argue that in third-person discourseerxomeis a conventional means of adopting perspective. In particular, we show that the factors which are relevant to the speaker’s/narrator’s choice to identify with a particular point of view are amenable to a principled description which relies both on discoursal parameters and text-sensitive generalizations. Motivating the adoption-of-perspective uses is a subjectification shift whereby the speaker’s presence at the goal of motion becomes increasingly more implicit. Our results, therefore, add to the study of deixis in natural languages, point to the existence...