Functional layering and the English progressive
- In this article, it will be argued that the concept of functional layering – an extension of Hopper’s (1991) concept of layering – can be fruitfully applied to understand the mechanisms behind the sometimes large and messy looking synchronic picture of diverse meanings which one and the same construction can fulfill at a particular point in time. The concept will be used to account for the meaning spectrum of the present-day English progressive, which, it will be argued, no monosemic approach to date can account for. Taking a look at the diachrony of the construction will help to reveal that the various “exceptions” found in the use of the progressive can be understood as reflections of different stages in its development. Older, less grammaticalized or less well-defined usage patterns thus often survive in certain restricted niches next to the newer, more grammaticalized or more clear-cut functions, representing different diachronic layers. In addition to this diachronic motivation for synchronic meaning variety, the article willIn this article, it will be argued that the concept of functional layering – an extension of Hopper’s (1991) concept of layering – can be fruitfully applied to understand the mechanisms behind the sometimes large and messy looking synchronic picture of diverse meanings which one and the same construction can fulfill at a particular point in time. The concept will be used to account for the meaning spectrum of the present-day English progressive, which, it will be argued, no monosemic approach to date can account for. Taking a look at the diachrony of the construction will help to reveal that the various “exceptions” found in the use of the progressive can be understood as reflections of different stages in its development. Older, less grammaticalized or less well-defined usage patterns thus often survive in certain restricted niches next to the newer, more grammaticalized or more clear-cut functions, representing different diachronic layers. In addition to this diachronic motivation for synchronic meaning variety, the article will also address the crucial question of how a present-day hearer of a progressive form is able to decode the specific meaning intended by the speaker based on contextual clues. The article ends with some suggestions for further applications of the concept of functional layering.…
Author details: | Svenja KranichGND |
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URN: | urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-93961 |
ISSN: | 1866-8380 |
Title of parent work (German): | Postprints der Universität Potsdam : Philosophische Reihe |
Publication series (Volume number): | Zweitveröffentlichungen der Universität Potsdam : Philosophische Reihe (110) |
Publication type: | Postprint |
Language: | English |
Date of first publication: | 2016/08/02 |
Publication year: | 2013 |
Publishing institution: | Universität Potsdam |
Release date: | 2016/08/02 |
Tag: | grammaticalization; polysemy; semantic change; subjectification; the English progressive construction |
Issue: | 110 |
Number of pages: | 32 |
Source: | Linguistics 51 (2013), 1, S. 1–32 DOI 10.1515/ling-2013-0001 |
Organizational units: | Philosophische Fakultät / Institut für Anglistik und Amerikanistik |
DDC classification: | 4 Sprache / 40 Sprache / 400 Sprache |
Peer review: | Referiert |
Publishing method: | Open Access |
License (German): | Keine öffentliche Lizenz: Unter Urheberrechtsschutz |
External remark: | Bibliographieeintrag der Originalveröffentlichung/Quelle |