Papers by Thomas WEIDHAAS
German verbs ending in -eln are often described as having a diminutive or iterative meaning. Whil... more German verbs ending in -eln are often described as having a diminutive or iterative meaning. While this rather vague and general observation is widely agreed upon, hardly any research has been done to examine these verbs in a systematic way. In this paper, we try to close this gap by examining morphological, semantic and pragmatic aspects of these verbs as well as discussing the potential of various theoretical models to explain these results.
Based on Jurafsky’s (1996) model of diminutives, we extend the notion of verbal attenuation to cover concepts like iterativity, low intensity and small pieces, which are part of the semantics of many -eln verbs. In addition to these semantic means of attenuation, many -eln verbs also trigger pragmatic types of attenuation such as contempt, trivialization or affection. We discuss possible relations between these different concepts and also show that some of them are more relevant for -eln verbs than others.
As a corpus-based analysis shows, these various types of verbal attenuation can not only be observed with verbs like tänzeln, where -l- appears as the result of a semantically motivated process of derivation, but, surprisingly, also quite frequently with verbs like fiedeln (< Fiedel) or non-derived verbs like nörgeln, where the presence of -l- cannot be accounted for in this way. This complex situation calls for an explanation which traditional rule-based approaches fail to provide. As a consequence, schema-based and exemplar-based models are discussed. We argue that output-oriented exemplar-based accounts promise to provide the best model of -eln verbs, since they allow for recognition of the importance of as well as the interaction between phonological, morphological, semantic and pragmatic similarities between -eln verbs, even when these verbs result from entirely different types of derivation or are not derived at all.
Adverbial patterns in interaction. Edited by Oliver Ehmer and Dagmar Barth-Weingarten
The two French causal conjunctions car and comme can both be employed to convey background inform... more The two French causal conjunctions car and comme can both be employed to convey background information in narratives. Despite this overlap in function, they have properties that are diametrically opposed. While comme is a subordinating and usually pre-posed conjunction, car is a coordinating conjunction which always occurs in post-position. As observed by many authors, post-position is normal for causal clauses. This tendency is usually explained by the argumentative role of causal clauses in interactive oral exchanges. By contrast, pre-position (as in the case of comme) is an exceptional feature for causals and is usually ascribed to the requirements of discourse organization. Thus, it would seem that interaction and discourse organization are two mutually exclusive motivations. However, as we will show for both comme and car, they are in fact two sides of the same coin. Based on Ford’s (1993) view of causal adverbials as reactive responses to interactional trouble, we describe comme as a proactive device for fast problem-solving. Conversely car, which is always post-posed, is not only used for its capacity to respond to interactional trouble, but also for reasons of discourse organization. Our comparison of comme and car illustrates the long-standing notion that coherence building crucially involves negotiation between hearer and speaker about the next move.
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Papers by Thomas WEIDHAAS
Based on Jurafsky’s (1996) model of diminutives, we extend the notion of verbal attenuation to cover concepts like iterativity, low intensity and small pieces, which are part of the semantics of many -eln verbs. In addition to these semantic means of attenuation, many -eln verbs also trigger pragmatic types of attenuation such as contempt, trivialization or affection. We discuss possible relations between these different concepts and also show that some of them are more relevant for -eln verbs than others.
As a corpus-based analysis shows, these various types of verbal attenuation can not only be observed with verbs like tänzeln, where -l- appears as the result of a semantically motivated process of derivation, but, surprisingly, also quite frequently with verbs like fiedeln (< Fiedel) or non-derived verbs like nörgeln, where the presence of -l- cannot be accounted for in this way. This complex situation calls for an explanation which traditional rule-based approaches fail to provide. As a consequence, schema-based and exemplar-based models are discussed. We argue that output-oriented exemplar-based accounts promise to provide the best model of -eln verbs, since they allow for recognition of the importance of as well as the interaction between phonological, morphological, semantic and pragmatic similarities between -eln verbs, even when these verbs result from entirely different types of derivation or are not derived at all.
Based on Jurafsky’s (1996) model of diminutives, we extend the notion of verbal attenuation to cover concepts like iterativity, low intensity and small pieces, which are part of the semantics of many -eln verbs. In addition to these semantic means of attenuation, many -eln verbs also trigger pragmatic types of attenuation such as contempt, trivialization or affection. We discuss possible relations between these different concepts and also show that some of them are more relevant for -eln verbs than others.
As a corpus-based analysis shows, these various types of verbal attenuation can not only be observed with verbs like tänzeln, where -l- appears as the result of a semantically motivated process of derivation, but, surprisingly, also quite frequently with verbs like fiedeln (< Fiedel) or non-derived verbs like nörgeln, where the presence of -l- cannot be accounted for in this way. This complex situation calls for an explanation which traditional rule-based approaches fail to provide. As a consequence, schema-based and exemplar-based models are discussed. We argue that output-oriented exemplar-based accounts promise to provide the best model of -eln verbs, since they allow for recognition of the importance of as well as the interaction between phonological, morphological, semantic and pragmatic similarities between -eln verbs, even when these verbs result from entirely different types of derivation or are not derived at all.