Билеты по теор. грамматике
Билет 40. The category of aspect.
Aspect is a grammatically category that expresses the
speaker's interpretation of the internal character of the action in its
relation to such features as internal limit, result, duration, iteration etc. These features may find both a
grammatical and a lexical expression in
languages. The grammatical category of aspect also displays an idioethnic character as different languages may choose
different features of action for the
basis of the grammatical category of aspect.
The grammatical category of aspect in English has at its basis a
different feature of action, that of duration and is constituted on the basis of the opposition of Indefinite and
Continuous forms of the verb. This opposition
embraces the whole class of English verbs both the finite forms and the forms
of the Infinitive.
The formal marker of the Continuous form is the
discontinuous morpheme be ----- ing (one
of the few morphemes which has no allomorphs). The semantic marker, i.e.
the meaning of the Continuous form is limited duration, or process.
,e.g.
1)What are you doing
here?
-1 work
here (M. Dickens).
The
analysis of the difference between the semantics of the opposed forms of the aspect shows that the forms of the
Continuous aspect often denote actions
which are directly perceived by the speaker (they are perceived in the process
of their happening, this is why this meaning is called 'limited duration') whereas the Indefinite forms are used
to denote actions /events/states which may not be directly perceived but
rather known to the speaker.
The meaning of duration, under the influence
of various contextual and pragmatic factors may be modified and presented by a
number of syntagmatic meanings, or variants. The most common syntagmatic
meanings are:
1) Simultaneity
to another action. This meaning is actualized in the structure of a composite sentence or a sequence of sentences, e.g. Ivory
was still straining to get behind the cyst, still calm, incisive,
unruffled...
2) A temporary character of a state or a
quality, e.g. Rennie decided that she -was being silly and possibly
neurotic as well (M.Atwood);
3) Intensity. This meaning is usually found with verbs of sense perception, desirability and liking/disliking.
4) Recurrence of action. This meaning is realized
with terminative verbs, e.g. All through supper I was lifting up the white
tablecloth to look at my feet under the. table (E. O'Brien).
5) Tentativeness, lack of assertiveness. This use of the
Continuous form is conditioned by pragmatic factors. The difference
between the two phrases / hope
that and / am hoping that lies in the degree of assertiveness. In
this pragmatic function the Continuous form
is often combined with the attitudinal past
- both are used to make a statement less assertive and a request more tentative. E.g.
The Continuous forms carry out a specific
function in the text. This function is best
seen when we compare the use of the Past Indefinite as the main form of the narration with the Past Continuous
used in the narration. The forms of
the Past Indefinite express a succession of past actions thus carrying out the function
of the text progression in the narration and the forms of the Past Continuous,
suspend the narration as the writer focuses on details, particulars, descriptions.
This
function of the Continuous form can be
defined as descriptive. The picture created
by the use of the Past Continuous is not static, however, but dynamic, like
a picture in a movie
The forms of the Common aspect as the weak
member of the opposition have a wide and abstract meaning which is best defined
negatively as non-continuous, they may denote repeated actions and single occurrences.
Due to the abstract and wide
character of their grammatical meaning the Indefinite forms have a greater frequency of use as compared to the Continuous
forms .The opposition 'Common Aspect :: Continuous Aspect' is often neutralized
and the Common aspect is used in the sphere of the Continuous aspect. It
becomes possible when the meaning of
duration is expressed by such elements of context as: the durative character
of the verb, adverbial phrases, prepositions and conjunctions with durative
semantics.
Neutralization
does not take place when the verb is used not in its primary, but in its secondary meaning.