dc.contributor.advisor |
Dr Frank Lichtenberk |
en |
dc.contributor.advisor |
Dr Bill Barnes |
en |
dc.contributor.author |
Hanna, Kirsten M |
en |
dc.date.accessioned |
2007-01-22 |
en |
dc.date.available |
2007-01-22 |
en |
dc.date.issued |
2004 |
en |
dc.identifier.citation |
Thesis (PhD--Lingustics)--University of Auckland, 2004. |
en |
dc.identifier.uri |
http://hdl.handle.net/2292/322 |
en |
dc.description.abstract |
Latin word order has been the subject of scholarly debate for centuries, yet the question
is far from resolved. In terms of the basic order of the clause's core constituents, some
analysts argue that the basic order is SOV, while others argue for SVO. Some scholars
argue that basic order is determined primarily by pragmatic principles, others hold the
view that order is primarily syntactically determined, and others suggest that both
syntactic and pragmatic principles are in operation.
The purpose of this study is to contribute to the debate on basic order in Latin and its
determinants. Specifically, I examine the order of subject, object and verb in De
agricultura, an agricultural manual written in the 2nd century BC. The study shows that
the orders SV and OV are so overwhelmingly predominant that we are justified in
labelling them as basic; indeed they are so common that we could argue that the order
of these elements is relatively fixed. Departures from the basic order fall into two
categories: those instances where a subject or object comes later in the clause than
usual (i.e. after the verb) and those instances where they appear earlier in the clause
than usual (i.e. in a fronting construction). It will be shown that there is a constellation
of factors which must be taken into account to explain the distribution and function of
these deviations, including the information status of a fronted or postposed NP's referent,
its pragmatic function in the clause, and the function of the clause in structuring the
discourse. In summary, I argue that in De agricultura there is a syntactically determined
basic order for subject, object and verb, and that departures from the basic order are
motivated by pragmatic factors, viz either (a) the need to draw attention to an NP's
referent(s) for a specific discourse-structuring reason or (b) the positioning of certain
'focally heavy' information after light verbs. |
en |
dc.format |
Scanned from print thesis |
en |
dc.language.iso |
en |
en |
dc.publisher |
ResearchSpace@Auckland |
en |
dc.relation.ispartof |
PhD Thesis - University of Auckland |
en |
dc.relation.isreferencedby |
UoA1443025 |
en |
dc.rights |
Items in ResearchSpace are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated. |
en |
dc.rights.uri |
https://researchspace.auckland.ac.nz/docs/uoa-docs/rights.htm |
en |
dc.title |
Basic word order in De Agricultura |
en |
dc.type |
Thesis |
en |
thesis.degree.discipline |
Linguistics |
en |
thesis.degree.grantor |
The University of Auckland |
en |
thesis.degree.level |
Doctoral |
en |
thesis.degree.name |
PhD |
en |
dc.rights.holder |
Copyright: The author |
en |
pubs.local.anzsrc |
2004 - Linguistics |
en |
pubs.org-id |
Faculty of Arts |
en |
dc.identifier.wikidata |
Q112859797 |
|