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Part of
Advances in Iranian Linguistics II
Edited by Simin Karimi, Narges Nematollahi, Roya Kabiri and Jian Gang Ngui
[Current Issues in Linguistic Theory 361] 2023
► pp. 180–209

Chapter 7
Mood selection in complement clauses in Persian

| University of Arizona
Similar to Romance and Balkan languages, Persian makes a formal distinction between indicative and subjunctive moods in its complement clauses. This paper proposes several generalizations about the distribution of the two moods, and evaluates the current theories of mood selection against Persian data. The proposal is that indicative appears when the complement is propositional, i.e., of type <st>, and when one of the two other conditions holds: (1) the matrix predicate entails the content of the complement clause is in attitude holder’s context set, in which case the indicative mood makes no special semantic contribution, OR (2) the content of the complement clause or its negation is in speaker’s context set, in which case indicative signals the epistemic commitment of the speaker. Subjunctive, on the other hand, is selected when the conditions for the indicative are not met. As such, I argue that mood selection in complement clauses in Persian makes references to (1) the semantic type of the complement, (2) the semantics of the matrix predicate in terms of (non)veridicality, and (3) the speaker’s stand about the complement.
Keywords: mood selection, complement clauses, subjunctive, Persian
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Previous studies on Persian mood selection
  • 3.Propositional vs. non-propositional predicates
    • 3.1Belief reports vs. directive, causative and implicative predicates
    • 3.2Desire predicates
  • 4.Generalization
    • 4.1Mood selection in Group 1
      • 4.1.1Factive, assertive and perceptive predicates
      • 4.1.2Doxastic predicates
      • 4.1.3Desire predicates
    • 4.2Mood selection in Group 2
    • 4.3A general description of mood selection in complement clauses in Persian
  • 5.Mood selection in Persian in view of the general study of mood selection
  • 6.Modifications of Schlenker’s theory for the Persian data
    • 6.1Indicative mood
    • 6.2Subjunctive mood
  • 7.Conclusion
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • Abbreviations
  • References
Published online: 14 April 2023
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/cilt.361.07nem
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Cited by (1)

Cited by one other publication

Grano, Thomas
2024. Intention reports and eventuality abstraction in a theory of mood choice. Linguistics and Philosophy 47:2 ► pp. 265 ff. DOI logo

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