Cover not available
Article published In:
Functions of Language
Vol. 23:3 (2016) ► pp.361–383

Impersonal clauses in Chinese

| Central China Normal University

This article deals with impersonal clauses in Chinese (ICiCs) (e.g. Táishàng chàngzhe xì, 台上唱着戏). These are called pseudo-existentials in the literature, as they resemble typical existentials both in form and in meaning. I argue that ICiCs are impersonal, ergatively oriented, and existential. They are impersonal in that the actor of the process is typically demoted to the end position or completely omitted; ergatively oriented in that they express the meaning of happening instead of doing, and existential in that they present the existence of events with reference to some location realized by the initial locative nominal group. These three semantic aspects are in tune with each other and are realized by the structure NGL ^ VG ^ NG, in which VG ^ NG constitutes the event, whose existence is expressed through its configuration with the initial NGL.

Published online: 16 February 2017
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/fol.23.3.04wan
References (34)
Abraham, Werner & Elisabeth Leiss
2006 Personal and impersonal passive: Definite vs. indefinite diathesis. Transactions of the Philological Society 104 (2). 259–296. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Afonso, Susana
2008 Existentials as impersonalizing devices: The case of European Portuguese. Transactions of the Philological Society 106(2). 180–215. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Cáo, Bóhán
1956 Zhǔyǔ bīnyǔ wèntí suígǎn (‘Reflections on the issue of subject and object’). In Editorial Board of Chinese Language (eds.), Hànyǔ-de Zhǔyǔ Bīnyǔ Wèntí (‘The Issue of Subject and Object in Chinese’), 192–198. Beijing: Zhōnghuá Shūjú.Google Scholar
Davidse, Kristin
1992 Transitivity/Ergativity: The Janus-headed grammar of actions and events. In Martin Davies & Louise Ravelli (eds.), Advances in systemic linguistics: Recent theory and practice, 105–135. London: Pinter.Google Scholar
1998 On transitivity and ergativity in English, or on the need for dialogue between schools. In Johan van der Auwera, Frank Durieux, & Ludo Lejeune (eds.), English as a human language: To honour Louis Goossens, 3–26. Munich: Lincom Europa.Google Scholar
Dixon, R.M.W
1994 Ergativity. Cambridge: CUP. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Fan, Fanglian
1963 Cúnzàijù (‘Existential sentences’). Zhōngguó Yǔwén (‘Chinese Language’) 51. 386–393.Google Scholar
Fù, Zǐdōng
1956 Zhǔcí hé bīncí (‘Subject and object’). In Editorial Board of Chinese Language (eds.), Hànyǔ-de Zhǔyǔ Bīnyǔ Wèntí (‘The Issue of Subject and Object in Chinese’), 76–96. Beijing: Zhōnghuá Shūjú.Google Scholar
Guo, Jimao
1990 Lǐngzhǔshǔbīnjù (‘Sentences with possessor as subject and possessum as object’). Zhōngguó Yǔwén (‘Chinese Language’) 11. 24–29.Google Scholar
Halliday, M.A.K
1968 Notes on transitivity and theme in English: Part 3. Journal of Linguistics 41. 179–215. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
1994 An introduction to Functional Grammar, 2nd edn. London: Arnold.Google Scholar
Halliday, M.A.K. & James R. Martin
1993 Writing science. London: The Falmer Press.Google Scholar
Halliday, M.A.K. & Christian M.I.M. Matthiessen
1999 Construing experience through meaning: A language-based approach to cognition. London: Cassell.Google Scholar
2004 An introduction to Functional Grammar, 3rd edn. London: Arnold.Google Scholar
Langacker, Ronald W
1991 Foundations of Cognitive Grammar, Vol.2: Descriptive application. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.Google Scholar
Malchukov, Andrej & Akio Ogawa
2011 Towards a typology of impersonal constructions: A semantic map approach. In Andrej Malchukov & Anna Siewierska (eds.), Impersonal constructions: A cross-linguistic perspective, 19–56. Amsterdam: Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Pan, Haihua & Jingquan Han
2005 Xiǎnxìng fēibīngé dòngcí jiégòude jùfǎ yánjiū (‘The Syntax of Surface Unaccusative Constructions’). Yǔyán Yánjiū (‘Language Research’) 31. 1–13.Google Scholar
Ren, Ying
2009 Cóng gàiniànde guānlián dào gòushì-de guānlián: Yě cóng Wáng Miǎn sǐle fùqīnde shēngchéng fāngshì shuōqǐ (‘How the sentence ‘Wáng Miǎn sǐ-le fùqīn’ is generated: From the correlation of concepts to that of constructions’). Shìjiè Hànyǔ Jiāoxué (‘Chinese Teaching in the World’) 31. 308–321.
Shi, Yuzhi
2007 Yǔyánxué jiǎshèzhōngde zhèngjù wèntí (‘On evidence of linguistic hypothesis’). Yǔyán Kēxué (‘Linguistic Sciences’) 41. 39–51.Google Scholar
Siewierska, Anna
2008 Introduction: Impersonalization from a subject-centred vs. agent-centred perspective. Transactions of the Philological Society 106(2). 115–137. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Song, Yuzhu
2007 Xiàndài Hànyǔ Cúnzàijù (‘Existential sentences in Modern Chinese’): Beijing: Yuwen Chubanshe.Google Scholar
Wang, Yong & Jie Xue
2010 Hànyǔ cúnzàijùde gòushì yǔfǎ yánjiū (‘A Construction Grammar study of the Chinese existential sentence’). Yǔyán Yánjiū (‘Language Research’) 31. 62–70.Google Scholar
2013 A systemic typology of possessive and existential constructions. Functions of Language 20(1). 1–30. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Wang, Yong & Yingfang Zhou
2011 Cúnzàijù zhǔyǔ de lèixíngxué yánjiū (‘A typological study of the subject in the existential construction’). Wàiyǔ Jiàoxué yǔ Yánjiū (‘Foreign Language Teaching and Research’) 21. 163–182.Google Scholar
2014a Xiàndài hànyǔ zhōngde shìjiànlèi cúnzàijù (‘Event-existentials in Modern Chinese’). Wàiguóyǔ ( ‘Journal of Foreign Languages’) 31. 71–82.Google Scholar
2014b A functional study of event-existentials in Modern Chinese. Functional Linguistics 11:7. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Xu, Jie
1999 Liǎngzhǒng bǎoliú bīnyǔ jùshì jí xiāngguān jùfǎ lǐlùn wèntí (‘Some theoretical issues of the two types of Chinese retained-object construction’). Dāngdài Yǔyánxué (‘Contemporary Linguistics’) 11. 16–29.Google Scholar
Xing, Fuyi
1996 Hànyǔ Yǔfǎxué (‘Chinese Grammar’). Changchun: North-East Normal University Press.Google Scholar
Yamamoto, Mutsumi
2006 Agency and impersonality: Their linguistic and cultural manifestations. Amsterdam: Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Yi, Yan & Anna Siewierska
2011 Referential impersonal constructions in Mandarin. In Andrej Malchukov & Anna Siewierska (eds.), Impersonal constructions: A cross-linguistic perspective, 547–580. Amsterdam: Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Zhu, Dexi
1980 Xiàndài Hànyǔ Yǔfǎ Yánjiū (‘Studies on the Grammar of Modern Chinese’). Beijing: Commercial Press.Google Scholar
1981 Yǔfǎ Jiǎngyì. (‘Lecture Notes on Chinese Grammar’). Beijing: Commercial Press.Google Scholar
1985 Yǔfǎ Dáwèn (‘Dialogues on Chinese Grammar’). Beijing: Commercial Press.Google Scholar
Ziv, Yael
1982 Getting more mileage out of existentials in English. Linguistics 201. 747–762.Google Scholar
Cited by (2)

Cited by 2 other publications

Xiang, Dajun
2024. The construction of “Wangmian Si-le Fuqin” in Mandarin Chinese: A Cardiff Grammar approach. Language Sciences 104 ► pp. 101643 ff. DOI logo
Wang, Yong
2021. Entity- vs. event-existentials: A new typology. Australian Journal of Linguistics 41:2 ► pp. 195 ff. DOI logo

This list is based on CrossRef data as of 2 july 2024. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.