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Article published In:
Irregular perspective shifts and perspective persistence: Discourse-oriented and theoretical approaches
Edited by Caroline Gentens, María Sol Sansiñena, Stef Spronck and An Van linden
[Pragmatics 29:2] 2019
► pp. 277–301

Solega defenestration

Underspecified perspective shift in an unwritten Dravidian language

| University of Cologne |
ORCID logo | University of Helsinki

Based on original fieldwork, this paper discusses reported speech and thought constructions in Solega (Dravidian). Following McGregor (1994) we claim that reported speech can only be comprehensively characterised if it is identified as a syntactic construction in its own right, a construction we label a framing construction. In natural discourse, elements of the framing construction, particularly clauses referring to the reporting event, may be left unexpressed. We term framing constructions without a matrix clause ‘defenestrated clauses’. While defenestrated clauses in Solega leave perspective shifts underspecified, they include several distinctive strategies that allow us to reconsider the role of morpho-syntactic marking in the expression of perspective shifts.

Keywords: reported speech, quotation, optional marking, Solega (Dravidian)
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Field site and methods
    • 2.1Solega speakers
    • 2.2Data
  • 3.Solega reported speech
    • 3.1Solega reported speech (RS) practices
    • 3.2The canonical RS construction and its variations
    • 3.3Un(der)specified reported speech
  • 4.Semantics of reported speech syntax
  • 5.Defenestration
  • 6.Conclusion
  • Notes
  • Glosses:
  • References
Available under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC) 4.0 license.
Published online: 25 March 2019
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/prag.18048.si
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