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
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.
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:
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References
https://doi.org/10.1075/prag.18048.si