Japanese no datta and no de atta in written discourse
Past forms of no da and no de aru
The present study examines no datta and no de atta, which are the past-tense forms of no da and no de aru in written Japanese. The analysis demonstrates that the choice between the present-tense no da/no de aru and the past-tense no datta/no de atta does not affect the temporal interpretation when they follow past-tense morphemes. However, a close examination has also revealed that the past-tense no datta/no de atta cannot follow a past-tense morpheme when the ongoing mode of discourse is non-narrative, while no da/no de aru and no datta/no de atta are both available options when the discourse is in the mode of narrative. The present study also suggests that when no datta/no de atta is used in narrative, it indicates that the stated information is less impactful, less dramatic, and more temporally distant, compared to the cases where no da/no de aru is used.
Article outline
- 1.Introduction
- 1.1
N(o) da and no de aru in Japanese
- 1.2
No datta and no de atta: Past-tense forms of no da and no de aru
- 2.The present study
- 3.Data analysis
- 3.1Present-tense morpheme + no datta/no de atta
- 3.2Past-tense morpheme + no datta/no de atta
- 4.Mode of discourse and the past-tense no datta/no de atta
- 5.
No da/no de aru no vs. no datta/no de atta in narrative discourse
- 6.Conclusion
- Notes
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References