Vol. 55 No 1 (2017)
Articoli

The Accusative of Respect in Ancient Greek: Animacy Hierarchy, Semantic Roles and Event Type.

Domenica Romagno
Università di Pisa
Bio

Publiée 2017-05-24

Mots-clés

  • Greek accusative,
  • inalienable possession,
  • animacy hierarchy,
  • event type

Résumé

In the present paper, we address the function and the distribution of the so-called “accusative of respect” in ancient Greek, from Homer to the fifth century B.C.E. We show that the accusative of respect, which involves an inalienable possession relationship, represents a strategy to promote the most animate argument of the construction (i.e., the possessor) to the subject position and, consequently, to align syntactic roles and case marking with animacy hierarchy. Moreover, we show that a common principle underlies the distribution of the accusative of respect among different types of predicate and that this principle relies on specific semantic dimensions.

Références

  1. References
  2. Aikhenvald, A.Y., Dixon, R.M.W. and Onishi, M. (2001, eds.), Non-canonical marking of subjects and objects, Benjamins, Amsterdam/Philadelphia.
  3. Aikhenvald, A. & Dixon, R. (2013, eds.), Possession and ownership, Oxford University Press, Oxford.
  4. Alexiadou, A., Anagnostopoulou, E. & Everaert, M. (2004 eds.), The Unaccusativity Puzzle, Oxford University Press, Oxford.
  5. Barshi, I. & Payne, D. (1999, eds.), External possession, Benjamins, Amsterdam.
  6. Beavers, J. (2013), Aspectual classes and scales of change «Linguistics», 51, pp. 681-706.
  7. Benedetti, M. (2002), Radici, morfemi nominali e verbali: alla ricerca dell’inaccusatività indoeuropea, «Archivio Glottologico Italiano», 87, pp. 20-45.
  8. Benveniste, É. (1966), Actif et moyen dans le verbe, in Benveniste, É. (1966), Problèmes de linguistique générale, I, Paris, pp. 168-175. [«Journal de Psychologie», XVIII, 1950]
  9. Bertinetto, P. M. (1986), Tempo, aspetto e azione nel verbo italiano, Accademia della Crusca, Firenze.
  10. Bertinetto, P. M. & Squartini, M. (1995), An attempt at defining the class of gradual completion verbs in Bertinetto, P. M., Bianchi, V., Higginbotham, J. & Squartini, M. (1995, eds.): Temporal Reference, Aspect and Actionality, vol. I: Semantic and Syntactic Perspectives, Rosenberg & Sellier, Torino, pp. 11-26.
  11. Blake, B. (2002), Relational Grammar, Routledge, London/New York.
  12. Bossong, G. (1998), La marquage différentiel de l’objet dans les langues d’Europe, in Feuillet, J. (1998, ed.), Actance et Valence dans les langues de l’Europe, Mouton de Gruyter, Berlin/New York, pp. 193-258.
  13. Brugmann, K. (1910), Der sogenannte Akkusativ der Beziehung im Arischen, Griechischen, Lateinischen, Germanischen, «Indogermanische Forschungen», 27, pp. 121-151.
  14. Carruba, O. (1992), Le notazioni dell'agente animato nelle lingue anatoliche (e l'ergativo), in Carruba, O. Per una Grammatica Ittita / Towards a Hittite Grammar, Iuculano, Pavia, pp. 61-98.
  15. Chantraine, P. (1942), Grammaire Homérique, I, Klincksieck, Paris.
  16. Chantraine, P. DELG, Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue grecque (repr. 2009), Klincksieck, Paris.
  17. Chappel, H. & McGregor, W. (1996, eds.), The grammar of inalienability. A typological perspective of body part terms and the part-whole relation, de Gruyter, Berlin/New York.
  18. Chomsky, N. (1981), Lectures on Government and Binding, Foris Publications, Dordrecht.
  19. Comrie, B. (1978), Ergativity, in Lehmann, W.P. (1978, ed.), Syntactic Typology: Studies in the Phenomenology of Language, University of Texas Press, Austin, pp. 329–394.
  20. Courtney, E. (2004), The ‘Greek’ accusative, «The Classical Journal», 99, 4, pp. 425-431.
  21. Crespo, E. (1988), The semantic and syntactic functions of the accusative, in: A. Rijksbaron et al. (1988, eds.), In the Footsteps of Raphael Kühner, Gieben, Amsterdam, pp. 99-121.
  22. Dahl, Ö. & Fraurud, K. (1996), Animacy in grammar and discourse, in T. Fretheim & J.K. Gundel (1996, eds.), Reference and referent accessibility, Benjamins, Amsterdam/Philadelphia, pp.47-65.
  23. DeLancey, S. (1981), An interpretation of split ergativity and related patterns, «Language», 57, 3, pp. 626-657.
  24. de Swart, P., Lamers, M. & Lestrade, S. (2008), Animacy, argument structure and argument encoding, «Lingua», 118, pp. 131-140.
  25. Deal, A.R. (2013), Possessor raising, «Linguistic Inquiry», 44, 3, pp. 391-432.
  26. DeLancey, S. (1981), An interpretation of split ergativity and related patterns, «Language», 57, pp. 626-658.
  27. Delbrück, B. (1893), Vergleichende Syntax der Indogermanischen Sprachen. Vol. 1, Trübner, Strassburg.
  28. Delbrück, B. (1897), Vergleichende Syntax der Indogermanischen Sprachen. Vol. 2, Trübner, Strassburg.
  29. Dowty, D. (1979), Word Meaning and Montague Grammar, D. Reidel, Dordrecht.
  30. Dowty, D. (1991), Thematic Proto-Roles and Argument Selection, «Language», 67, pp. 547-619.
  31. Fillmore, (1968), The case for case, in: E. Bach and R.T. Harms (1968, eds.) Universals in Linguistic Theory, Holt, Rinehart and Winston, London, pp. 1-25.
  32. Foley, W.A. & Van Valin, R.D. Jr. (1984), Functional syntax and universal grammar, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
  33. Frei, H. (1939), Sylvie est jolie des yeux, in Sechehaye, A. et al. (1939, eds.), Mélanges de linguistique offerts à Charles Bally, Georg, Geneve, pp. 185-192.
  34. Gonda, J. (1975), Reflections on the Indo-European Medium I e II, in Gonda, J. (1975), Selected Studies, I, Leiden, pp. 107-163.
  35. Hahn, A. (1954), Partitive Apposition in Homer and the Greek Accusative, «Transactions and Proceedings of the American Philological Association», 85, pp. 197-289.
  36. Haspelmath, M. (1993), More on the typology of inchoative/causative alternation, in Comrie, B. & Polinsky, M. (1993, eds.), Causatives and Transitivity (Studies in Language Companion Series, 23), Benjamins, Amsterdam/Philadelphia, pp. 87-120.
  37. Haspelmath, M. (1999), External possession in a European areal perspective, in Barshi, I. & Payne, D. (1999, eds.), External possession, Benjamins, Amsterdam, pp. 109-35.
  38. Heine, B. (1997), Possession, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
  39. Jackendoff, R. (1976), Toward an Explanatory Semantic Representation, «Linguistic inquiry» 7, 1, pp. 89-150.
  40. Jackendoff, R. (1987), The Status of Thematic Relations in Linguistic Theory, «Linguistic inquiry» 18, 3, pp. 369-411.
  41. Jacquinod, B. (1989), Le double accusatif en grec d’Homère à la fin du V siècle avant J.C., Peeters, Louvain.
  42. Jacquinod, B. (2006), Le domaine de l’accusatif de relation, in, Crespo, E. et al. (2006, eds.), Word classes and related topics in Ancient Greek, Peeters, Louvain, pp. 59-68.
  43. Jacquinod, B. (2016), Entre tradition et modernité, «Syntaktika», 50, Numéro spécial: Hommage à Bernard Jacquinod, pp. 1-43.
  44. Kemmer, S. (1993), The middle voice, Benjamins, Amsterdam/Philadelphia.
  45. Kemmerer, D. (2003), Why can you hit someone on the arm but not break someone on the arm? A neuropsychological investigation of the English body-part possessor ascension, «Journal of Neurolinguistics», 16, pp. 16-36.
  46. König, E. and Haspelmath, M. (1997). Les constructions à possesseur externe dans les langues d'Europe, in Feuillet, J. (1997, ed.), Actance et valence dans les langues de l’Europe. (Empirical Approaches to Language Typology/EUROTYP, 20- 2.), Mouton de Gruyter, Berlin, pp. 525-606.
  47. La Roche, J. (1861), Homerische Studien. Der Akkusativ in Homer, Gerold, Wien.
  48. Lavidas, N. (2013), Accusative, in: Encyclopedia of Ancient Greek Language and Linguistics, Managing Editors Online Edition, http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/2214-448X_eagll_COM_00000004.
  49. Lazzeroni, R. (1990), La diatesi come categoria linguistica: studio sul medio indoeuropeo, «Studi e Saggi Linguistici», 30, pp. 1-22.
  50. Lazzeroni, R. (2002a), Ruoli tematici e genere grammaticale. Un aspetto della morfosintassi indoeuropea, «Archivio Glottologico Italiano», 87, 1, pp. 3-19.
  51. Lazzeroni, R. (2002b), Il nome greco del sogno e il neutro indoeuropeo, «Archivio Glottologico Italiano», 87, 2, pp. 145-162.
  52. Lazzeroni, R. (2014), L’attuazione di un mutamento: perfetto e medio in alcune lingue indoeuropee, «Archivio Glottologico Italiano» 99, pp. 129-154.
  53. Levin, B. (1993), English Verb Classes and Alternations: A Preliminary Investigation, University of Chicago Press, Chicago.
  54. Levin, B. & Rappaport Hovav, M. (1995), Unaccusativity. At the syntax/lexical semantics interface, The MIT Press, Cambridge/London.
  55. Lévy-Bruhl, L. (1916), L’expression de la possession dans les langues mélanesiénnes, «MSL», 19, pp. 96-104.
  56. Luraghi, S. (2003), On the meaning of prepositions and cases. The expression of semantic roles in Ancient Greek, Benjamins, Amsterdam/Philadelphia.
  57. Malchukov, A., Haspelmath, M. & Comrie, B. (2010), Ditransitive constructions: a typological overview, in: A. Malchukov, M. Haspelmath & B. Comrie (2010, eds.), Studies in Ditransitive Constructions. A Comparative Handbook, Mouton De Gruyter, Berlin & New York, pp. 1-64.
  58. Marouzeau, J. (1969), Lexique de la terminologie linguistique, 3rd ed., Geuthner, Paris.
  59. Meillet, A. & Vendryes, J. (1927), Traité de Grammaire comparée des langues classiques, Champion, Paris.
  60. Nichols, J. (1988), On alienable and inalienable possession, in Shipley, W. (1988, ed.), In honor of Mary Haas, Mouton de Gruyter, Berlin, pp. 475-521.
  61. Nichols, J.& Bickel, B. (2005), Possessive classification, in WALS, pp. 242-245.
  62. Perlmutter, D.M. (1978), Impersonal passives and the unaccusative hypothesis, Berkeley Linguistic Society, 4, pp. 157-189.
  63. Perlmutter, D. and Postal, P. (1983) The Relational Succession Law, in Perlmutter, D. (1983, ed.), Studies in Relational Grammar 1, University of Chicago Press, Chicago, pp. 30–80.
  64. XXXX (2002), Diatesi indoeuropea e verbi di movimento greci: alcune considerazioni sull’intransitività, «Archivio Glottologico Italiano» 87, pp.163-174.
  65. XXXX (2005a), La codificazione degli attanti nel Mediterraneo romanzo: accordo del participio e marcatura dell'oggetto, in «Archivio Glottologico Italiano» 90, pp. 90-113.
  66. XXXX (2005b), Il perfetto omerico. Diatesi, azionalità e ruoli tematici, FrancoAngeli, Milano.
  67. XXXX (2006), Gradiente di transitività e codifica dell'oggetto. Dall'accusativo preposizionale al partitivo, «Archivio Glottologico Italiano» 91, pp. 203-222.
  68. XXXX (2007), Canonical and Non-Canonical Marking of Core Arguments in European languages. A Typological Approach, in Ramat, P., Roma, E. (2007, eds.), Europe And The Mediterranean As Linguistic Areas. Convergencies from a historical and typological perspective, Benjamins, Amsterdam-Philadelphia, pp. 289-315.
  69. XXXX (2010), Anticausativi, passivi, riflessivi: considerazioni sul medio oppositivo, in Putzu, I., Paulis, G., Nieddu, G.F. & Cuzzolin, P. (2010, eds.), La morfologia del greco fra tipologia e diacronia, FrancoAngeli, Milano, pp. 430-441.
  70. XXXX (2014), The aorist in –ην in Homeric Greek: at the Morphosyntax/Semantics Interface. A Thorough Analysis of Iliad and Odyssey, «Archivio Glottologico Italiano» 99, pp. 155-186.
  71. Schwyzer, E. & Debrunner, A. (1950), Griechische Grammatik, Bd. II, Beck, München.
  72. Silverstein, M. (1976), Hierarchy of features and ergativity, in Dixon, R.M.W. (1976, ed.), Grammatical categories in Australian languages, Canberra (Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies), pp. 112-171.
  73. Sorace, A. (2000), Gradients in auxiliary selection with intransitive verbs, «Language», 76 pp. 859-890.
  74. Smyth, H.W. (1956), Greek Grammar (revised by Gordon M. Messing), Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA.
  75. Tenny, C.L. (1994), Aspectual Roles an the Syntax-Semantics Interface, Kluwer, Dordrecht.
  76. Van Valin, R. D. Jr. (1990), Semantica parameters of split intransitivity, «Language», 66, pp. 221-260.
  77. Van Valin, R. D. Jr. (2007), Exploring the Syntax-Semantics Interface, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
  78. Van Valin, R. D. Jr. & La Polla, R. J. (1997), Syntax: structure, meaning & function, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
  79. Vendler, Z. (1967), Linguistics in Philosophy, Cornell University Press, Ithaca (NY).
  80. WALS, The World Atlas of Language Structures, ed. by M. Haspelmath, M.S. Dryer, D. Gil and B. Comrie, Oxford University Press, Oxford.
  81. Winter, K. (1971), Formal frequency and linguistic change: some preliminary comments, «Folia Linguistica», 5, pp. 55-61.
  82. TEXTS AND TRANSLATIONS
  83. Andocides, On the Mysteries: Meidment, K.J. (1968), Andocides. Minor Attic Orators in two volumes 1, Antiphon Andocides, with an English translation by K. J. Maidment, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA and William Heinemann Ltd., London.
  84. Aristophanes, Clouds: Hickie, W.J. (1853), Aristophanes. Clouds. The Comedies of Aristophanes, by William James Hickie, vol. I, Bohn’s Classical Library, London.
  85. Aristophanes, Clouds: Hall, F.W. and Geldart, W.M. (1907), Aristophanes Comoediae, ed. by F.W. Hall and W.M. Geldart, vol. 2, Clarendon Press, Oxford.
  86. Demosthenes: Vince, C.A. & Vince, H. (1926), Demosthenes with an English translation by C. A. Vince and J. H. Vince, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA and William Heinemann Ltd. London.
  87. Euripides, Medea: Kovacs, D. (1994), Euripides, Vol. I, Cyclops, Alcestis, Medea, edited and translated by David Kovacs, Loeb Classical Library, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA.
  88. Euripides, Suppliants: Oates, W.J. & O'Neill, E. (1938), Euripides. The Complete Greek Drama, edited by Whitney J. Oates and Eugene O'Neill, Jr. in two volumes. Vol. 1. The Suppliants, translated by E. P. Coleridge, Random House, New York.
  89. Herodotus: Codley, A.D. (1920), Herodotus, with an English translation by A. D. Godley, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA.
  90. Homer, Iliad: Murray, A.T. (1924), Homer. The Iliad with an English Translation, 2 volumes, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA.
  91. Homer, Odyssey: Di Benedetto, V. (2010), Omero, Odissea, a cura di Vincenzo Di Benedetto, traduzione di Vincenzo Di Benedetto e Pierangelo Fabrini, BUR, Rizzoli, Milano.
  92. Homer, Odyssey: Murray, A.T. (1919), Homer. The Odyssey with an English Translation, 2 volumes, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA.
  93. IG, XIV = Inscriptiones Graecae Siciliae et Italiae, additis Galliae, Hispaniae, Britanniae, Germaniae inscriptionibus, ed. by Georg Kaibel, Berlin, 1890.
  94. Plato, Republic: Shorey, P. (1969), Plato in Twelve Volumes, Vols. 5 & 6, translated by Paul Shorey, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA and William Heinemann Ltd., London.
  95. Sophocles, Ajax: Jebb, R. (1893), Sophocles. The Ajax of Sophocles. Edited with introduction and notes, by Sir Richard Jebb, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
  96. Sophocles, Oedipus Tyrannus: Jebb, R. (1887), The Oedipus Tyrannus of Sophocles. Edited with introduction and notes by Sir Richard Jebb, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
  97. Xenophon, Anabasis: Brownson, C.L. (1961), Xenophon, Anabasis, Translated by Carleton L. Browson, Loeb Classical Library, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA.
  98. Xenophon, Memorabilia: Marchant, E.B. (1923), Xenophon in seven volumes, vol. IV, Translated by E. C. Marchant, Loeb Classical Library, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA and William Heinemann, Ltd., London.