Exploring cross-linguistic congruence: The case of two stance frames in English and Norwegian

Abstract

This paper explores the degree of congruence between two closely related languages – English and Norwegian – in a case study of the two stance frames it BE * that and det VÆRE * at. It is first established that the open slot in the frames is most typically occupied by an adjective, thus steering this investigation towards a more detailed comparison of it BE ADJ that and det VÆRE ADJ at. The adjective determines the evaluative orientation of the frames, and, following Lemke (1998), the present study operates with seven categories to establish the attitudes and evaluations present in the frames. The study, which draws on material from a bidirectional translation corpus – the English-Norwegian Parallel Corpus+, reveals that the degree of congruence between the frames to some extent seems to depend on the attitude/evaluation expressed. Furthermore, the study reveals that there is 45% non-congruence between the languages. The translational correspondence network of the English and Norwegian patterns is broad, showing that there are a number of linguistic resources in the two languages that can be used to express attitudinal/evaluative stance. It is concluded that, while English and Norwegian are shown to have similar means of expressing attitudinal meanings with the frames, the two languages have their preferred ways of doing so both in terms of individual adjectives and attitudinal/evaluative class.