Typological and Diachronic Motivations for Syntax and Semantics of Chinese Resultative Construction

Abstract

Motivations for syntax and semantics of Chinese Resultative Construction have been primarily attributed to thematic operations, syntactic movements or argument raising within its components by previous researches. However, such an attribution has resulted in not inconsiderable theoretical and practical issues and controversies, e.g., over generation, existence of quite a few exceptions, unlicensed violations of theoretical rules and principles. This paper re-examined motivations for syntax and semantics of Chinese Resultative Construction from typological and diachronic perspectives within the framework of Construction Grammar. It is argued that syntax and semantics of Chinese Resultative Construction are typologically motivated by Causative Constructions in the sense that its syntactic and semantic properties are inherited from different kinds Causative Constructions while they are diachronically motivated in the senses that they are historically inherited from Serial Verb Construction [V V] due to semantic shift and disyllabification. This paper has provided totally different explanations for syntax and semantics of Chinese Resultative Construction by focusing on their gestalt properties, in stark contrast to previous emphasis on bottom-up motivations from components of Chinese Resultative Construction, which will prove a breakthrough for further research on syntax-semantics interface of Chinese Resultative Construction.