Motion Sentences Research Articles

Fictive motion categories in modern Persian: A cognitive semantic approach

Motion is the cornerstone of cognitive structures which can be signified factively and fictively. Fictive motion events in English are classified into six categories (Talmy 2000a). While Iranian linguists have worked on verbs and typology of fictive motion, they almost failed to discover these categories. This study made an attempt to examine these categories by addressing the questions: What are fictive motion categories in Persian? To what extent is the speakers’ cognition influenced by the structure of the language they speak? What are Persian speakers’ preferable tenses? With this aim, using convenience sampling and qualitative research design, sixteen sentences extracted from Talmy’s model plus nine fillers were rendered into Persian. To avoid ordering effect, sixty participants were organized in a counterbalanced technique and accomplished completion and picture description tasks so that one half of the participants filled the completion task first and dealt with the picture description task later, while others acted in the reverse order. In completion task the participants performed accurately except the pattern paths category. However, they did not produce fictive motion sentences for the prospect, pattern, and advent paths, frame relative with factively stationary observer and site manifestation in the picture description task. They tended to adopt present tense in producing fictive motion sentences for the depicted categories. More importantly, the paper analyses the participants’ performance in completing the tasks related to the sixteen fictive motion categories and shows that cognition is influenced by the linguistic structure of the speakers. It is hoped that this study can be a contribution to the field of cognitive and semantic linguistics and also advance fictive motion studies in different languages.

STRUKTUR GERAK TARI JEPIN LANGKAH GERSIK PANTAI KOTA PONTIANAK KALIMANTAN BARAT

The background of this research is because of the researchers' concerns about the authenticity of the various movements of the Jepin Step Gersik Pantai Dance, which in the future does not rule out changes. Therefore the researchers described and documented the Jepin Step Gersik Pantai Dance in the form of writing, pictures and videos. The method in this study is a descriptive method with a qualitative research form and a choreographic approach. Data collection techniques in the form of observation, interviews, and documentation studies. The data validity testing technique used is the extension of observations and triangulation of sources. Based on the data analysis, it was concluded that the movement structure of the Jepin dance step Gersik Pantai Pontianak City, West Kalimantan is as follows: there are 3 variations consisting of coastal steps, Nyusor Arus, Nyusor Waves which are composed of 9 sub-ranges, namely Serimpik Steps with Hooks, Steps with Oblique Feet. , Body Leaning Steps, Bunga Lampai Bunga Serpai Steps, Hanging Pull Steps, Pencak Punch Steps, Steps to Avoid People's Punches, Rope Weaving Steps, and Kembang Rifle Steps. The Jepin Step Gersik Pantai dance consists of 154 motion motifs, 37 motion phrases, 7 motion sentences, and 1 movement cluster which forms a complete movement unit in the Jepin Step Gersik Pantai dance

Development of Listening Skills Evaluation Instruments | Pengembangan Instrumen Evaluasi Keterampilan Menyimak

This study aims to determine the development of listening skills evaluation instruments students of class VIII MTs PP. Muallimin Muhammadiyah Bangkinang City. This research method is descriptive qualitative. This study describes the development of a listening skill evaluation instrument. The results showed that to measure listening skills, apart from being seen from the side of communication, listening skills can also be measured through evaluation of learning with instruments or various tests. In maharahh istima’ there area 3 levels, namely beginner level (mubtadi’), intermediate level (muttawassit) and advanced level (mutaqoddim). The Arabic listening skill test is divided into two parts, namely: a language sound test (iktibar al-ashwat) and a test for understanding the text heard (fahm al- masmu’). The language sound test includes repeating the spoken word, identifying sounds, distinguishing sounds of similar letters, identifying in terms of meaning, identifying sounds based on nahwu rules, and distinguishing between muzakkar and mu’annas. Meanwhile, what is included is an understanding test of what is heard, namely responding to speech in the form of motion sentences, understanding a simple text in the form of dialogue, understanding a simple text in narrative form and writing numbers.

Struktur Gerak Tari Mulo Pado Di Kanagarian Padang Magek Kecamatan Rambatan Kabupaten Tanah Datar Sumatera Barat

This article aims to describe and analyze the structure of the Mulo Pado Dance, in KaNagarian Padang Magek. This research is a qualitative research, the object of research is the Mulo Pado Dance in Kanagarian Padang Magek. Data were collected through literature study, observation, interviews, and documentation, assisted by supporting instruments such as stationery, and photo and video cameras, as well as audio-visual equipment. The data were analyzed in the following stages, namely collecting data, reducing data or selecting data, presenting data, and testing data and concluding the results of the analysis. The results of the study are that the basic elements of the Mulo Pado Dance movement have basic elements related to attitude and movement, starting from the head, body, hands and feet. From the relationship between the basic elements, it produces motifs. There are 55 motifs, 19 phrases, 9 motion sentences, and 1 cluster in the hierarchical relationship of the Mulo Pado dance. It was found that there was a syntagmatic relationship in the structure of the Mulo Pado dance movement. Syntagmatic relations can be interpreted as a system of relationships such as links, which cannot be separated or exchanged between one another.

Pasihan Mataraman: Bentuk dan Struktur Gerak Tari Asmara Hastungkara

Research on the form of Pasih Asmara Hastungkara Dance by Slamet aims to describe the form and structure of the dance. This dance is considered fascinating because it is located in Surakarta but with a Yogyakarta style of movement. This study uses qualitative research methods, with data collection techniques carried out are observation, interviews, and literature study. It aims to obtain as much data as possible, then analyze and describe it in-depth to answer the problem of the form and structure of Slamet's Pasihan Asmara Hastungkara Dance. Form analysis uses the theoretical basis of Suzane K. Langer, then theoretically explained using Slamet's opinion to reveal its constituent elements. Furthermore, to analyze the structure, using the theory of Anya Peterson Royce, then grammatically described the arrangement of movements based on the opinion expressed by Ben Suharto.The study results obtained an explanation of the form and structure of the Pasihan Asmara Hastungkara Dance by Slamet. The shape of the Pasihan Asmara Hastungkara Dance by Slamet cannot be separated from several of its constituent elements, namely dancers, motion, rhythm, expression, make-up, clothing, and the venue for the performance. Structurally, this dance movement consists of motion motifs, motion phrases, motion sentences, and groups of motion sentences. Overall, the costumes, variety, motion, accompaniment, and structure of the presentation show that Asmara Hastungkara Dance is a dance work with the Yogyakarta style. However, in the production, the impression is present in the Surakarta style pasihan dance due to the dancers' ability who have a Surakarta style dance background. In the muryani section, the clothing and beksan jogedan adopted the Surakarta style movements, which is a distinctive feature for the Pasihan Asmara Hastungkara Dance by Slamet. ABSTRACTResearch on the form of Pasih Asmara Hastungkara Dance by Slamet aims to describe the form and structure of the dance. This dance is considered fascinating because it is located in Surakarta but with a Yogyakarta style of movement. This study uses qualitative research methods, with data collection techniques carried out are observation, interviews, and literature study. It aims to obtain as much data as possible, then analyze and describe it in-depth to answer the problem of the form and structure of Slamet's Pasihan Asmara Hastungkara Dance. Form analysis uses the theoretical basis of Suzane K. Langer, then theoretically explained using Slamet's opinion to reveal its constituent elements. Furthermore, to analyze the structure, using the theory of Anya Peterson Royce, then grammatically described the arrangement of movements based on the opinion expressed by Ben Suharto.The study results obtained an explanation of the form and structure of the Pasihan Asmara Hastungkara Dance by Slamet. The shape of the Pasihan Asmara Hastungkara Dance by Slamet cannot be separated from several of its constituent elements, namely dancers, motion, rhythm, expression, make-up, clothing, and the venue for the performance. Structurally, this dance movement consists of motion motifs, motion phrases, motion sentences, and groups of motion sentences. Overall, the costumes, variety, motion, accompaniment, and structure of the presentation show that Asmara Hastungkara Dance is a dance work with the Yogyakarta style. However, in the production, the impression is present in the Surakarta style pasihan dance due to the dancers' ability who have a Surakarta style dance background. In the muryani section, the clothing and beksan jogedan adopted the Surakarta style movements, which is a distinctive feature for the Pasihan Asmara Hastungkara Dance by Slamet.

How do you smile along a path?

AbstractThis paper argues that a core component of root meaning is the distinction between body parts versus the body conceived as a whole. This distinction is shown to be relevant in the acceptability of motion sentences in English with whole-body roots likedance$\sqrt {\textsc{dance}} $and body-part roots likesmile$\sqrt {\textsc{smile}} $. In keeping with the assumption that roots lack syntactic category, I argue that verbal roots occur freely in syntactic structures but that some root-structure combinations are degraded (or unacceptable), and that this is due to an incompatibility between conceptual root content and interpreted syntactic structure.

Fictive Motion and Intersubjectivity in Phenomenology

This paper tries to approach fictive motion from the perspective of phenomenology. Different from the research of Talmy, Langacker, Lakoff and Turner, Fauconnier, and Matlock on fictive motion, whose views are popular in this field, the concept of intersubjectivity in phenomenology is introduced, which gives new insights into fictive motion. Intersubjectivity can give more plausible explanations to fictive motion and is regarded as a cognitive motivation of fictive motion sentences.

Listening for Imagery by Native Speakers and L2 Learners

Slobin’s thinking-for-speaking (TFS) hypothesis suggests that speakers are habitually attuned to aspects of an event that are readily codable in the language while they are formulating speech. This TFS process varies considerably cross-linguistically and can be observed in all forms of production and reception including listening for understanding or mental imagery. This study explored whether second language learners (L2) engage in mental simulation of deictic paths while processing motion language online. Forty Chinese native speakers (NSs) and eighty English-speaking learners of L2 Chinese participated in an online judgment task. They listened to motion sentences containing deictic paths while simultaneously watching a motion display of a toward- or away-direction. Since simultaneous presentation of the sentence and the display of the same directionality require the same neural structures to process competing inputs, interference effects are expected and the reaction time to respond should take longer. Results of repeated measures ANOVA show interference effects for the NSs, but not for the L2 learners of both heritage and foreign language backgrounds, suggesting that while the NSs were sensitive to the deictic cues and automatically performed mental simulations of the deictic paths, the L2 learners’ listening for imagery did not pattern with the NSs. The results added to our understanding of L2 learners’ development of TFS in the new modality of listening for imagery.

Auditory and motion metaphors have different scalp distributions: an ERP study.

While many links have been established between sensory-motor words used literally (kick the ball) and sensory-motor regions of the brain, it is less clear whether metaphorically used words (kick the habit) also show such signs of “embodiment.” Additionally, not much is known about the timing or nature of the connection between language and sensory-motor neural processing. We used stimuli divided into three figurativeness conditions—literal, metaphor, and anomalous—and two modality conditions—auditory (Her limousine was a privileged snort) and motion (The editorial was a brass-knuckle punch). The conditions were matched on a large number of potentially confounding factors including cloze probability. The electroencephalographic response to the final word of each sentence was measured at 64 electrode sites on the scalp of 22 participants and event-related potentials (ERPs) calculated. Analysis revealed greater amplitudes for metaphorical than literal sentences in both 350–500 ms and 500–650 ms timeframes. Results supported the possibility of different neural substrates for motion and auditory sentences. Greater differences for motion sentences were seen in the left posterior and left central electrode sites than elsewhere on the scalp. These findings are consistent with a sensory-motor neural categorization of language and with the integration of modal and amodal information during the N400 and P600 timeframes.

Real and Fictive Motion Processing in Polish L2 Users of English and Monolinguals: Evidence for Different Conceptual Representations

ABSTRACTWe examine cross‐linguistic influence in the processing of motion sentences by L2 users from an embodied cognition perspective. The experiment employs a priming paradigm to test two hypotheses based on previous action and motion research in cognitive psychology. The first hypothesis maintains that conceptual representations of motion are embodied by sensory and motor systems (Glenberg & Kaschak, 2002; Zwaan & Taylor, 2006) and predicts that linguistic descriptions of motion will be susceptible to conceptual priming effects. The second hypothesis assumes that the processing of fictive motion sentences, such as The road runs through the forest (cf. Talmy, 2000a), involves additional mental simulation of motion (Matlock, 2004b; Richardson & Matlock, 2007) and predicts that fictive motion will be processed more slowly than real motion. The participants were groups of Polish and English monolinguals and Polish L2 users of English, who were students in an English‐medium university program. Sentence meaningfulness judgment and response time data were collected from the monolinguals and the L2 users tested in both languages. Sentence meaningfulness judgments were examined to see how the participants represent motion in language and response time data were analyzed for evidence of conceptual processing. The results showed expected differences in response times to various sentence types in all groups, but the priming effect was not observed in Polish monolinguals and only selectively present in the L2 users responding in both languages. The results of our experiment indicate that fictive motion processing is both embodied in physical experience of motion and modified by language.

She runs, the road runs, my mind runs, bad blood runs between us: Literal and figurative motion verbs: An fMRI study

The role of sensory–motor components in language processing is a central topic in cognitive neuroscience. Recent studies showed that the processing of action words recruits cortical motor regions involved in the planning and execution of the described actions. However, it remains unclear to what extent the abstract versus concrete nature of the described motion modulates the activation of premotor and motor areas and how the agent affects this modulation.Here, we contribute to this line of research by investigating the comprehension of motion verbs, used in a literal versus figurative context, in an fMRI study with normal subjects in which the somatotopy of activation was investigated by presenting motion verbs that involve upper vs. lower limbs. A set of sentences including a motion verb used in a literal, fictive (only lower limb), metaphorical, or idiomatic way was studied. Cognition verbs were also included as control. We found that figurative sentences compared to literal ones produced a greater activation of a bilateral fronto-temporal network, in line with previous studies. Moreover, fictive motion activated a more posterior region, involving primary visual areas and motion sensitive visual areas, but also the left middle frontal gyrus. Crucially, the left precentral gyrus was activated in the case of the upper limb for literal and metaphorical motion sentence types, but not idiomatic sentences. For fictive motion, we found a lower limb-related somatotopic effect, also present for literal sentences, while the evidence for metaphorical and idiomatic sentences was less strong. In conclusion, our results confirm that premotor areas are activated by language understanding, but to a different degree depending on the specific literal versus figurative context in which motion verbs appear. Therefore, they support weak embodied views suggesting that the motor system enhances the comprehension of linguistically encoded actions.

Actual and non-actual motion: why experientialist semantics needs phenomenology (and vice versa)

Experientialist semantics has contributed to a broader notion of linguistic meaning by emphasizing notions such as construal, perspective, metaphor, and embodiment, but has suffered from an individualist concept of meaning and has conflated experiential motivations with conventional semantics. We argue that these problems can be redressed by methods and concepts from phenomenology, on the basis of a case study of sentences of non-actual motion such as “The mountain range goes all the way from Mexico to Canada.” Through a phenomenological reanalysis of proposals of Talmy, Langacker, and Matlock, we show that non-actual motion is both experientially and linguistically non-unitary. At least three different features of human consciousness—enactive perception, visual scanning, and imagination—constitute experiential motivations for non-actual motion sentences, and each of these could be related to phenomenological analyses of human intentionality. The second problem is addressed by proposing that the experiential motivations of non-actual motion sentences can be viewed as sedimented through “passive” processes of acquisition and social transmission and that this implies an interactive loop between experience and language, yielding losses in terms of original experience, but gains in terms of communal signification. Something that is underestimated by phenomenology is that what is sedimented are not only intentional objects such as states of affairs, but aspects of how they are given, i.e., the original, temporal, bodily experiences themselves. Since cognitive semantics has emphasized such aspects of meaning, we suggest that phenomenology can itself benefit from experientialist semantics, especially when it turns its focus from prepredicative to predicative, linguistic intentionality.

Motion and actions in language: Semantic representations in occipito-temporal cortex

Understanding verbs typically activates posterior temporal regions and, in some circumstances, motion perception area V5. However, the nature and role of this activation remains unclear: does language alone indeed activate V5? And are posterior temporal representations modality-specific motion representations, or supra-modal motion-independent event representations? Here, we address these issues by investigating human and object motion sentences compared to corresponding state descriptions. We adopted the blank screen paradigm, which is known to encourage visual imagery, and used a localizer to identify V5 and temporal structures responding to motion. Analyses in each individual brain suggested that language modulated activity in the posterior temporal lobe but not within V5 in most participants. Moreover, posterior temporal structures strongly responded to both motion sentences and human static sentences. These results suggest that descriptive language alone need not recruit V5 and instead engages more schematic event representations in temporal cortex encoding animacy and motion.

Motor activation in literal and non-literal sentences: does time matter?

Despite the impressive amount of evidence showing involvement of the sensorimotor systems in language processing, important questions remain unsolved among which the relationship between non-literal uses of language and sensorimotor activation. The literature did not yet provide a univocal answer on whether the comprehension of non-literal, abstract motion sentences engages the same neural networks recruited for literal sentences. A previous TMS study using the same experimental materials of the present study showed activation for literal, fictive and metaphoric motion sentences but not for idiomatic ones. To evaluate whether this may depend on insufficient time for elaborating the idiomatic meaning, we conducted a behavioral experiment that used a sensibility judgment task performed by pressing a button either with a hand finger or with a foot. Motor activation is known to be sensitive to the action-congruency of the effector used for responding. Therefore, all other things being equal, significant differences between response emitted with an action-congruent or incongruent effector (foot vs. hand) may be attributed to motor activation. Foot-related action verbs were embedded in sentences conveying literal motion, fictive motion, metaphoric motion or idiomatic motion. Mental sentences were employed as a control condition. foot responses were significantly faster than finger responses but only in literal motion sentences. We hypothesize that motor activation may arise in early phases of comprehension processes (i.e., upon reading the verb) for then decaying as a function of the strength of the semantic motion component of the verb.

Motion-sensitive cortex and motion semantics in American Sign Language

Previous research indicates that motion-sensitive brain regions are engaged when comprehending motion semantics expressed by words or sentences. Using fMRI, we investigated whether such neural modulation can occur when the linguistic signal itself is visually dynamic and motion semantics is expressed by movements of the hands. Deaf and hearing users of American Sign Language (ASL) were presented with signed sentences that conveyed motion semantics ("The deer walked along the hillside.") or were static, conveying little or no motion ("The deer slept along the hillside."); sentences were matched for the amount of visual motion. Motion-sensitive visual areas (MT+) were localized individually in each participant. As a control, the Fusiform Face Area (FFA) was also localized for the deaf participants. The whole-brain analysis revealed static (locative) sentences engaged regions in left parietal cortex more than motion sentences, replicating previous results implicating these regions in comprehending spatial language for sign languages. Greater activation was observed in the functionally defined MT+ ROI for motion than static sentences for both deaf and hearing signers. No modulation of neural activity by sentence type was observed in the FFA. Deafness did not affect modulation of MT+ by motion semantics, but hearing signers exhibited stronger neural activity in MT+ for both sentence types, perhaps due to differences in exposure and/or use of ASL. We conclude that top down modulation of motion-sensitive cortex by linguistic semantics is not disrupted by the visual motion that is present in sign language sentences.

Literal, fictive and metaphorical motion sentences preserve the motion component of the verb: A TMS study

We used Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) to assess whether reading literal, non-literal (i.e., metaphorical, idiomatic) and fictive motion sentences modulates the activity of the motor system. Sentences were divided into three segments visually presented one at a time: the noun phrase, the verb and the final part of the sentence. Single pulse-TMS was delivered at the end of the sentence over the leg motor area in the left hemisphere and motor evoked potentials (MEPs) were recorded from the right gastrocnemius and tibialis anterior muscles. MEPs were larger when participants were presented with literal, fictive and metaphorical motion sentences than with idiomatic motion or mental sentences. These results suggest that the excitability of the motor system is modulated by the motor component of the verb, which is preserved in fictive and metaphorical motion sentences.

Modulation of BOLD Response in Motion-sensitive Lateral Temporal Cortex by Real and Fictive Motion Sentences

Can linguistic semantics affect neural processing in feature-specific visual regions? Specifically, when we hear a sentence describing a situation that includes motion, do we engage neural processes that are part of the visual perception of motion? How about if a motion verb was used figuratively, not literally? We used fMRI to investigate whether semantic content can "penetrate" and modulate neural populations that are selective to specific visual properties during natural language comprehension. Participants were presented audiovisually with three kinds of sentences: motion sentences ("The wild horse crossed the barren field."), static sentences, ("The black horse stood in the barren field."), and fictive motion sentences ("The hiking trail crossed the barren field."). Motion-sensitive visual areas (MT+) were localized individually in each participant as well as face-selective visual regions (fusiform face area; FFA). MT+ was activated significantly more for motion sentences than the other sentence types. Fictive motion sentences also activated MT+ more than the static sentences. Importantly, no modulation of neural responses was found in FFA. Our findings suggest that the neural substrates of linguistic semantics include early visual areas specifically related to the represented semantics and that figurative uses of motion verbs also engage these neural systems, but to a lesser extent. These data are consistent with a view of language comprehension as an embodied process, with neural substrates as far reaching as early sensory brain areas that are specifically related to the represented semantics.

Simulating Motion in Figurative Language Comprehension~!2009-06-09~!2009-07-02~!2010-07-06~!

In this visual world eye tracking study we explored simulation of fictive motion during language comprehension in figurative sentences in Hindi. Eye movement measures suggest that language comprehenders gaze longer at visual scenes on hearing fictive motion sentences compared to their literal counterparts. The results support previous findings in English and provide cross linguistic evidence for the simulation and embodied views of language processing. We discuss the findings in the light of neuroimaging models and language vision interaction.

Simulating Motion in Figurative Language Comprehension

In this visual world eye tracking study we explored simulation of fictive motion during language comprehension in figurative sentences in Hindi. Eye movement measures suggest that language comprehenders gaze longer at visual scenes on hearing fictive motion sentences compared to their literal counterparts. The results support previous findings in English and provide cross linguistic evidence for the simulation and embodied views of language processing. We discuss the findings in the light of neuroimaging models and language vision interaction.

Online Fictive Motion Understanding: An Eye-Movement Study With Hindi

Two visual world eye-tracking studies explored the online simulation of illusory motion during comprehension of sentences containing fictive motion verbs in Hindi during perception (Experiment 1) and in imagery (Experiment 2). Experiment 1 was designed to see the effect of sentence structure on magnitude and time course of simulation motion as reflected in eye movements. Fixational eye movement data revealed significant gaze durations and number of fixations during comprehension of fictive motion sentences compared to a nonfictive motion sentence and an effect of sentence type. Experiment 2 used a blank-screen paradigm to measure motion simulation in the absence of a visual scene. However, there was no evidence of motion simulation for fictive motion sentences as reflected in eye-movement measures. The results indicate that figurative expressions, that is, fictive motion sentences, induce illusory motion simulation during active perception but not during imagery. Furthermore, the results indicate an effect of sentence structure on observed simulation.