Browsing by Subject "reference"

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
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    A denotation-driven reanalysis of the Spanish neuter pronominal system
    (Elsevier, 2018-10) Zulaica-Hernández, Iker; World Languages and Cultures, School of Liberal Arts
    This paper offers an analysis of the Spanish neuter pronominal system that complements the system found in traditional Spanish grammars. A more descriptively and heuristically adequate analysis is proposed that includes pro-forms widely ignored in previous accounts such as phonetically null pronouns and explains a wider range of neuter reference uses, denotations and constructions. I base my analysis on two main basic assumptions. First, I claim that some neuter pronouns can be used either referentially or non-referentially. Following Moltmann's (2013) semantic analysis of presentational pronouns, I argue that the pronoun ‘lo’ that we find in free relative constructions does not have a referential denotation but only a presentational denotation. Second, all neuter pronouns share a common semantic specification as [−individual] expressions in contrast with non-neuter pronouns, which are unspecified for the same feature. This specification allows us to establish a clear division of labor between the so-called neuter and non-neuter reference in Spanish at the pronominal level. I also claim that neuter pronouns have the ability to shift the type of the entity referred to from individuals to properties or sets of properties. This is particularly evident with neuter demonstrative pronouns in uses such as ‘eso es mi coche’ (that is my car) or ‘eso es una mujer’ (that is a woman), which are fairly common in natural discourse. The proposed analysis is framed within a general theory of definiteness (Roberts, 2003) and aligns with the theories of referent accessibility such as the Givenness Hierarchy (Gundel et al., 1993), which allows an explanation for how semantically similar neuter forms encode the cognitive status of their referents differently.
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    Introduction to Reference and Anaphora in Iberian Languages
    (Springer, 2017) Zulaica Hernández, Iker; Lezama, Carlos Gelormini; World Languages & Cultures, School of Liberal Arts
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    Spanish null complement anaphora at the grammar-discourse interface
    (Universitat de Valencia, 2018-12-24) Zulaica-Hernandez, Iker; Department of World Languages And Cultures, School of Liberal Arts
    The study of null complement anaphora (NCA) is important for the grammar-discourse interface as it seems to incarnate some of the core processes commonly found in other discourse phenomena, namely: reference, anaphora, ellipsis, inference, salience, or accommodation. Although NCA has been studied extensively, the debate whether it is an elliptical or an anaphoric process is still ongoing. This paper contributes to the view of NCA as a deep anaphor by providing evidence from Spanish discourse. I argue that NCA is an anaphor that selects the most prominent antecedent in well-defined discourse hierarchical structures. My analysis is mainly based on the comparison among Spanish neuter pronouns and NCA, and on the observed similar behavior shown by NCA and pronouns under discourse embedding conditions. Previous accounts on NCA are reviewed (Depiante 2000, 2001; Williamson 2012), and a tentative analysis of VP ellipsis based on discourse relations (Hardt & Romero 2004) is applied to Spanish NCA.