Cette thèse étudie la sémantique des constructions gradables du point de vue de la langue des signes, en se basant sur les données de la Langue des Signes Italienne (LIS). Des travaux récents sur les langues des signes (Lillo-Martin and Klima (1990), Sandler & Lillo-Martin (2006) Schlenker (2011), entre autres) ont montré l’importance de les inclure dans le domaine empirique des recherches sémantiques. En effet, la modalité visuelle et l’iconicité permettent parfois de réaliser de façon explicite des éléments abstraits du système logique du langage qui restent implicites dans les langues parlées. Ainsi, la contribution unique des langues des signes dans les débats sémantiques ouvre de nouvelles perspectives pour mieux comprendre le fonctionnement du système logique des langues.La thèse contient trois études de cas. La première étude se concentre sur les adjectifs gradables et les constructions comparatives. Nous proposons des arguments en faveur de l’existence des variables de degrés (Kennedy 1999) : i) en LIS, une classe d’adjectifs gradables représente explicitement les degrés et les échelles dans l’espace des signes, (ii) grâce à un morphisme iconique, les échelles sont représentées comme un ensemble de points ordonnés dont chaque point représente un degré, (iii) les expressions qui se réfèrent aux degrés peuvent devenir des antécédents pour des pronoms de degré, comme dans le domaine nominal, temporel et modal. De plus, nous montrons que ces constructions sont des comparatives mixtes qui expriment une comparaison explicite et que les trois différents marqueurs comparatifs (MORE, iconic-more et ∃--icon-more) présentent différentes propriétés morpho- syntaxiques et sémantiques : le premier marqueur, MORE, n’est pas iconique et se comporte plus ou moins comme le comparatif anglais « more ». Par contre, on observe une différence intéressante entre les marqueurs iconiques ∃-icon-more et iconic-more. En effet, ils présentent différentes propriétés articulatoires. Le marqueur iconic-more a un mouvement qui se termine par une forte décélération alors que le mouvement du marqueur ∃-icon-more ne l’a pas. Nous montrons que la présence et l’absence de décélération sont associées à des interprétations sémantiques différentes. La présence du marqueur iconic-more donne lieu à une lecture exacte alors que ∃-icon-more donne lieu à une lecture existentielle. Pour expliquer ce contraste, nous soutenons que le lieu marqué par une forte décélération du mouvement correspond à un pronom déictique. En revanche, les marqueurs ∃-icon-more et MORE ont une interprétation existentielle comme dans les langues parlées. Dans la deuxième étude, nous étendons le domaine empirique des constructions gradables en incluant parmi celles-ci les constructions temporelles. Dans les constructions temporelles, les moments auxquels se passent les événements et les relations temporelles sont explicitement représentées dans l’espace de signation grâce à un morphisme iconique qui représente l’échelle temporelle comme une ligne horizontale. Ces constructions possèdent exactement les mêmes propriétés sémantiques que les constructions comparatives. Plus précisément, les marqueurs temporels ont des interprétations déictiques et existentielles parallèles à celles des constructions comparatives et des pronoms anaphoriques pouvant être utilisés pour se référer aux moments représentés explicitement dans espace de signation Enfin, la dernière est une étude comparative entre les composants iconiques des adjectifs absolus de la LIS et un geste co-verbal en italien ayant approximativement le sens de « complètement ». Nous montrons que la composante iconique et le geste co-verbal apportent tous les deux une contribution non assertive et que leur contribution peut ne pas être prise en compte (ne pas être copiée) dans la résolution de l’ellipse. Ces propriétés suggèrent que l’on peut analyser la composante iconique des adjectifs absolus de la LIS comme un élément gestuel. / The aim of this dissertation is to investigate gradable constructions in Italian Sign Language (LIS). In the semantic literature, the debate about the existence of degrees as ontological elements has been very active. In this dissertation, we show that Italian Sign Language pro- vides evidence not only for the existence of degrees, but also for degree-denoting variables. First, degrees can be overtly represented as ordered points (i.e loci) in signing space by means of an iconic mapping. Second, degree expressions can be established on points in space (i.e loci), which can be anaphorically linked to later pointing pronouns, as in the nominal do- main, temporal and modal domains. Additionally, focusing on comparative constructions, we show that articulatory properties of comparative markers influence the interpretation of comparatives. Specifically, the presence/absence of sharp deceleration makes visible a specific degree which is then interpreted as a deictic element. Furthermore, we show that the visibility of degrees is not just limited to the adjectival domain but that it extends to the temporal domain, but it extends to the temporal domain. Specifically, in temporal constructions the temporal scale is iconically represented as a set of ordered points in the horizontal plane. Moreover, temporal markers, as comparatives markers, express a relation between the time arguments of the two clauses. To account for these properties, we propose an analysis of temporal clauses in terms of comparative clauses. Finally, we move to LIS absolute gradable adjectives and show that the iconic component of some of these adjectives can be analyzed as co-speech gestures. However, while co-speech gestures are optional, the iconic component of LIS absolute adjectives is an integral part of the adjectives and it cannot be omitted.

This diploma thesis deals with the semantics of Dutch adjectives, their categorization and internal classification. The first section observes and analyses the criteria for delimiting adjectives as an independent word class and establishing adjectival subcategories, as dictated by the most influential Dutch grammar publications. One key area of focus is the concept of gradability and its role in delimiting and classifying adjectives. These definitions and classifications are confronted using the scalar approach, according to which adjectives represent a scale of properties and may be sorted depending on which type of scale they express. The practical section comprises a corpus study whose aim is to examine the validity of the assumptions formulated in the theoretical introduction regarding the gradability of adjectives. Using a sample of 100 adjectival lemmas with the lowest coefficient value for the likelihood of gradability, acquired from the Dutch language corpora CGN and SoNaR, the study follows a set of morphological, syntactic, semantic and discourse variables which may warrant the use of the comparative or superlative even with adjectives which are generally considered to be ungradable. The results of the analysis suggest that it is more appropriate to regard gradability as a statistical...

日常生活中，由於表達的需要，說話者常會使用強化程度副詞，作為增強或強調其所欲言的一種手段。本論文旨在藉由觀察口語語料庫中的對話，將臺灣客語六個常見強化程度副詞「恁、當、蓋、盡、異、還」視作強化程度副詞詞群，進一步以[DI. + X] 結構討論以下面向：(一) 探討其後接修飾之成分在句法、語意層面之表現。本文發現其後接成分可分為典型成分類與非典型成分類，以形容詞一類為大宗，其後接成分會受到等級性（gradability）、有界與無界性（boundedness）等參數影響語意的解讀。(二) 探討強化程度副詞[DI. + X]結構於句法所扮演的角色。本文發現此結構多半出現在謂語之位置，除了強化語意外，同時也展現說話者之態度或對某主題之評價。(三) 探討強化程度副詞[DI. + X] 結構於口語使用中的語法化與詞彙化現象，本文認為這些現象由於溝通需要，亦會伴隨提升主觀性（subjectivity），尤其是強化程度副詞「恁」的主觀性為詞群中最高。藉由上述不同面向探討與分析臺灣客語六個強化程度副詞「恁」、「當」、「蓋」、「盡」、「異」、「還」之表現，以期能更系統性解釋強化程度副詞是如何在口語使用中展現與運作。 / The aim of the present study is to examine the [DI. + X] construction manifested by the six degree intensifiers 恁an2, 當dong1, 蓋goi3 , 盡qin3 ,異i3 , and還han5 in Taiwan Hakka based on their authentic usages in a spoken corpus. Three findings can be reported as follows. First, by exploring the modified elements from the aspect of their structure and meaning, the study classifies the modified elements into canonical and non-canonical usages. X as AP takes up the majority of the occurrences of the syntactic categories. Such manifestation can be accounted for various linguistic behaviors of gradability and boundedness. Second, the [DI. + X] construction usually serves as a predicate, the prominent grammatical function, in a clause. This implies that the [DI. + X] construction is generally adopted by different speakers to not only add intensity but also make judgements or comments. Third, the [DI. + X] construction displays grammaticalization and lexicalization. Due to communication needs, these linguistic phenomena can also motivate the subjectivity. It is found that the [恁an2 + X] construction can display the highest subjectivity among the six. To sum up, this study, with its analysis of different syntactic and semantic aspects of the six degree intensifiers in Taiwan Hakka, offers useful insights into explaining the manifestation of degree intensifiers during speech.

There exists a broad inclination among those who theorize about mental representation to assume that the meanings of linguistic units, like words, are going to be identical to, and work exactly like, mental representations, such as concepts. This has the effect of many theorists applying facts that seem to have been discovered about the meanings of linguistic units to mental representations. This is especially so for causal theories of content, which will be the primary exemplars here. It is the contention of this essay that this approach is mistaken. The influence of thinking about language and mental representation in this way has resulted in the adoption of certain positions by a broad swathe of theorists to the effect that the content of a concept is identical to the property in the world that the concept represents, and that because of this a concept only applies to an object in the world or it does not. The consequences of such commitments are what appear to be insoluble problems that arise when trying to account for, or explain, misrepresentation in cognitive systems. This essay presents the position that in order to actually account for misrepresentation, conceptual content must be understood as being very much like measurements, in that the application of a content to an object in the world is akin to measuring said object, and that conceptual content ought be understood as being graded in the same way that measurements are. On this view, then, concepts are the kinds of things that can be applied more, or less, accurately to particular objects in the world, and so are not identical to whatever it is that they represent.

There exists a broad inclination among those who theorize about mental representation to assume that the meanings of linguistic units, like words, are going to be identical to, and work exactly like, mental representations, such as concepts. This has the effect of many theorists applying facts that seem to have been discovered about the meanings of linguistic units to mental representations. This is especially so for causal theories of content, which will be the primary exemplars here. It is the contention of this essay that this approach is mistaken. The influence of thinking about language and mental representation in this way has resulted in the adoption of certain positions by a broad swathe of theorists to the effect that the content of a concept is identical to the property in the world that the concept represents, and that because of this a concept only applies to an object in the world or it does not. The consequences of such commitments are what appear to be insoluble problems that arise when trying to account for, or explain, misrepresentation in cognitive systems. This essay presents the position that in order to actually account for misrepresentation, conceptual content must be understood as being very much like measurements, in that the application of a content to an object in the world is akin to measuring said object, and that conceptual content ought be understood as being graded in the same way that measurements are. On this view, then, concepts are the kinds of things that can be applied more, or less, accurately to particular objects in the world, and so are not identical to whatever it is that they represent.