Thesis (Ph. D.)--Washington State University, May 2008. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 127-143).

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität Giessen.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität Erlangen.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität Marburg.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität Tübingen, (1910?). / Includes bibliographical references (p. 7-10).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Bowling Green State University, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 104-111). Also available online.

The purpose of this investigation is to examine the effects of certain factors on adults auditory comprehension of complex sentences conjoined with before and after. The factors investigated are: conjunction choice, order of mention, clause placement, and general-knowledge constraints. The sentences used in the study fall into four syntactic categories (Before-1, Before-2, After-1, After-2) and two semantic categories (constrained by general knowledge and unconstrained). Sixteen subjects each participated in two tasks designed to elicit varying reaction times. Stimuli consisted of 160 pre-recorded sentences describing 40 sequences of two events, with corresponding slide illustrations. Reaction time to task stimuli was recorded to the nearest hundredth of a second. Square roots of the reaction times were subjected to analysis of variance. Results indicate that only the placement of the main clause produces a significant effect on subjects' responses, thus lending support to a growing body of data which suggests that the main clause holds a privileged position in the comprehension of complex sentences. Results are discussed with respect to experimental design, previous research and theories of sentence comprehension. / Medicine, Faculty of / Audiology and Speech Sciences, School of / Graduate

Three types of subordinative composite sentence in the O.B.I., i.e., 'cause and effect', 'conditional' and 'simultaneous-successive', are investigated. Since there are no formal connective markers, the logical relationship between two clauses can only be determined on the basis of semantic considerations, the tui-chen pair, the practice of abbreviation and the larger context. A major type of 'cause and effect' sentence is the sentence of the pattern 'wu + V… pu/fu ...' where the second clause represents some undesirable effect or situation. A consideration of the general positive versus negative pattern of the O.B.I. and the practice of abbreviation has led us to adopt the analysis 'cause and effect' for this sentence type. We may interpret sentences in which ch'i appears as conditional. Nevertheless, rather than a pure subordinate marker, the word ch'i is interpreted as a modal conveying the sense of uncertainty, a usage well illustrated in the classics. Also, the theory that treats ch'i as a marker of an embedded sentence has been refuted. The apodoses of 'conditional' and 'simultaneous-successive' sentences may represent an intended result or an undesirable consequence/situation. In most cases, these two types of apodoses can be easily distinguished. But in the case of raining, we have to rely on the idiomatic expressions 'yu vii (wang yu) ' and 'kou yu (pu kou yii) ' in drawing the distinction. In divining about the appropriateness of a proposed activity, the 'conditional' and 'cause and effect' sentences both serve the same purpose. But an activity whose consequence is of greater gravity seems to motivate the employment of the latter. The ritual-sacrificial verbs can be roughly divided into two categories, type A and type B. Type A verbs represent major ritual-sacrificial activities requiring the accompaniment of ritual-sacrificial activities represented by type B verbs which can be placed either in front of or after the type A verbs. The latter case constitutes a conditional or simultaneous-successive sentence, while the former constitutes either a composite sentence incorporating a 'to clause' or a simultaneous-successive sentence. / Arts, Faculty of / Asian Studies, Department of / Graduate

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