In this thesis, I discuss the grammatical constructionalization involving BA in some depth. I aim to present how a constructional approach can be used to rethink diachronic change in Chinese Expressions involving BA. In previous research of relevance (e.g. Sun 1996; Xing 2006), BA is considered to be a single item that has undergone grammaticalization. From a constructional perspective (e.g. Goldberg 1995, 2006; Traugott 2003a; Trousdale 2008a, 2010; Traugott and Trousdale forthcoming), this view requires some revision. I attempt to provide a constructional account in which an Expression involving BA is understood as a “construction” at the micro-level. As constructions change over time, the form-meaning pairings involving BA are associated with more schematic higher-level constructions. I show the constructionalization process in which an Expression involving BA is reanalyzed and incorporated into different constructions with increased schematicity at higher-levels. Therefore, I assume that a network of correlated constructions is implicated. The diachronic research is conducted mainly based on data collected from the BA corpus, which is a subcorpus I compiled based on the Peking (CCL PKU) Corpus. Using the constructional framework, I also analyze Expressions involving BA in Contemporary Chinese. The aim of the synchronic research is to explore how an Expression involving BA is used currently, and to associate the synchrony with diachrony in some respects.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:699958 |
| Date | January 2014 |
| Creators | Han, Jing |
| Contributors | Gisborne, Nikolas ; Trousdale, Graeme |
| Publisher | University of Edinburgh |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | http://hdl.handle.net/1842/17280 |
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