SEMINAR 1 LEC handout

assertion - positive and declarative

sentence

positive

(e.g. They told her the secret.)

( e.g. Did they tell her the secret? )

interrogative negative (e.g. Didnt they tell her the secret?)

non-assertion
negative (They didnt tell her the secret.)
other (if clauses, comparison, subjunctive)
syntactic vs. semantic negation // full vs. local negation
Susan doesnt like her friends.
John is not happy.
Susan dislikes her friends.
John is unhappy.
Not long ago, I met a girl named Susan.
What about: She was not an unattractive woman.// He was not without intelligence.// I was not a
little worried ?

Tests for negativity Klima (1964)

1.
Tag-questions a sentence is syntactically negative if it allows for the presence of an
affirmative tag question (with a falling intonation):
Susan does not like her friends, does she?
Susan dislikes her friends, doesnt she?
2.
Not even-tags a sentence is syntactically negative if it allows for the presence of a
not even-tag:
Susan does not like her friends, not even the smart ones.
Susan dislikes / likes her friends, *not even the smart ones.
Susan dislikes/ likes her friends, even the smart ones.
3.Either conjoining a sentence is syntactically negative if it can be followed by another
negative sentence and the adverb either:
Susan does not like her friends, and they dont like her either.
Susan dislikes / likes her friends, * and they dont like her either.
4.
Neither tags a sentence is syntactically negative if it can be followed by a neither
tag:
Susan doesnt like her friends, and neither do they like her.
Susan likes / dislikes her friends, *and neither do they like her.


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f)
g)

Instances of Negation
negative insertion (the negative word not is inserted in the auxiliary)
the negative word is attached to the auxiliary verb by means of contraction
negative incorporation (the negative word is incorporated in a determiner, a pronoun
or an adverb):
I saw no student.// I saw nobody.// I went nowhere.// I never went there
negative attraction (the negative word is attracted by the nominal phrase in the first
position of the sentence; no incorporation takes place.):
Not all that glitters is gold.// Not a day passed without me calling him.
incomplete negation (negation in the sentence is made by means of the so-called
incomplete negators such as hardly, scarcely, barely, seldom, rarely, etc.) the
sentences that contain these negators are also considered syntactically negative,
because they pass all the tests for negativity:
They barely read any novels, not even short ones
We seldom watch T.V, and we dont go to the theatre either
emphatic negation (emphasis is laid by placing the negative word or the incomplete
negator in the first position inside the sentence, which triggers inversion):
Never have I met a more horrible person. // Rarely have I done such a stupid thing
negative transportation (the negative word is transported to the main clause from a
subordinate that clause where it originates and belongs semantically)
They think that he doesnt like them. >> They dont think that he likes them.

Polarity Items
Negative PIs elements (lexical items) that, although not negative in meaning, cannot appear in
an affirmative context.
Ex: Budge, flinch, bat an eye(lid), give a damn/darn, find a trace, hear a peep, hurt a fly,
last a minute, crack a smile, turn a hair, sleep a wink, touch a drop, leave a stone
unturned, lift/raise/ stir a finger, lay a finger on someone, touch her/him with a ten-foot
pole, move a muscle, see/ feel/ remember a thing, tell/ ask/speak to a soul, say / breathe/
understand a word, know a single person, have a care/ friend in the world, have/be worth
a red cent.
Positive PIs - elements (lexical items) that can only appear in an affirmative context.
>> pairs of Negative and Affirmative Polarity items:
Any vs. some (I havent any money. / I have some money.)
At all vs. somehow/ somewhat (I dont like him at all. / I somehow like him.)
Yet vs. already (I havent seen him yet. / I have already seen him.)
Any more vs. still (I dont love you any more. / I still love you)
Either vs. too (I dont like it, either. / I like it , too.)
Hardly ever vs. most of the times ( I hardly ever eat caviar. / I eat caviar most of the
times.)
Until vs. before (He didnt arrive until 5. / He arrived before 5.)
Much vs. a lot (I dont like you much. / I like you a lot.), etc.