A Study For The Category Of Time Quantity In Contemporary Chinese

This dissertation investigates the problem of time-quantity in the three levels of morpheme, lexical and syntax in modern Chinese on the base of semantics, and forms a preliminary system of cognition semantic about time-quantity. We mainly analyze the problem of time-quantity on the base of the cognition theory, and further reveal the psychological reality through the research on the base of theory that the form and significant can mutual test and verify. In accordance with some linguistic appearances and theories in other fields, this dissertation also advances some new conceptions. There are eight chapters as below:In Chapter One, we analyze the connotation of the category of time-quantity, and introduce the former research on this problem and the theoretical sources of this dissertation, and explain the tactics of selecting this subject and the arrangement of the structure.In Chapter Two, we mainly investigate the subject that different items lay restraints on the nouns, they condition whether a noun is a event noun or not. Most eventive noun can be modified by classifiable word of noun and classifiable word of verb. And different cognitional semantics condition the time-quantity types of the eventive noun. In this chapter, we find the answers to the ambiguity problems caused by the sense of orientation of the eventive noun.In Chapter Three, we broaden the scope of the frequency adverbs according to the theory of Topological Psychology, and advance the conception of the interval quantity. The frequency adverbs, as a semantic system, is divided into five levels on the previous semantic standard and the new form standard. In the sense of frequency adverbs' negate outside sentences, the semantic region of the negate outside the sentences decrease gradually when the frequency decrease gradually, and vice versa; but the negate outside the sentences of most-low-frequency and most-high-frequency adverbs are on the contrary. In the sense of frequency adverbs' negate inside sentences, the positive and negative frequency of the high-frequency, middle-frequency, low-frequency adverbs interlaced equal.In Chapter Four and Chapter Five, we investigate the time-quantity of onomatopoeia, mainly verify the syntax structures which can predicate the time-quantity of the single-syllable words, and draw the conclusion that the time-quantity of the single-syllable is connected with the initial consonant. The onomatopoeia are conditioned by the pronunciation as well as the subjective understanding. At the end of this chapter we analyze the tense related with the onomatopoeia, and the collocation of the onomatopoeia and time word.In Chapter Six, through the comparison and analysis we can draw such a conclusion that the "you" in the structure "verb and result-complement + "you" + number" has changed from a notional word to a functional word. We also analyze the various syntax restrictions of the structure, and find that the time structure is most freely in the quantity structure And then we received the continuum of the semantic of "you" through the analysis of the "you" + number pattern. At last we investigate the inherent process of the change of "you + number" from a notional word to a functional word.In Chapter Seven, we investigate the grammatical categories and the subsidiary time word of the morphemes, the time pointless and time quantity, the one-dimensional of the time point, the plane of the time quantity. Through the detailed description, we sum up twelve semantic structures connected with the time-quantity, form the semantic system of the time-quantity's cognition, and then prove the availability of the system.In Chapter Eight, we summarize the whole dissertation, display our innovation theories, the inspiration drawn from these new theories, some inadequacies in this paper and some problems required further investigation.