A Constructionist Approach To Semantic Prosody Research:Combining Theory And Data

This dissertation presents a usage-based constructionist account of key concepts in semantic prosody(hereinafter SP)research.Three detailed case studies are then employed to demonstrate what theoretical and methodological gains can be expected from this new approach.Over the last two decades,SP research has made major advances in the field of corpus linguistics.It has provided an insightful tool for profiling lexicosemantic behavior and contributed to the expansion of classic Firthian studies on collocation.Moreover,the incorporation of corpus-based statistics,a valuable quantitative supplement to introspective data,has also enriched the way how we approach meaning.Discussions in SP research have opened new avenues for language teaching,lexicography,and contrastive studies.Although SP constitutes an important focus in corpus linguistics,disputes continue unabated over its definition,provenance,polarity description,investigation strategies,as well as its differences from connotation and semantic preference,etc.These recurring problems not only reflect the insights of the leading scholars but also call attention to the hidden dangers in this research field.By revisiting these problems,we find that the mainstream sociocultural quantitative approach to SP offered no coherent account,and that some disparities and contradictions were not amenable to solutions.Despite its descriptive value,the notion of SP is nothing more than a heuristic shorthand.As such,it has failed to make substantive contributions to contemporary linguistic theorizing.As a result,this dissertation departs from the traditional word-centered approach,by reconceptualizing SP,unit of meaning,and semantic preference in constructionist terms.It is to be shown that such an attempt can consolidate and extend SP research and enhance its theoretical validity.To revamp the current mainstream approach,we take two steps.Step 1 comprises the first three chapters,in which a selective critique is included,detailing inconsistencies in mainstream research findings.Taking the incoherent account of some global issues as a departure point,we propose a constructionist reworking of these SP-related postulates.It is concluded that 1)SP is an aspect of constructional meaning;2)units of meaning in the form of "node+collocates" are essentially constructions in nature;3)SP differs from semantic preference insofar as the former is constructional whereas the latter(intra-constructionally)lexical;4)SP is tied to specific constructions and is therefore as context-sensitive as is constructional meaning.The constructionist approach has added benefits in that it 1)settles the disputes over the nature and locus of SP,2)incorporates attitudinal evaluation into the wholesale analysis of constructional meaning,3)pinpoints intrinsic differences between SP and semantic preference,4)avoids arbitrariness in determining the context size and text types,5)redresses the balance between diachrony and synchrony in SP research.Moreover,reinterpreting key notions in this field within the framework of Construction Grammar lends more theoretical import into SP studies.In doing so,the new account not only addresses vagaries and controversies in the old one so that a coherent model can be offered,it also uncovers new theoretical insights from empirical data.We then follow up Step 1 with case studies to evaluate the feasibility and strengths of this new approach,whereby the discussion of SP is couched within the framework of Construction Grammar.Three constructions with evaluative functions,i.e.[zheshi X-de jiezou],[bei X]and[buyaotai X],are analyzed,taking into consideration the emergence,changes and shifts of SP.All case studies start with a thorough investigation of their respective SP features,based on naturally-occurring corpus data.Findings show that construction-based SP readings do differ from what was assumed in the literature,for which we offer a detailed account in each case.Chapter 4 examines the role of construal shifts in constructionalization,as evidenced by the emerging epistemic construction[zheshi X-de jiezou].Corpus findings show that this construction is markedly negative in evaluation in common language use.Its negativity is largely due to the lexical meaning of the collocates in the X slot.In addition to factors such as text-types,pragmatic strategies,contextual situations,and phylogenic tendencies,the negative SP of the construction has its cognitive-psychological motivations.The development of this construction undergoes three stages:"zheshi VP-de jiezou"-PROCESS>[zheshi VP-de jiezou]-EPISTEMIC>[zheshi X-de jiezou]-EPISTEMIC.The process is claimed to represent a prototype-based construction extension,in which the prototype is an invariant JIEZOU image-schema while constructionalization proceeds through micro-steps,driven by construal shifts of its topological structures,namely REGULARITY,ALTERNATION and PROGRESSION.Chapter 5 addresses the new[bei X]construction,with a focus on the role of constructional coercion in snowcloning.Corpus findings belie the commonly held view that this new construction carries a negative SP.In fact,ironic effects characteristic of[bei X]reflect the perspective inherited from the cognitive construal of its source.The semantic difference between the X-slot items in the canonical passive bei-construction and the new[bei X]construction lies in their descriptive and referential functions respectively.The production and understanding of "bei X" constructs prior to the emergence of[bei X]snowclones are reliant on their analogy with canonical bei-passives.Syntactic and semantic contrasts between the two bei-construction types motivate the schematization of the[bei X]snowclone.However,with the snowclone in place,the form-meaning idiosyncrasies of the snowclone result from the constructional coercion of the source expression on[bei X]instead.Chapter 6 discusses the SP polarity shift of the "buyaotai X" pattern.Corpus findings show that this pattern instantiates two distinct constructions,[buyaotai X]-RESTRAIN and[buyaotai X]-MAXIMIZE,which are characterized by negative and positive SPs respectively.The proportion of MEASUREMENT collocates of[buyaotai X]-MAXIMIZE is less than that of[buyaotai X]-RESTRAIN,and also less than the proportion of its COMMENT collocates.Whereas the SENTIMENT collocates of[buyaotai X]-RESTRAIN mainly express negative emotions,the SENTIMENT collocates of[buyaotai X]-MAXIMIZE express favorable feelings.Semantic features of[+VOLITION]and[+CONTROLLABILITY]are visible in all the four collocate types of[buyaotai X]-RESTRAIN but not necessarily in the collocates of[buyaotai X]-MAXIMIZE.The shift of the evaluative meaning of "buyaotai" is motivated by the abduction-driven constructionalization.The construction of[buyaotai X]-MAXIMIZE emerges out of conventionalization of the conversational implicature of the semantic presupposition of[buyaotai X]-RESTRAIN.These case studies provide cognitive-functional explanations for the emergence of SP and construction development through an analysis of the emergence,extension and construal of their constructional meanings.It is therefore argued that reinterpreting SP-related concepts constructionally is both convincing in theory and rewarding in practice,hence an attractive alternative to the monolithic sociocultural quantitative approach.Looking into SP from the Construction Grammar perspective brings the two established disciplines closer for further cross-fertilization,as it enables data-mining methodology to speak to theoretical questions.Data thus derived also feed back into the refinement of the Construction Grammar model and,consequently,lead to a win-win situation for both theoretically-and empirically-minded researchers who seek a balance between data and theory.