A Study On The Construction Of "X - X" In Modern Chinese

The "neng X jiu X" is a typical language construction which has a contracted form and abundant contents in modern Mandarin. The construction is constructed by two parts in logical sequences which make it a remarkable productive grammar construction and extensively applied in daily oral language in order to express one’s attitude towards something. This dissertation is going to have a comprehensive description and analysis of the construction based on the Construction Grammar, the Cognitive Linguistics, the Semasiology, the Structural Linguistics and other linguistic theories.The "neng X jiu X" could be classified into two categories. The first is Category A with the expression as neng X1 jiu X2. The constructional meaning of Category A requests X1 govern X2 under the conditionality and as the object of speaker’s subjective tendency and emphasis. In the mean time, the second is Category B that presented as neng X1 jiu bu X2. The constructional meaning of Category B applies bu X2 be governed by X1 under the conditionality and as the object of speaker’s subjective tendency and emphasis.From the viewpoint of syntactic analysis, we realize that the "neng X jiu X" could be used as some syntactical components solely and serially. While the construction is taking serially, they would have a different syntactic relationship among constructions themselves. In order to explain the processes, we exhibit the descriptions of the variables and quantification and tabulate them in detail.Afterwards, according to the statistics of the former tabulation, we have a conclusion that verbs and some particular nouns can be used as variables of the construction. In following parts, we demonstrate the semantic features of them:the verbs, VO structure, VC structure and VA structure are granted [+autonomy] [+operationality] and [+controllability]. The VA structure is also granted [+incrementing]. The qualitative adjectives and descriptive adjectives with [+controllability] are granted [+autonomy] and [+variability], the qualitative adjectives is also granted [+incrementing]. The nouns are only granted [+autonomy] and [+controllability].From the viewpoint of pragmatic functions, the "neng X jiu X" is always used to express speaker’s subjective tendencies. The Category A could express both the maximum and minimum subject quantities. However, the maximum is the only option left to Category B. We analyze the information structure of the "neng X jiu X" as well, and it turned out to be The Given Information-New Information which offers the theoretic explanation of the suppression from the construction. And the cognitive motivations can be explained from the economic principles, the prominence principles and iconicty principles.