Study On The Alternative Function Of "Lai"

The prop usage of "lai"(来)is extremely complex and flexible in Chinese.Previous studies have mostly focused on the pro-verb "lai"(来),but not yet been involved the pro-sentence "lai"(来)in relevant literature.The research achievement of systematic analysis of the alternative function of "Lai"(来)are even rarer.Based on this status quo,this article focuses on the study on the alternative function of "Lai"(来),and investigates and analyzes the "pro-verb" usage and "pro-sentence" usage from the perspectives of usage performance and alternative mechanism.The research content consists of three parts: the usage performance and syntactic restriction of the pro-verb "lai"(来),and the usage performance and pragmatic function of the pro-sentence "lai"(来),and the forming process and generative mechanism of the prop word "lai"(来).In Chinese,"Lai"(来)can substitute the semantics meaning of specific verb and is in the position of a verb,so it has pro-verb usage.The pro-verb "lai"(来)can be used as a predicate alone,and it can also appear together with adverbial and complement and object.The characteristic of generic meaning of "lai"(来)makes itself show obvious syntactic restriction in the use of alternative verbs.On the one hand,the adverbial before "lai"(来)defines the usage and semantic selection of "lai"(来),and "adverbial+lai(来)" shows a high degree of constructionalization or obvious lexicalization tendency in the process of high frequency use.On the other hand,the attached complements can be momentum complements and possibility complements and modal complements,but they cannot be resultative complements and degree complements.At last,when "lai"(来)and object appear together,they cannot do without the restriction of quantifiers.The independent clause "lai"(来)has two usages: movement verb and pro-sentence.As a sentence in the language,the pro-sentence "lai"(来)has the function of substituting the sentence.And it can replace imperative sentences and discourse marker sentences,respectively represent the pragmatic meaning of imperative and drawing attention.In the process of substituting imperative sentences and discourse marker sentences,"Lai"(来)presents the textual metafunction of eliciting topics and continuing topics and changing topics,and also presents the interpersonal metafunction of expressing the speaker’s attitude and motivation and constructing interpersonal relationships.The generative mechanism of the prop word "lai"(来)is inseparable from the syntactic restriction and interactions and changes within semantics.Our study takes the semantic evolution of the verb "lai"(来)as a starting point,and investigates and studies the forming process and generative mechanism of the pro-verb "lai"(来)from two dimensions: diachronic and synchronic.Diachronic,the pro-verb "lai"(来)first appeared in the story-telling script of Song and Yuan Dynasties,and gradually formed and more generalized with the increase in the number of story-telling script novels of Jin and Yuan Dynasties and vernacular novels of Ming and Qing Dynasties.And its forming process can be divided into three phases: trigger substitution phase and typical substitution phase and generalization substitution phase.Synchronic,the pro-verb "lai"(来)is generated in the serial-verb construction "lai(来)+VP",and the sub-typicality of the temporal relations makes "lai(来)+VP" easy to re-analysis,and the high closeness of the combined elements makes the semantics of "Lai"(来)and "VP" easily influence and infect each other,thus pushing "VP" to fall off when the context can provide sufficient semantic conditions."Lai"(来)is infected with VP’s [+action implementation meaning] and occupies the verb position alone,which pro-verb usage is triggered and manifests as the trigger substitution.As the degree of infection deepens,in the process of co-occurring with adverbial and object and complement,the pro-verb "lai"(来)gradually matures and shows typical substitution characteristics.The prosperity of the vernacular novels and the wide choice of verb meaning in spoken language have made the semantics of "lai"(来)continue to generalize,and it can be followed by verbal object and replace dummy verb,which can be called generalization substitution.The formation of the pro-sentence "lai"(来)is inseparable from the syntactic environment of its independent use and the semantic environment of the generalization of the meaning.The alternative mechanism of "lai"(来)is mainly metaphorical mechanism and pragmatic inferencing.The metaphorical mechanism makes "Lai"(来)transition from the objective concept meaning "spatial motion" to subjective cognitive meaning "psychological displacement",coupled with the influence of the speaker’s subjective imperative intention,"Lai"(来)realizes the function of substituting imperative sentences.Pagmatic inferencing realizes the semantics of "lai"(来)changes from subjective cognitive meaning to discourse markers.When "lai"(来)is followed by a sentence in which the speaker does something by himself,the "displacement meaning" of "lai"(来)disappears,we believe this“lai”(来)appears as a "procedural index" in the sentence and realizes the function of replacing discourse marker sentences.The process of substitution and generation of the pro-sentence "lai"(来)is also the process of its subjectivization,and the pro-sentence "lai"(来)is subjective.Based on the semantic evolution of the verb "lai"(来)and the generation of the prop word "lai"(来),and combined with the theory of "Meaning constraint",we believes that the basic meaning [+ displacement meaning] of "lai"(来)runs through the development of itself meaning.There is a semantic connection between the movement verb "lai"(来)and the prop word "lai"(来).