The structure of arguments

Linguistics

1. The structure of arguments (Verb Phrase Structure)

2. What is argument? A n   argument  is an expression that helps to complete the meaning of a  predicate. Most predicates take one, two or three arguments. A predicate and it’s arguments form a  predicate-argument structure .   Examples: 1-Jill  likes  Jack . 2- Sam  fried  the meat . 3-The old man  helped  the young man . Each of these sentences contains two arguments (in bold), the first noun (phrase) being the subject argument, and the second the object argument.  Jill , for example, is the subject argument of the predicate  likes , and  Jack  is its object argument .

3. Argument and Adjunct A n   adjunct  is an optional, or  structurally dispensable , part of a sentence, clause, or phrase that, if removed or discarded, will not otherwise affect the remainder of the sentence . Example : In the sentence  John helped Bill in Central Park , the phrase  in Central Park  is an adjunct . In the above sentence if the adjunct in central park is removed, it does not affect the sentence. Valency Theory The area of grammar that explores the nature of predicates, their arguments, and adjuncts is called valency theory.

4. Transitivity T ransitivity  is a property of verbs that relates to whether a verb can take direct objects and how many such objects a verb can take. Transitivity is closely related to valency, which considers other verb arguments  in addition to direct objects.  The notion of transitivity was first introduced by the Stoics and the Peripatetic school, but they probably referred to the whole sentence containing transitive or intransitive verbs, not just to the verb. The discovery of the Stoics was later used and developed by the philologists of the Alexandrian school and later  grammarians .

5. 1- Verbal predicates that demand just a subject argument (e.g.  sleep ,  work ,  relax ) are  intransitive . Example: I am going to sleep. 2- Verbal predicates that demand an object argument as well (e.g.  like ,  fry ,  help ) are  transitive . Example: I like to play football. 3- Verbal predicates that demand two object arguments are  ditransitive  (e.g.  give ,  lend ). Example: He gave Mary ten dollars.

6. Selectional P roperties Selection  denotes the ability of predicates to determine the semantic content of their arguments . Predicates select their arguments, which means they limit the semantic content of their arguments . Selection is a semantic concept, whereas subcategorization is a syntactic one. Selection is closely related to valency, a term used in other grammars than the Chomskian generative grammar, for a similar phenomenon . Example: a. Sam drank a coffee b . #Sam drank a car.  The argument  a car  contradicts the Selectional restrictions of the predicate   drank. The # indicates semantic deviance .

7. C -selection vs. S -selection Predicates c-select the syntactic category  of their complement arguments - e.g. noun (phrase), verb (phrase), adjective (phrase), etc. - i.e. they determine the syntactic category of their complements. In contrast, predicates s-select the semantic content of their arguments. Thus s-selection is a semantic concept , whereas c-selection is a syntactic one . When the term  selection  or  Selectional restrictions  appears alone without the  c-  or  s- , s-selection is usually understood .

8. Selectional restrictions A   selectional restriction  is a restriction concerning the relation between a predicate (or predicate term) and its argument(s) (argument terms). It concerns inherent properties of the relevant referents . Examples:1 The plant is wilting. b . #The building is wilting . The argument  the building  violates the selectional restrictions of the predicate  is wilting . Examples:2 a. Sam drank a coffee . b . #Sam drank a car.  The argument  a car  contradicts the selectional restrictions of the predicate  drank.

9. Theta theory 1- Introduction Imagine you are writing a screen play. First of all you need a story and various characters, who play different roles in the course of the play. Each role fulfills a special function, so that the story makes sense as a whole. Grammatical sentences function similarly. Each sentence is an attempt to convey a certain idea or piece of information. In order to do that, each argument has to play a thematic role in the sentence . The main actors in the play are most likely the subjects and the objects, who typically play the agent and the patient. The co-stars play roles like theme, experiencer, goal, benefactive, source, instrument and locative. So if you want to be a good screenplay writer you have to know your Grammar ...

10. 2- Explanation In government and binding theory the theta criterion states that in any grammatical sentence each argument must be assigned to one theta role and each theta role must be realized by some argument. Consequently in a grammatical sentence all predicates, meaning verbs, have a thematic structure. This means that thematic roles, or theta roles (θ-role), describe the relation between predicates and their arguments. As a result arguments stand in different semantic relationships with the verb. For Example: Thomas gave the books to Marry. [ AGENT ] _ [THEME ] _ [EXPERIENCER/GOAL]

11. Theta criterion Each argument is assigned one and only one theta role. Each theta role is assigned to one and only one argument.

12. Theta roles Theta-role ( θ -role) is a bundle of thematic relations associated with a particular argument, are syntactic structures reflecting positions in the argument structure of the verb they are associated with. A noun may only bear one theta role. Only arguments bear theta roles.  Adjuncts  do not bear theta roles . Theta roles according to Haegeman (1994) are as follows. 1- AGENT : the one who intentionally initiates the action expressed by the predicate . Example: a . Brad hit Andrew. b . A falling rock hit Andrew . 2- PATIENT : the person or thing undergoing the action expressed by the predicate. Example : a . Susan loves cookies . b . A falling rock hit Terry .

13. 3- EXPERIENCER : the entity that experiences some (psychological) state expressed by the predicate. Example: a. Ahmad saw the moon. b. Syntax frightens Jim . 4- BENEFECTIVE/BENEFICIARY : the entity that benefits from the action expressed by the predicate . Example : a . He bought these flowers for Jason . b . She made John a cake . 5- GOAL : the entity towards which the activity expressed by the predicate is directed. Example: a . Millie went to Chicago . b . Travis was given a semantics article.

14. 6- SOURCE : the entity from which something is moved as a result of the activity expressed by the predicate . Example: a . Bob gave Steve the syntax assignment. b . Stacy came directly from phonology class . 7- LOCATION : the place in which the action or state expressed by the predicate is situated . Example : a . Steve works Police department . b . We are all staying at school . 8- THEME : undergoes the action but does not change its state. ( Sometimes used interchangeably with  patient ) Example: a. I have  two children . b . He gave  the gun  to the police officer .

15. Some Other Theta R oles 9- Instrument: used to carry out the action Example: Jamie cut the ribbon  with a pair of scissors . 10- Time: the time at which the action occurs. Example: I had and appointment with dentist   today . 11- Manner: the way in which an action is carried out. Example: With great urgency , John phoned 911 . 12- Cause: what caused the action to occur in the first place. Example:   Because Clyde was hungry , he ate the cake .