Subject: syntax , semantics , & cognitive linguistics

michel achard representation of cognitive structures syntax and semantics of french sentential complements 1998 . 23 x 15 , 5 cm . xii , 377 pages cloth dm 158 , - / approx . us $ 113 . 00 isbn 3-11 - 015760 - 8 cognitive linguistics research 11 mouton de gruyter * berlin * new york this book investigates french complementation and , more specifically , the distribution of infinitival and finite complements ( indicative and subjunctive ) in the following contexts : causation / perception , modal , sentential complement , and impersonal constructions . consistent with the principles of cognitive linguistics , it argues that the surface form of each construction reflects a specific cognitive organization , and that formal differences reflect conceptual differences . more specifically , it is shown that : ( i ) each complement form carries meaning , to be expressed in terms of the cognitive organization it specifically codes , and ( ii ) the distribution of these forms with the different main verbs is a function of the semantic compatibility between two meaningful expressions . the cognitive grammar position expressed in langacker ( 1987 , 1991 ) states that the use of a particular linguistic form by speakers reflects their choice to express their conceptualization in a particular way . the meaning of a linguistic expression is therefore best described as the partial construal it imposes on the scene it describes . in this book , the meaning of complement constructions is analyzed in terms of the specific way in which they structure the subordinate scene . competing constructions represent alternative construals of the scene . the solution proposed in this book departs from existing analyses in three major ways . first , it accounts at the same time for the form and the distribution of the complements . secondly , it posits no construction-specific devices to handle different structures . thirdly , it provides a global understanding of complementation by treating a whole array of constructions in similar ways . _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ mouton de gruyter walter de gruyter , inc . postfach 30 34 21 200 saw mill river road d-10728 berlin hawthorne , ny 10532 germany usa fax : + 49 ( 0 ) 30 26005-351 fax : + 1 914 747-1326 email : mouton @ degruyter . de publications by de gruyter can also be ordered via world wide web : http : / / www . degruyter . com
