A Formalist Analysis of the Semantic Generation of Denominal Verbs
Cheng Ji · Wai-yu yu wai-yu jiaoxue · 2011
This paper argues that the semantic generation of denominal verbs is subject to innate computational mechanisms.A formalist analysis,based on the mechanism of syntactic derivation of denominal verbs and that of semantic generation in Generative Lexicon,is devoted to the microscopic process whereby the meaning of a denominal verb is generated under the joint constraints of the structural relationship resulting from its syntactic derivation and the semantic mechanisms in Generative Lexicon.It is found that syntactic derivation determines the structural route along which a denominal verb has its meaning generated,that the semantic mechanisms in Generative Lexicon are responsible for the step-by-step build-up of its semantic features,and that the semantic traits of a denominal verb concerning its aspectual property,aspectual shift and eventuality structure receive a plausible account in the formalist analysis.A tentative conclusion is that innate computational mechanism plays a role in the generation of lexical meaning.