Article

Name: Subjects in emotion causation constructions in Buryat

Authors: E. K. Skribnik, N. B. Darzhaeva

Institute for Finno-Ugric / Uralic studies, Ludwig Maximilian University, München, Germany; Institute for Mongolian, Buddhist and Tibetan Studies of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Ulan-Ude, Russian Federation

In the section Синтаксис

Abstract:

This article examines the emotion causation constructions (ECC) in Buryat as a systemic means for the speaker to direct attention toward various components of the Stimulus. The most informatively significant component functions as the subject of ECC: it can be the Stimulus, represented by a clause or a noun phrase (NP), or its Agent, referred to as the Causer. Concrete nouns are extremely rarely used as subjects. There are two types of Stimuli: the events perceived directly or the information about these events, with the latter being even somewhat more frequent than the former, indicating the importance of a communicative factor in a language community. The analysis confirms the assumption that all subject types relate to the Stimulus, but the attention focus can vary. It can be directed to the event itself, its presentation forms ranging from a clause to a noun, the source of information about it, the Agent, and rarely the Theme. The prevalence of antroponymic names as subjects in ECCs can be explained by the psychology of communication, with interlocutors usually focusing on other individuals involved in emotion-causing events. Verbalization of emotions caused by inanimate objects is atypical for the Buryat language system. In unconventional scenarios, basic emotive verbs can be employed with inanimate subjects, provided that the speaker’s attention is redirected away from the Agent.

Keywords: Buryat language, syntax, emotive verbs, causative constructions, subjects, Causer and Stimulus

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