语言学论文哪里有？本研究从事件语义学的角度对英语轻动词结构及其汉译进行了语义分析。以下是本论文的一些有意义的发现。首先，本研究运用事件语义学理论，特别是Vendler的分类理论，对英语轻动词结构进行了语义分析。这一过程是基于前人的研究和对单语语料库的观察。研究发现，大多数英语轻动词结构都具有以下语义特征。首先，一个典型的英语轻动词结构表达了目的意义。在Vendler的分类中，动词可以分为四种类型，英语轻动词结构中的动词也是如此。
1 Introduction
1.2 Research Significance
The study on English light verb construction has been paid much attention since severaldecades ago as a common language phenomenon. This study aims to explore and illustratesemantic features of English light verb construction, their Chinese translation and thejustification of translation within the framework of event, and thus will be of somesignificance in this area from the following aspects.
First of all, the object of the research has been broadened. Compared with the formerstudy that concentrates on the zero-derivation form of a verbal noun in light verbconstructions, this present study takes both zero-derivation forms and derivation forms intoconsideration, which will provide a more comprehensive understanding of light verbconstructions.
Secondly, this research aims to explore semantic features of English light verbconstruction on the basis of event, which opens up a new perspective for the study of lightverb constructions.
Last but not least, Chinese translation of light verb constructions in English has not beenstudied before, which leaves an entirely blank space in this field. Therefore, the translationstrategies and justifications of translation provided may be of great help for translating andteaching English light verb constructions. It provides a reference for both translators andEnglish learners to use them more correctly and efficiently.
3 Research Methodology
3.1 Research Questions
In order to achieve the aim of the research, this study seeks to answer the followingresearch questions:
1.Based on the present study, what are the major semantic features of English light verbconstructions?
2.What are their corresponding structures in Chinese based on parallel corpus? Do theyconvey the original semantic features of English light verb constructions?3.Through analysis, what are the justifications for Chinese translation from theperspective of event semantics?
This study built up a parallel corpus of news and magazines with 183,551English-Chinese bilingual sentences (5,335,136 words in total) to achieve the researchpurpose. These articles were selected randomly from English-Chinese bilingual materials ofhigh-quality magazines and newspapers online, such as New York Times, The Economist, TheGuardian, etc. The present study chooses news and magazines as source data due to thefollowing reasons.
5 Chinese Translations of English Light Verb Constructions
5.1 Chinese Light Verb Construction
Through the observation of the parallel corpus, one of the primarily used correspondingstructures is Chinese light verb construction, with high frequency such as “进行”, “产生”, “加以”, “留下”, “作出” and so forth
Light verb construction is a universal phenomenon across languages, and the same thingis true for Chinese. There are constructions made up of various light verbs in Chineseexpressions such as “进行”, “加以”, “给予”, “作”, “搞” and others, which are usually called“dummy verbs” or “weak verbs” as well. In Chinese grammar, atelic verbs generally cannotappear independently, while they can be changed to be telic by adding light verbs like “进行”[26]. Subsequently, Jiang[57] studies the characteristics of the sentence-completion functionof the Chinese light verb “进行”. By activating the noun property of deverbal nouns, the lightverb “进行” can then make the sentence complete. In the same way, a light verb in Chinese may also be a semantically empty verb. The event or the predicate of light verb constructionmainly comes from the complement part rather than the light verbs. For example, in Chineselight verb construction “进行调查”, the event of action is mainly denoted by the complementnoun “调查”, whereas the light verb “进行” only indicates a process aspect of the event.
As for register, both English and Chinese light verb constructions mainly occur inwritten and formal language. That is because event nouns formed by adding noun suffixesrepresent abstract actions in English. On the contrary, nouns directly converted from verbsrepresent more straightforward actions under normal conditions. For example, the same verb“move” can transform into nouns like “move” and “movement”, the first noun is convertedfrom the original verb without any change in form, which means “a change of action andposition”[52]. As for another noun “movement”, it is derived from the verb “move” by addingthe suffix “-ment” with a more abstract and richer meaning. Apart from the meaning of“change of position”, “movement” can also denote more abstract concepts such as “changesin activities, movements, behaviors or ideas”, for example, “a mass movement for change”[52].As light verb constructions with abstract expressions mostly appear in relatively formaloccasions or written language, their corresponding Chinese expressions should be morecomplex and formal, so Chinese light verb construction can provide a more suitable stylisticfeature which is “solemn” and “formal”.
5.2 Chinese Heavy Verb Construction
Apart from “light verb”, there is also a different category of Chinese verbs, which iscalled “heavy verb”[60], or “notional verb”, “lexical verb”, “full verb”, and so on. In terms offunctions they can fulfill, these words usually bear the actual lexical meaning and play apredominant role in semantic functions as well.
In Chinese heavy verb construction, the event noun is treated as a purer noun than inlight verb construction. Verbs and event nouns are not entirely opposed, they remain a gradualcontinuum relationship. It is easy to cross the semantic category of each other[62]. Theeventuality of nouns is different, and in these event nouns, the action nature is often weak, buttheir noun nature is relatively strong. Therefore, they can be treated as simple nouns in theprocess of Chinese translation. In this case, to conform with Chinese grammar, these eventnouns in Chinese must combine with a “heavy” verb that expresses the actual meaning for thesemantics to be complete, such as: make a comment (发表评论), do a report (写报告), etc.These “heavy” verbs in Chinese will carry the specific lexical meaning, constitute thesemantic core, and also represent the basic meaning of the whole sentence[63]
As for the similarities of English light verb construction and Chinese heavy verbconstruction, both of them indicate an action with a longer duration. For instance, in thefollowing examples, English light verb constructions “make a statement” or “do a report” andChinese heavy verb constructions “发表声明” or “写报告” do not express an instant action,on the contrary, they tend to indicate a durative action with progressive meaning. Besides,Chinese heavy verb constructions are more likely to convey an action with an endpoint, forthe conversion into a pure noun makes the event to be telic and bounded.
6 Conclusion
6.1 Major Findings of the study
In this research, a semantic analysis of English light verb construction and its Chinesetranslation has been made from the perspective of event semantics. Here are some significantfindings of the thesis.
To begin with, the study makes a semantic analysis of English light verb constructionwith the theory of event semantics, especially Vendler’s classification. This process is basedon the previous research of scholars and the observation of the monolingual corpus. It isfound that the majority of English light verb constructions are semantically featured in thefollowing viewpoints. Firstly, a typical English light verb construction expresses a telicmeaning. Within Vendler’s classification, verbs can be divided into four types, and it is alsotrue for the verbs in English light verb constructions. Except for accomplishments andachievements carrying bounded properties in nature, activities in English light verbconstructions also show the telic semantics. The conversion from a verb to an event noun willassign a telic property to the original verb. Moreover, the deverbal noun turns to be telic underthe influence of the indefinite article “a” or “an”. Therefore, it can be concluded that lightverb construction can realize the transformation from atelicity to telicity. Secondly, light verbconstruction formed by “light verb+a/an+deverbal noun” has the quantification functionbecause of the indefinite article. It limits the occurrence of the action that occurs andexpresses the [-iterative] meaning. Thirdly, light verb construction shows a semanticbleaching or weakening feature for converting from a simple verb to a light verb as anincremental semantic process. The whole construction weakens the momentum of the actionand shortens the time the action takes place and even bleaches the event of the action behind.
reference（omitted）
