TY - JOUR

T1 - Geometrical concepts at the interface of formal and cognitive verbs: Aktionsart, aspect, and the English progressive.

AU - Chilton, P.

N1 - RAE_import_type : Journal article RAE_uoa_type : Linguistics

PY - 2007/5/1

Y1 - 2007/5/1

N2 - The paper has two related aims. One is to outline a proposal for a spatially motivated model of discourse, called Discourse Space Theory. The other is to use this framework to explore, in a relatively formalised way, the spatial basis of the conceptual complexities arising in the uses of the English progressive verb form (be+-ing). The theory utilises an abstract space in three dimensions (time, space and modality). Verb stems are associated with Aktionsart schemas; aspectual forms like the progressive are viewed as operations on these schemas. The proposal is that geometric concepts, specifically coordinate systems and vectors, can provide a motivated formalism for investigating conceptual structures generated by a human discourse processor.

AB - The paper has two related aims. One is to outline a proposal for a spatially motivated model of discourse, called Discourse Space Theory. The other is to use this framework to explore, in a relatively formalised way, the spatial basis of the conceptual complexities arising in the uses of the English progressive verb form (be+-ing). The theory utilises an abstract space in three dimensions (time, space and modality). Verb stems are associated with Aktionsart schemas; aspectual forms like the progressive are viewed as operations on these schemas. The proposal is that geometric concepts, specifically coordinate systems and vectors, can provide a motivated formalism for investigating conceptual structures generated by a human discourse processor.

U2 - 10.1075/pc.15.1.08chi

DO - 10.1075/pc.15.1.08chi

M3 - Journal article

VL - 15

SP - 91

EP - 114

JO - Pragmatics and Cognition

JF - Pragmatics and Cognition

SN - 1569-9943

IS - 1

ER -