Modern Chinese Research on the Category of Causation - Shanghai Social Sciences Doctoral Library [Volume 7]

Author: Zhou Hong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-12-01
Features: Causation is an important linguistic category that has always been a focus of attention. Previous research on causation has been mostly form-centric and somewhat fragmented, lacking systematic study from a "category" perspective. This book is guided by the theory of cognitive linguistics and framed by the schema-based categorization theory. Based on an investigation into the essence and universal characteristics of causation, it provides a systematic and comprehensive analysis of causation, aiming to explore the causation category in modern Chinese. The book is divided into six chapters. Chapter 1: Introduction; Chapter 2: The Construction of the Causation Category and Theoretical Discussion; Chapter 3: The Linguistic Level of Causation—Semantic Analysis of Causal Words and Participatory Words and Their Syntactic Requirements; Chapters 4 and 5 are the specific analyses of causation subcategories; Chapter 6 is the conclusion. The specific content is as follows.
Chapter 1: Introduction. Briefly introduces the previous research and its shortcomings, explains the value of the book's topic, research approach and framework, theoretical and methodological foundations, key research questions, and data sources.
Chapter 2: The Construction of the Causation Category: From Image Schemas, Semantic Structures to Syntactic Structures. First, introduces the theoretical and methodological basis of the book, pointing out: 1. The book is based on a cognitive linguistic perspective, emphasizing a thorough analysis and explanation of linguistic structures from cognitive, functional, and pragmatic factors. 2. The book is based on schema-based categorization theory. The book compares two categorization theories: prototype-based categorization theory and schema-based categorization theory, explores their characteristics and applicability, and argues that the causation category (a semantic relation category) is suitable for construction using schema-based categorization theory. 3. The research method of the book is from image schemas, semantic structures to syntactic structures. The book analyzes the relationships among the three and discusses the value of this research method. Secondly, explores the image schemas of causation and analyzes its semantic structure. Using human bodily experience perception and psychological experimental findings, we conclude that causation originates from the driving schema: one object acts on another, causing the latter to move or change. The driving schema includes four basic elements (causer, causal force, caused, and causal result) and one optional element (instrument). The driving schema is extended to other cognitive domains through metaphor: based on the nature of the causer, driving is extended from living beings to inanimate objects and events; based on the nature of the causal force, driving is extended from physical driving to verbal driving, psychological driving, and general force driving. On the basis of the driving schema, the concept of causation gradually forms. We analyze the constituent elements and characteristics of the causation concept, establish the semantic parameters of causation—causal force—and analyze its transitivity, intensity, and types. Then, we discuss the semantic combination relations of the constituent elements of causation, deriving the semantic structure of causation: ±[causer] + (［instrument］) + [causal force] + [caused] + [causal result]. Here, we draw an important conclusion: the core of causation is the transmission of causal force. Thirdly, based on the above, we seek the syntactic structure of causation to reveal its essence and derive the criteria for determining causation. From cognition and semantics to form, we control various variables to form different images. Variables include subjective variables and objective variables. Subjective variables refer to human cognitive or pragmatic participation factors, mainly including perspective, scanning, attribution, salience, and degree of detail. Objective variables refer to objective factors affecting the expression of causation, mainly including the intentionality or unintentionality of causal force transmission, the directionality of causal force, the control degree of the caused, the type of causal force, and the intensity of causation. Different variables form different causation subcategories, resulting in different causation expressions. Causation expressions are divided into basic and derived sentences, and also have the hierarchy of lexical causation and syntactic causation. Through the above analysis, we conclude the criteria for determining causation: semantically, there must be the transmission of causal force; grammatically, there must be a causation marker "" or the causation marker "" can be semantically decomposed. This chapter also discusses the connections and differences between the causation category and natural causation, causal category, and summarizes the connotation of the causation category: causation is a semantic relation category, manifested as a driving schema, reflecting the relationship between the causation event and the caused event, where the causer acts on the caused through causal force, leading the caused to produce a certain causal result.
Chapter 3: The Linguistic Level of Causation: Causal Words, Participatory Words, and Their Syntactic Requirements. This chapter primarily explores the characteristics of causal words and participatory words and their relationship with causation frames. Causal words refer to words that function as causal force, and participatory words refer to words that function as causers and caused. The causation frame refers to the syntactic frame of causation expressions. First, we classify Chinese verbs from a cognitive semantic perspective and, based on this, derive Chinese causation sentences and non-causation sentences, aiming to distinguish causation from non-causation and further reveal the essence of causation, preparing for the next analysis. The relationship between verbs and causation is very close. Which verbs carry causation meaning and which do not—we attempt to explore this issue. Based on the Causal Chain Model, we classify Chinese verbs into causal verbs, relational verbs, self-motivated verbs, automatic verbs, and state verbs. Accordingly, Chinese has five basic semantic sentences: causation sentences, relational sentences, self-motivated sentences, automatic sentences, and state sentences. We analyze their syntactic and semantic differences. Second, we analyze the types, semantic features, and changes of causal words. Especially, we explore the semantic changes of causal words in causation frames: some words do not inherently carry causation meaning but acquire it in certain causation frames, undergoing semantic changes and functional extensions. For example, the verb "" does not inherently carry causation meaning, but it does in certain causation frames, such as "," "," and "." Similarly, the adjective "" does not inherently carry causation meaning, but it does in certain causation frames (usually ""), such as "" and "." Then, we analyze the semantic features, types, and characteristics of participatory nouns in causation frames. Based on linguistic typology, we conclude that participatory nouns have semantic features such as vitality, consciousness, and control, and accordingly, derive three pairs of participatory nouns: life-noun and non-life-noun, conscious noun and unconscious noun, control noun and non-control noun. Participatory nouns are also constrained by the causation frame, and may exhibit different characteristics in different causation frames. For example, in "" and "," "" is the caused, but his control degree is different. It is clear that "" has a higher control degree in the first causation frame than in the second.
Chapter 4: Subjective Variables and Causation Sentence Patterns. This chapter studies causation subcategories caused by subjective variables, including positive causation and negative causation, sequential causation and component causation, subject attribution, object attribution, and event attribution. It primarily explores the influence of variables on causation expressions and their grammatical manifestations. First, it explores positive causation and negative causation influenced by human observational perspective. Positive causation refers to causation observed from the causer's perspective, while negative causation refers to causation observed from the caused's perspective. Positive causation is analyzed using "" sentences, while negative causation is manifested as "" sentences. Their causation expressions and syntactic features are analyzed, and a series of differences between "" sentences and "" sentences are compared and derived. Second, it explores sequential causation and component causation influenced by human scanning patterns. Sequential causation refers to causation formed by human sequential scanning, where the constituent elements appear in a time sequence. Component causation refers to causation formed by human component scanning, where the constituent elements are recombined rather than appearing in a sequential order. Sequential causation is manifested as serial sentences, which present the causation process step by step, giving a sense of progression. Component causation is manifested as verb-result component groups, which condense causal force and causal result, and can be divided into close-range component causation and long-range component causation. The former is manifested as verb-result sentences, while the latter is manifested as "" verb-result sentences and causative reduplicated verb sentences. We focus on exploring the cognitive basis and functional features of these causation sentence patterns. Third, it explores causation types influenced by human attribution, including subject attribution, object attribution, and event attribution. Subject attribution refers to causation where the causal result is attributed to the subject, such as "." Object attribution refers to causation where the causal result is attributed to the object, such as "," "," and "." Event attribution refers to causation where the causal result is attributed to the event, such as "." We focus on analyzing the relatively special attribution—object attribution, discussing its discovery, semantic features, and grammatical manifestations, and attempt to use attribution theory and cognitive subjectivity theory to analyze the production mechanism and pragmatic function of object attribution.
Chapter 5: Objective Variables and Causation Sentence Patterns. This chapter studies causation subcategories caused by objective variables, including intentional causation and unintentional causation, outward causation and reflexive causation, active causation and passive causation, general force causation and non-general force causation, and causation degree. It analyzes their constraints and grammatical manifestations. We mainly draw the following conclusions: 1. The consciousness or unconsciousness of causation expression (intentional causation and unintentional causation) refers to the consciousness or unconsciousness of causal force transmission, which is not on the same level as the consciousness or unconsciousness of causal force, nor on the same level as the causal force consciously or unconsciously causing a certain causal result (expected causation and unexpected causation). 2. The transmission direction of causal force can be outward or reflexive, and accordingly, can be divided into outward causation and reflexive causation. Outward causation and reflexive causation can be converted under certain conditions, such as "" and "." 3. Based on the control degree of the caused, causation can be divided into active causation and passive causation. Active causation refers to causation where the caused has control degree, while passive causation refers to causation where the caused does not have control degree. 4. Based on the nature of causal force, causation can be divided into general force causation and non-general force causation. When the causal force is generalized and abstract, it expresses general force causation, mainly manifested as "" sentences and some "" verb-result sentences (internally containing "" or can be supplemented), such as "" and "." When the causal force is specific, it expresses non-general force causation, which is further divided into physical causation, verbal causation, and psychological causation. 5. Causation degree depends on the combined force of the causer's action and the caused's reaction, and is also constrained by syntactic factors: under the same semantic conditions, different causation expressions have different causation degrees.
Chapter 6: Conclusion. This chapter summarizes the main viewpoints, main features, and issues and shortcomings that need further research. At the end of the book, there are appendices on a review of research on Chinese causation, VB1-type causation verbs and VB2-type causation verbs, causation adjectives, and a glossary and table index.
Overall, the main achievements of this book are reflected in the following aspects: 1. It proposes that causation is a semantic relation category and employs a schema-based categorization research approach: from image schemas, semantic structures to syntactic structures. 2. It explores the cognitive roots of causation, arguing that causation is based on the driving schema: the causer acts on the caused through causal force, leading the caused to produce a certain causal result. 3. It points out that the semantic core of causation is the transmission of causal force, and without the transmission of causal force, causation cannot occur. 4. It establishes the criteria for determining causation: semantically, there must be the transmission of causal force; grammatically, there must be a causation marker "" or the causation marker "" can be semantically decomposed. 5. It analyzes the influence of variables on causation and, accordingly, reclassifies the causation category, deriving different types of causation subcategories. 6. Through the causation chain, it classifies Chinese verbs from a cognitive semantic perspective and, accordingly, derives the five basic semantic sentences of Chinese. 7. It explores the semantic changes of causal words (including causal verbs and causal adjectives) in causation frames. 8. It conducts a systematic and comprehensive study of causation subcategories, discussing their grammatical manifestations, semantic constraints, and functional division, and providing cognitive explanations.
Of course, due to time constraints and the limitations of personal understanding, this book still has some shortcomings, such as a lack of deeper understanding of certain theories and the inability to always combine theory with practice; the analysis of causation subcategories is still somewhat superficial, and the study of the functional division of causation sentence patterns has not been enough, etc. These issues await further research.