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Plurality, Conjunction and Events

  • Book
  • © 1995

Overview

Part of the book series: Studies in Linguistics and Philosophy (SLAP, volume 55)

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Table of contents (15 chapters)

  1. Collective and Distributive Readings: History and Range of Possible Analyses

  2. Events in the Semantics of Plurality and Conjunction

  3. Conclusion

Keywords

About this book

Plurality, Conjunction and Events presents a novel theory of plural and conjoined phrases, in an event-based semantic framework. It begins by reviewing options for treating the alternation between `collective' and `distributive' readings of sentences containing plural or conjoined noun phrases, including analyses from both the modern and the premodern literature. It is argued that plural and conjoined noun phrases are unambiguously group-denoting, and that the collective/distributive distinction therefore must be located in the predicates with which these noun phrases combine. More specifically, predicates must have a hidden argument place for events; the collective/distributive distinction may then be represented in the part/whole structure of these events. This allows a natural treatment of `collectivizing' adverbial expressions, and of `pluractional' affixes; it also allows a unified semantics for conjunction, in which conjoined sentences and predicates denote groups of events, much like conjoined noun phrases denote groups of individuals.

Authors and Affiliations

  • Department of Linguistics, University of Rochester, USA

    Peter Lasersohn

Bibliographic Information

  • Book Title: Plurality, Conjunction and Events

  • Authors: Peter Lasersohn

  • Series Title: Studies in Linguistics and Philosophy

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-8581-1

  • Publisher: Springer Dordrecht

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

  • Copyright Information: Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 1995

  • Hardcover ISBN: 978-0-7923-3238-1Published: 31 December 1994

  • Softcover ISBN: 978-90-481-4494-5Published: 16 November 2010

  • eBook ISBN: 978-94-015-8581-1Published: 09 March 2013

  • Series ISSN: 0924-4662

  • Series E-ISSN: 2215-034X

  • Edition Number: 1

  • Number of Pages: XII, 308

  • Topics: Semantics, Theoretical Linguistics, Philosophy of Language, Logic

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