A cognitive-linguistic study of the causative, agent-deprofiling, and resultative constructionssystem internal and external perspectives

Résumé

This dissertation is framed within the field of Cognitive Linguistics, more specifically, within the framework of the Lexical Constructional Model (LCM), as initially formulated in Ruiz de Mendoza & Mairal (2008, 2011), Mairal & Ruiz de Mendoza (2008, 2009). This thesis develops central aspects of this model at the argument-structure level in a way that is consistent with the main assumptions of constructionist approaches to language, especially Goldberg’s (1995, 2006) Construction Grammar thus emphasizing the role of constructions in the meaning-making process. To this end, the present dissertation conducts cross-linguistic research on the causative construction [X CAUSES Y], the various agent- deprofiling constructions [Y CHANGES STATE], and the resultative construction [X CAUSES Y TO BECOME Z]. This study provides a comparative analysis and description of these related constructions in two typologically distant languages, English and Urdu. In this regard, the study also aims for the conceptual explanation of the intra-linguistic (language internal) and inter-linguistic (cross-linguistic) features of these constructions, providing a benchmark for future typological studies. Our analysis evidences that the role of re-construal based on metaphor and metonymy is essential for the understanding of grammatical phenomena cross-linguistically. Behind the distinctive aspects of constructional organization in each language we have found consistent typological features, which are motivated by cognitive factors, among which, besides metaphor and metonymy, iconicity also plays an important role. The inherently fine-grained nature of cross-linguistic analysis has opened doors for future research into the intricacies of each construction, and by extension, of both languages.