Download Chapter 6: Aspect (式、貌)

Chapter 6: Aspect (式、貌)
Aspect is a morpheme used to signal the duration or completion of a reported event
relative to other events. (aspect = the duration/completion of an acitivity)
Four types of aspect markers in Mandarin
6.1 Perfective aspect: -le
6.1.1. Where to use –le: A bounded event
Perfective -le is used in the following four situations:
a. a quantified event
b. a definite or specific event
c. verbs with inherent bounded meaning
d. first event in a sequence
6.1.2 Where not to use –le
A. Semantic Conditions for –le not fulfilled
1. –le does not occur with non-action verbs
2. –le does not occur with zai and zhe denoting ongoing actions
3. –le does not co-exist with habitual or repeated events.
4. –le does not occur with potential forms of resultative verb compounds
5. –le does not occur with -guo
6. –le generally does not occur in negative sentences
B. A Perfectivizing Expression Takes the Place of –le
6.1.3 –le in Imperatives (see p. 207)
6.1.4 –le Does Not Mean Past Tense (see p. 213)
6.1.5 –le Does Not Mean Completion (see p. 215)
6.2. Durative aspect: zai and zhe
6.2.1 Semantic Types of Verbs and the Durative Aspect Markers zhe, zai
A. Activity Verbs: action verbs (involving physical action) and non- action verbs
(involving non-physical action)
A1. Only activity verbs can take zai to indicate the durative aspect
zai + activity verb (a verb signals a state associated with its activity meaning)
B. Verbs of Posture
C. Activity Verbs Signaling States Associated with Their activity meanings
C1. An activity verb that signals a state associated with its activity meaning
takes –zhe as the durative aspect marker
activity verb + zhe
D. –zhe….ne as an Intensifier
6.2.2 Complex Sentences with the Durative Aspect Marker -zhe
6.3. Experiential aspect: guo (an event has been experienced with respect to some
reference time)
6.4. The delimitative aspect: VV (doing an action “a little bit” or for a short period of
time)