Lexical Aspect and Aktionsart Verb Classifications
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Unit 5: Lexical Aspect and Aktionsart
Aspectual Feature Matrix
- States: [+static, +durative, -telic]
- Activities: [-static, +durative, -telic]
- Accomplishments: [-static, +durative, +telic]
- Achievements: [-static, -durative, +telic]
- Semelfactives: [-static, -durative, -telic]
Diagnostic Tests for Aspectual Classes
| Test | States | Activities | Accomplishments | Achievements | Semelfactives |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| What happened/occurred was that... | # | ✓ | ✓✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Finish | # | # | ✓ | # | # |
| Stop and begin | ✓ | ✓✓ | # | ✓ | ✓ |
| Almost-ambiguity | No | No | Yes | No | No |
| In-PP | # | # | ✓ (Duration of event) | # / Onset reading | # / Onset reading? |
| For-PP | ✓ (Duration of state) | ✓ (Duration of event) | # | # | ✓ (Duration of iterated event) |
| Progressive | # / Temporariness | ✓ | ✓ (Progress leading to event) | # | ✓ (Progress of several instances) |
| Present tense = Present time interpretation | Yes | No | No | No | No |
| Has the sub-interval property | Yes | Yes | No | Does not apply | Only on iterative interpretation |
| Progressive entails the perfective | Does not apply | Yes | No | Does not apply / No | Yes |
Sample Answer: Analyzing "Clear the Table"
The predicate clear the table is [-static] as it describes something happening, [+durative] because it occurs over a period of time, and [+telic] because it involves a result or outcome and thus has an inherent final point: that in which everything has been removed from the table. It is thus an accomplishment.
Detailed Analysis of Accomplishment Status
Example: John cleared the table.
The predicate clear the table is [-static] as it describes something happening, [+durative] because it occurs over a period of time, and [+telic] because it involves a result or outcome and thus has an inherent final point: that in which everything has been removed from the table. It is thus an accomplishment.
Confirmation that it is an accomplishment comes from the following facts:
- Complement to finish: It can appear as a complement to finish: “John finished clearing the table.”
- In-PP Modification: In the simple past, it can be modified by in-PPs indicating the duration of the event: “John cleared the table in two minutes.”
- Ambiguity with “almost”: Modification by almost results in ambiguity, indicating that either John didn’t even begin to clear the table (counterfactual interpretation) or that John began to clear the table but didn’t finish clearing it (incompletive interpretation).
- Progressive Entailment: The progressive does not entail the perfective: “John was clearing the table” does NOT ENTAIL “John cleared the table.”