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The Semantics and Pragmatics of Perspectival Expressions in English and Bulu: the Case of Deictic Motion Verbs

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The Semantics and Pragmatics of Perspectival Expressions in English and Bulu: the Case of Deictic Motion Verbs The semantics and pragmatics of perspectival expressions in English and Bulu: The case of deictic motion verbs Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Jefferson Barlew ∼6 6 Graduate Program in Linguistics The Ohio State University 2017 Dissertation Committee: Professor Craige Roberts, Advisor Professor Judith Tonhauser, Advisor Professor Marie Catherine de Marneffe Professor Zhiguo Xie c Jefferson Barlew, 2017 Abstract Researchers have long had the intuition that interpreting deictic motion verbs involves perspective-taking (see e.g. Fillmore 1965, 1966). In some sense, this perspective-taking is what differentiates deictic motion verbs from other motion verbs. It's what makes them \deictic". In this dissertation, I investigate the role perspective-taking plays in the inter- pretation of two deictic motion verbs in two typologically unrelated languages, the verbs come in English and zu `come' in Bulu, a Bantu language of Cameroon. The investigation reveals that zu `come' represents a previously undocumented type of deictic motion verb and that, differences in meanings notwithstanding, the interpretation of both verbs does involve perspective-taking. Part I of the dissertation consists of detailed investigations of the meanings of come and zu `come'. Conducting detailed investigations of their meanings makes it possible to state precisely the connection between their lexical semantics and pragmatics and perspective taking. Here it is. Interpreting either come or zu `come' requires the retrieval of a con- textually supplied perspective, a body of knowledge that represents the way a particular individual imagines things to be. For come or zu `come' to be used acceptably, it must be true, according to the retrieved perspective, that the individual herself is located at the destination of the motion event being described. If, according to the retrieved perspective, the individual does not self-ascribe being located at the destination, then neither come nor zu `come' can be used. This is why their use is felt to involve perspective-taking. In addition to describing a motion event, an interlocutor using a deictic motion verb also communicates something about where a particular individual imagines herself to be located. Based on this new understanding of what it is for deictic motion verbs to be perspectival, in Part II of the dissertation I take the first steps toward developing a formal framework ii for the analysis of perspectival expressions. I follow recent work (e.g. Farkas and Bruce 2010; Lauer 2013; Roberts 2014) and assume that perspectival content plays a significant role in both the structure of the discourse and the interpretation of particular expressions. I assume that just as interlocutors keep track of a Stalnakerian (1978) common ground, they also keep track of bodies of information representing the perspectives of individuals. I model this formally by embedding central elements of Roberts's (2014) theory of doxastic perspectives in AnderBois, Brasoveanu, and Henderson's (2015) dynamic semantics. The analyses of come and zu `come' developed in this framework both account for the novel data better than previous accounts and establish, for the first time, an explicit, formal connection between the lexical semantics of deictic motion verbs and the intuition that their interpretation involves perspective-taking. More importantly, by embedding elements of Stalnaker(2008) and Roberts' theories in AnderBois et al.'s semantics, this dissertation takes the first steps toward creating a formal framework for the analysis of perspectival content in general, in the spirit of Fillmore 1975, Mitchell 1986, Sells 1987, and Speas and Tenny 2003. iii Acknowledgements Linguistics is my second career. I made the transition after a decade teaching secondary school in Signal Mountain, Tennessee. Here I want to thank the people who helped me make the transition to linguistics and those who have, in one way or another, made earning a Ph.D. in linguistics possible. For introducing me to the joy of doing linguistics and for believing in a secondary school teacher who wanted to be a linguist, thanks to Geert Booij and Steve Levinson. At the LSA Summer Institute in 2009, Geert and Steve taught the first linguistics courses I ever took, and they were gracious enough to write letters of recommendation without which I wouldn't have been considered by any graduate school. With respect to applications, thanks to Great Uncle Herman for coming out of retirement to read and critique many cover letter drafts. Thanks also to Bob and Judith Walter, who gave me a place to live after I sold my house in Signal Mountain, and especially to Bob who has always given me rock solid advice about how to be a better educator and a better person. I also want to thank my family, especially my parents, Mike and Virginia Barlew. They have supported me as I pursued various career and personal goals, including some un- conventional ones. Their support has been both tangible|helping with moves, etc.|and intangible|believing that I could realize the goals I set for myself, and be whatever I chose to be. In the course of completing the Ph.D. itself, the support of my mentors and colleagues at OSU has been invaluable. I owe the greatest debt to my two Doktorm¨utter,Craige Roberts and Judith Tonhauser. They have been my co-advisors through my entire graduate career, and they have helped shape the way I think about all things linguistic, from the role of the context in interpretation to how to treat data properly to how to develop formal analyses. iv Their generosity with their time and insights knows no bounds. Only I have read more of my writing than they have, and not by much. I also owe a great deal to my third unofficial advisor, Peter Culicover. I have worked with Peter throughout my entire graduate career as well, and his thinking informs both my work and my professional development. Like Craige and Judith, Peter is generous with his time and always willing to help. I am grateful to my two other committee members, Marie Catherine de Marneffe and Zhiguo Xie, both of whom had made many helpful suggestions along the way that improved this dissertation. Other faculty members have shaped my thinking as well. I'm grateful to Carl Pollard for teaching me how to build sound formal systems and to Dave Odden for introducing me to Bantu languages. Both gave their time and advice graciously. To Shari Speer, thanks for welcoming my participation in \Speerlab" for a couple of years, and for helping me develop an understanding of and appreciation for experimental methodologies. My thinking has also been shaped by interactions with several linguists outside our department. Thanks especially to Marcus Kracht and Joost Zwarts for sometimes lengthy discussions about the meanings of spatial expressions. I also want to thank Shari Speer for her work as OSU's department chair. As far as I can tell, Shari's only agenda as chair is to help as many members of the department as possible to be as successful as possible. She does what is often a thankless job skillfully and selflessly. Other departmental staff deserve thanks as well. Julie McGory shepherds the undergraduate program with great care, and is a willing friend to graduate TAs. She's happy to talk about teaching, career trajectory, and personal struggles any time, sometimes over wine. Jim Harmon is a model for us all due to the grace, kindness, and cheerfulness with which he handles even the dumbest IT requests. Thanks also the OSU Department of Linguistics, Division of Arts and Humanities, and Graduate Student Council for providing financial support that made research with language informants and travel to conferences possible. v I owe personal and professional debts of gratitude to many OSU students. For cama- raderie in the early years, thanks to Rachel Burdin, Shontael Elward, Eric Ruppe, and Alex Wein. For great co-teaching in the department's Summer Linguistics Institute for Youth Scholars program, thanks to Katie Carmichael, Jane Mitch, Alec Buchner, and Zack De. For helpful conversations about semantics and pragmatics, related both to this dissertation and to other projects, thanks to Scott Martin, Chris Worth, and Michelle Dionisio. For great collaboration and for teaching me a lot about a lot of things, thanks to Murat Yasavul and Emily Clem. Murat is the best person in the department to commiserate with about any- thing, and developing elicitation questions and conducting elicitation sessions with Emily was always fun, interesting, and useful. Finally, thanks to Eric Snyder for teaching me about philosophy, pushing me to understand a domain outside my wheelhouse, and being a great co-author and friend. With respect to this dissertation, I would like to thank Carly Dickerson for helping me translate consent materials into French. For her work as a language consultant over many years I give my heartfelt thanks to Marie Needham. She has shared her language, her culture, her family, and her country with me over many years. And she has put up with an incredible number of repetitive, and sometimes quite odd, questions. Thanks to my Cameroonian consultants as well - Minko Doroth´ee,Mnanga Marie Th´er´ese,Ntouaba Alexis, Ebale Dieudomme Guy, Obam Guy, Eno Bedel, and Nlate Mendo Jeanne Helene, - for their patience and willingness to share their language. And a heartfelt thanks to Mama Dorothee and Mama Sita, who always said that any son of Marie Needham was a son of theirs as well. Thank you for opening your home to a stranger with warmth and compassion. For your hospitality, thanks to Yvan Obah, Gaelle, Chanel, and Mira. To the children|Bebe Minga, Pulpo, and Mnanga|thank you for opening your hearts.
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