| The Fundamentals of Case Grammar: |
| Part 3 |
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| Dr. JCS: | In Case Grammar there are a handful of
Deep Cases. The two primary Deep Cases are Agent and Object. We've already described the Agent as the "doer of the action." Recall the sentences:
Some additional example sentences [with the Agent italicized]:
Let's first look at the English examples. Note that syntactically the Agent can appear before or after the verb. However, in non-passive constructions the Agent is always the subject of the verb - the verb agrees with it. In English passive constructions the Agent is marked with the preposition by. In Russian non-passive constructions, the Agent occupies the nominative case. In passive constructions, the Agent is in instrumental case. |
| RLM: | Fine. Let's move on to the other primary Deep
Case - the Object. |
| Dr. JCS: | The Object is the "recipient of
the action." It can be animate or inanimate. Some
example sentences [with the Object italicized]:
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| RLM: | You call the Agent and the Object
the two "primary" Deep Cases. What do you mean by that?
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| Dr. JCS: | What I mean by "primary" Deep Cases is
that they are the ones most often expressed in the favorite sentence
type of both English and Russian, SVO - Subject/Verb/Object;
however, the actual Deep Cases employed in a given sentence
are defined by the Case Frames of the verb
used, Case Frames being the Deep Cases permissible
or required with a particular verb for a particular
meaning. For instance, the verbs "to write" ~ писать and "to read" ~ читать permit both an Agent and an Object. Both are permitted but, at minimum, one or the other is required:
With the exception of imperatives, these verbs cannot be used without one or the other or both cases being articulated. Indeed, even when only one case is articulated, the other remains understood. After all, in the sentence - "The judge read quietly." - it is understood that the judge read something. And when we say - "The sentence was read aloud." - it is understood that someone read the sentence. The same holds true for the imperative mood: "Write!" ~ Пиши! "Read!" ~ Читай! The unnamed addressee is the Agent and there is something, an Object, to be written or to be read. Otherwise, the commands would make no sense! |
| RLM: | Very good. Let's see what other Deep Cases
are "triggered" by other verbs. |
| Dr. JCS: | Let's talk about the Experiencer
case which is usually filled by an animate noun. The Experiencer
is "the person or other animate affected or experiencing
a state expressed by the verb without doing and/or acting out
the action." The Experiencer can appear in Surface Structure in a number of different ways. Here are some examples [with the Experiencer italicized]:
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| RLM: | The verb determines the Case
Notions of the nouns, that is, whether a noun might be
an Experiencer, an Object or an Agent.
|
| Dr. JCS: | Exactly! For example, verbs that express notions
like "to be cold, hot, hungry, tired, sad" and the like, all require
associated animate nouns to be an Experiencer.
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| RLM: | Let's go on to the Benefactive Case,
which also involves animate nouns. |
| Dr. JCS: | The Benefactive Case obviously involves
a "beneficiary", that is, "a person or other animate
noun that "benefits," the one to whom or for whom, the
action of the verb is performed." A Benefactive is not the same as an Object, as the following examples illustrate [with Benefactive italicized]:
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| RLM: | On the level of Surface Structure we see
that the English indirect object can act as the Benefactive.
In Russian, the dative case is often used. But then there's the Dr. Einstein was awarded... sentence and the genitive phrase ...для Анны. |
| Dr. JCS: | Passives (Einstein) and prepositions that add
nuance (для Анны, "on somebody's behalf" versus "as a gift")
are mere surface syntax. However, verbs are the centers of sentences! The suns around which noun phrases orbit! |
| RLM: | Four Deep Cases down... a couple more? In the sentence we discussed earlier The boy struck the snake with a stick, you noted one of these remaining Deep Cases - the Instrument. |
| Dr. JCS: | Yes, the Instrument is "an inanimate
object or force which facilitates the action." In our earlier
sentence, the stick fulfilled that function. Some
additional examples [with the Instrument italicized]:
In addition, "verbs of the senses" have special objects, not acted upon but serving as the Instruments of the experience. |
| RLM: | Again, we have to distinguish the Surface Structure,
how something is said, from the Deep Structure, what it
means. The interesting sentence for me is:
|
| Dr. JCS: | Exactly! Take another sentence:
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| RLM: | So the National Rifle Association is right
when it says:
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| Dr. JCS: | From the perspective of Deep Case Grammar,
the NRA is correct. Compare the sentences:
The NRA is right! Guns are Instruments not Agents! An excellent example of Case Grammar meets Madison Avenue! |
| RLM: | Speaking of Madison Avenue... |
| Dr. JCS: | Yes! Speaking of Madison Avenue, the only Deep
Case that we haven't discussed is the Locative.
This case "identifies the location or spatial orientation of the
state or action identified by the verb. Some examples [with Locative italicized]:
In addition, in English - but not in Russian - a Locative can act as an inanimate subject:
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| RLM: | Why can't an Locative function as
an inanimate subject in Russian? |
| Dr. JCS: | Theoretically, it can. However, while English
speakers oftentimes personify places and institutions,
Russians usually don't use such personifications - at least
not for their own places and institutions. Rather, Russians tend
to use the prepositional case plus the 3rd person plural
indefinite form of the verb for such constructions.
Some examples:
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| RLM: | Similar sentences with the Russian employing prepositional
case phrases, in Deep Case Grammar terms, Locatives,
in place of the English personifications. But then, from the perspective
of Deep Case Grammar, both "White House" and "Maryland
MVA" are also Locatives. |
| Dr. JCS: | Precisely, my young protege! Precisely! As inanimates,
they cannot be Agents! |
| RLM: | Why don't we take a well deserved break and then return tomorrow to verbs and Case Frames. |
| Part 3 |
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