Academic literature on the topic 'Modalitet (språkvetenskap)'

Vad är det som gör att vi uppfattar en person på ett visst sätt? Vi påverkas inte bara av personen själv och allt som personen själv bidrar med, utan även av vår egen utgångspunkt, våra egna och andras värderingar och andras val av framställning. Genom att plocka isär meningar och satser i åtta partiledarintervjuer, analysera deras lexikogrammatiska beståndsdelar och kategorisera dem har jag undersökt om det var möjligt att hitta språkliga mönster för detta. För det syftet har jag använt den systemisk-funktionella grammatiken, SFG, eftersom den gör det möjligt att kategorisera satsers lexikogrammatiska beståndsdelar utifrån både funktion och betydelse. De analyserade beståndsdelarna är förstadeltagare, processtyper och modalitet i alla fria satser. Det analyserade materialet är intervjuer med Mona Sahlin och Fredrik Reinfeldt publicerade i fyra svenska dagstidningar inför valet 2010, ett material som därför innehåller både citat från den studerade personen och kommentarer om densamma. Analysmaterialet är indelat i partiledarens diskurs och journalistens diskurs, för att belysa vilka roller intervjupersonerna själva intar och vilka roller de tilldelas av journalisten. Resultatet visar att det inte räcker att kvantitativt analysera kategorierna processtyper, förstadeltagare och modalitet för att hitta de språkliga mönster som skapar intrycket av en person. Även kontexten och det semantiska innehållet i de verb som får realisera processerna har i det sammanhanget stor betydelse. Resultatet visar också att journalistens diskurs är mer avgörande för hur intervjupersonerna uppfattas, eftersom journalisten styr samtalet genom sina val av verb som får realisera de olika processtyperna och i viss mån även genom modaliteten.

Denna studie undersöker samspelet mellan de semantiska kategorierna inkoativitet, futurum och modalitet i få/får/fick/fått + perceptionsverbskonstruktioner i skriven svenska , samt om det går att systematiskt skilja mellan dessa kategorier i form av frekvens och kontext. Enligt Åke Viberg framstår få som rätt språkspecifikt i sitt polysema omfång jämfört med andra europeiska språk, såsom engelska, finska, tyska och franska (Viberg 2009: 105, 119, 2012: 1413). Vidare påstår han att perceptionsverben se, höra och veta i samband med få som hjälpverb (få + perceptionsverb) uttrycker inkoativitet och även att den inkoativa betydelsen är semantiskt nära besläktad med futurum (Viberg 2002: 123, 2012: 1444). Inkoativitet innebär ett predikats uttryck för övergång (Bybee et al., 1994), ofta utan någon som helst hänvisning till vad som orsakar det övergående skedet (Viberg 2002: s.129). Studien är en korpusundersökning baserad på skönlitterära texter och pressmaterial från 70- till 90-talet, där 50 meningar per perceptionsverb analyseras utifrån de semantiska kategorier de anses uttrycka. Resultaten tyder på att det inte går att semantiskt kategorisera konstruktionerna få + perceptionsverb som en kategori för sig, som uttrycker inkoativitet och futurum. Konstruktionerna uppvisar en viss semantisk relation till futurum och inkoativa betydelser men är även i stor utsträckning kopplade till andra funktioner av få + verb i infinitiv, särskilt modalitet. Undersökningen tillför en ökad förståelse för få:s polysema grammatiska beteende samt bidrar till den allmänna förståelsen för tempus, aspekt och modalitet i svenska.
This paper studies the interplay between inchoative, future and modal meanings in constructions containing the verb of possession få (in all of its four conjugations) + verbs of perception in written Swedish, and seeks to find out if it is possible to systematically differentiate these categories from each other in terms of frequency and context. According to Åke Viberg, the Swedish verb of possession få appears to be quite language specific with its polysemic characteristics compared to other European languages, such as English, Finnish, German and French (Viberg 2009: s.105, 119, 2012: s.1413). Viberg also suggests that få in combination with either of the three verbs of perception se ‘see’, höra ‘hear’, veta ‘know’ expresses inchoative sense, to which he further states the future sense is closely related to (Viberg 2002: 123, 2012: 1444). The inchoative sense is when a predicate expresses transition (Bybee et al., 1994), often with a lack of explicit reference to the cause of the transition (Viberg 2002: s.129). The study is a corpus investigation, which includes a selection of fiction and newspaper material ranging from the 1970s to the 1990s. 50 sentences per perception verb are analysed based on the semantic categories that they are considered being an expression of. The results show that the få + perception verb constructions are not semantically classifiable as a category which expresses the inchoative and future sense. Apart from displaying some connection with the inchoative and future meanings, these constructions appear to be well integrated with other functions expressed by få + infinitive verbs, primarily modality. In addition to provide an increased understanding of the polysemic grammatical behaviour of få as an auxiliary verb, this investigation also contributes to the overall knowledge of tense, aspect and modality in Swedish.

This study investigates the expression of epistemic modality in a corpus of Ghanaian Pidgin English (GhaPE). The epistemic expressions are manually identified and thereafter distinguished from each other in terms of grammatical status and their indication of different epistemic and evidential notions. 7 different elements are found, ranging from 1 pre-verbal marker, 1 adverb, 2 particles and 3 complement-taking predicates. The results indicate, in line with existing research, that to differentiate between usage properties of individual modal expressions it may be necessary to subdivide them in terms of not only epistemic but also evidential meanings. Moreover, a functional parallel between the GhaPE particle abi, the Swedish modal particle väl and the Spanish adverbs a lo mejor and igual is demonstrated, with respect to their simultaneous function of expressing epistemic probability and asking the hearer for confirmation. Finally, the results suggest, contrary to previous accounts, that the pre-verbal marker fit may indicate epistemic possibility without the addition of a preceding irrealis marker go. It is proposed that future researchers should make use of bigger corpora in order to arrive at a more ample conception of both individual modal categories and their interrelations.

The communication regarding the new corona-virus raises questions about availability and plain language. In Sweden, approximately 1.5 million people are in need of this communication through written language due to, inter alia, hearing impairment. Although subtitles are considered one of the most read genres today, it has received little focus in Swedish linguistic research, especially when it comes to intralingual subtitles. However, the communication through subtitles is limited and can lead to information loss. In Sweden, SVT as a public service channel has special requirements to maintain good quality in subtitles but nonetheless omissions are a prerequisite. However, this must never affect the loss of important information. Modality is considered within the Systemic-Functional Linguistics as linguistic tools to create opportunities to shift communication in different degrees and directions. A similar shift in degree can occur in expressions of valuation and opinions. Therefore, modality and valuation are interesting and important to study in a well-known TV- show that communicates, informs and debates about a social-crisis like the Corona-virus. This paper examines modality and expressions of valuation in the adaption from speech to subtitles in the Swedish news-program Agenda (SVT) reporting on the Corona-virus in Sweden and the world. Through the subtitling-shift model created by Sahlin (2001), I examine the omissions of modality and the expressions of valuation. The results show that the communication in subtitles have a weaker emphasis of conflicting opinions, are more objectively constructed and that there is a shift in nuances.

I den här studien har undersökts hörande andraspråksinlärares fonologiska utveckling med avseende på deras förmåga att identifiera ett teckens aspektstruktur, både partiellt och som hela tecken, samt en- och tvåhandstecken. Deras resultat jämfördes sedan med en kontrollgrupp bestående av döva förstaspråkstalare av svenskt teckenspråk. Det har tidigare varit begränsat med studier med fokus på identifiering av tecken. Av den anledningen skapades till denna studie en uppgift som vare sig kräver kunskaper i svenskt teckenspråk eller lingvistiska förkunskaper. Studien består av data som baseras på en kvantitativ och longitudinell undersökning. Vid identifieringen av de aspekterna visade det sig hos båda grupperna att aspekten artikulationsställe var lättast att identifiera, direkt följt av aspekten artikulator och att aspekten artikulation var svårast att identifiera. L2-gruppen presterade bättre och kunde identifiera fler korrekta tecken än L1-gruppen. Båda grupperna presterade emellertid låga resultat. En möjlig orsak till detta kan vara att svarsblanketten inte var tillräckligt tydlig gällande aspekten artikulation. En annan tänkbar orsak är förmågan att memorera visuella komponenter. Vid identifieringen av en- och tvåhandstecken visade det sig för båda grupperna vara enklare att identifiera enhandstecken än tvåhandstecken. Detta bedöms överensstämma med tidigare forskning som visar att tvåhandstecken är fonologiskt och kognitivt mer komplexa än enhandstecken. Vidare forskning med ett större antal deltagare behövs för att kunna se eventuella ytterligare aspekter som kan påverka resultatet.
In this study, the phonological development of hearing L2 learners has been investigated with regard to their ability to identify a sign's aspect structure, both partially and as a whole, and one- vs. two-handed signs. The results were compared to a control group of deaf first language speakers of Swedish sign language. There has previously been a limited number of studies focusing on the identification of signs. For this reason, a task that required no previous knowledge of Swedish Sign Language or linguistics was created for this study. The study is based on data from a quantitative and longitudinal investigation. In the identification of aspects, it is shown that place of articulation was the easiest to identify for both groups, followed by articulator, and lastly articulation, which was the most difficult to identify correctly. The L2 group performed better and could identify a higher number of correct lexical signs than the L1 group. However, both groups scored low results. A possible reason for this is that the test template is not explicit enough about articulation as a aspect. When identifying one- and two-handed signs, it is shown that one-handed signs are easier to identify than two-handed signs, across both groups. This corroborates previous research that shows that two-handed signs are phonologically and cognitively more complex than one-handed signs. Further research with a larger number of participants is encouraged in order to investigate other potentially influencing factors.

This corpus-based study analyzes different types of epistemic markers used in argumentative essays by University students. More specifically it compares Swedish L2 writers and English L1 writers. The scope of the analysis covers epistemic modal verbs, lexical verbs and adverbs. A number of markers are counted to see which expressions are preferred by L1 and L2 writers respectively and if the frequency rates differ between the two groups. Further, it discusses whether the non-native writers use epistemic markers appropriate to an academic register, and an attempt is made to see whether the L1 and L2 writers show similar patterns of ‘committing’ to and ‘distancing’ themselves to their arguments. The results reveal a few notable differences between the Swedish and English writers. A tendency is seen among the L2 writers to ‘overuse’ certain expressions, particularly in the category of lexical verbs. Compared to the native writers, the L2 writers display higher frequency rates when it comes to markers that are most commonly found in spoken conversation. Further the L2 writers seem to display more ‘writer visibility’ than the L1 writers do, which could perhaps be due to differences in writing culture. The findings also suggest that Swedish L2 writers, even on a relatively advanced level, may have difficulties in mastering modal expressions in English.

Esta tesina trata las varias maneras de traducir el verbo modal deber (de) al sueco en la novela La Sombra del Viento de Carlos Ruiz Zafón. Compara los resultados con la descripción de los verbos modales suecos en Svenska Akademiens Grammatik. La investigación revela que el uso de los verbos en la traducción en cuestión generalmente corresponde a la descripción de SAG, pero hay excepciones. Las muchas ocurrencias de måste deóntico señala que el sentido de necesidad que expresa no es tan fuerte como sostiene SAG, y además no solo se usa en presente sino también mucho como forma de pasado. En cuanto a deber (de) epistémico, los resultados indican que su significado tiene un campo de aplicación tan grande que los modales suecos no son suficientes como traducciones. No aparece ningún ejemplo de lär en todo el corpus. Además el estudio enfoca la división entre deber y deber de, en la que parece que está en marcha un cambio lingüístico.

In this dissertation, I investigate various aspects of object marking and how these manifest themselves in the signed modality. The main focus is on Swedish Sign Language (SSL), the national sign language of Sweden, which is the topic of investigation in all five studies. Two of the studies adopt a comparative perspective, including other sign languages as well. The studies comprise a range of data, including corpus data, elicited production, and acceptability judgments, and combine quantitative and qualitative methods in the analyses. The dissertation begins with an overview of the topics of valency, argument structure, and object marking, primarily from a spoken language perspective. Here, the interactions between semantics and morphosyntax are presented from a typological perspective, introducing differential object marking as a key concept. With regard to signed language, object marking is discussed in terms of both verbal and nominal strategies. Verbal strategies of object marking among sign languages include directional verbs, object handshape classifiers, and embodied perspective in signing. The first study investigates the use of directionality and object handshapes as object marking strategies in Al-Sayyid Bedouin Sign Language (ABSL), Israeli Sign Language (ISL), and SSL. It is shown that the strategies generally display different alignments in terms of the types of objects targeted, which is uniform across languages, but that directionality is much more marginal in ABSL than in the other two languages. Also, we see that there is a connection between object marking strategies and the animacy of the object, and that the strategies, object animacy, and word order preferences interact. In the second and third studies, SSL is investigated with regard to the transitive–reflexive distinction. Here, we see that there are interactional effects between object handshapes and the perspective taken by the signer. This points to intricate iconic motivations of combining and structuring complex verb sequences, such as giving preference to agent focusing structures (e.g., agent perspective and handling handshapes). Furthermore, the use of space is identified as a crucial strategy for reference tracking, especially when expressing semantically transitive events. Nominal strategies include object pronouns and derivations of the sign PERSON. The fourth study provides a detailed account of the object pronoun OBJPRO in SSL, which is the first in-depth description of this sign. It is found that the sign is in widespread use in SSL, often corresponds closely to object pronouns of spoken Swedish, and is argued to be grammaticalized from the lexical sign PERSON. In the final study, the possible existence of object pronouns in other sign languages is investigated by using a sample of 24 languages. This analysis reveals that the feature is found mostly in the Nordic countries, suggesting areal contact phenomena. However, the study also shows that there are a number of derivations of PERSON, such as reflexive pronouns, agreement auxiliaries, and case markers. The use of PERSON as a source of grammaticalization for these functions is attributed to both semantic and phonological properties of the sign. This dissertation is unique in that it is dedicated to the topic of object marking in the signed modality. It brings a variety of perspectives and methods together in order to investigate the domain of object marking, cross-linguistically and cross-modally.

This dissertation investigates the expression of the indirect evidential subdomain in two languages in contact, i.e. the northern variety of Central Aymara and the variety of Spanish spoken in La Paz (Bolivia). For this aim, the study uses first-hand data collected in La Paz and El Alto (Bolivia) during 2014 and 2015. Data was elicited through: the “Family Problems Picture” task (San Roque et al. 2012), formulated by the members of the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics and created specifically for the activation of cognitive categories such as evidentiality and mirativity; the “Pear Story” designed for Wallace Chafe, professor at the University of California, to collect narrative texts that show how humans perceive, elaborate and verbalize experience; and, finally, personal narratives, traditional narratives and interviews. Thirty-three recordings (12h 48’) of 48 Spanish-Aymara bilingual speakers (17 males, age range: 18-64) were fully transcribed and annotated. The resulting corpus consists of 33 transcriptions of which 14 are in Aymara (c. 19 154 words), whereas 19 are in Spanish (c. 46 245 words). The dissertation is built around four research questions. First, the dissertation shows the functions of the forms identified in the data in both languages. The study identifies for each form both evidential and non-evidential functions. Indirect evidential functions are systematically analyzed and classified by combining Willett’s (1988) and Aikhnvald’s (2004) classifications. The analysis shows evidential functions of forms that have not been previously studied as such, i.e. digamos and diciendo in Spanish and sañani and sapxi in Aymara, but it also reveals unnoticed evidential functions for previously described forms. Second, the dissertation provides a clear view of the relationship between the evidential and the epistemic modal domain involved in the use of the forms identified. Two types of correlation are found. Both languages, indeed, show forms that only point out the way in which speakers acquired information and forms where the two domains overlap. Third, the dissertation investigates speakers’ epistemic stance, in terms of commitment, towards information involved in the use of the evidential forms identified. The study shows that the forms which convey merely evidential information express mainly a medium-high commitment degree, whereas the forms in which the distinction between the evidential and the epistemic modal domain is blurred indicate a low degree of commitment. Forth, the dissertation sheds light on the relationship between the expressions of the indirect evidential subdomain in the two languages. The study proposes a quantitative and qualitative analysis of the evidential types and subtypes in both languages. The results show a high degree of convergence between the two languages, suggesting also situations of influence of one language on the other.