• Language and Information
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.1-24
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• 2010

The complexity of comparative constructions in each language has given challenges to both theoretical and computational analyses. This paper first identifies types of comparative constructions in Korean and discusses their main grammatical properties. It then builds a syntactic parser couched upon the typed feature structure grammar, HPSG and proposes a context-dependent interpretation for the comparison. To check the feasibility of the proposed analysis, we have implemented the grammar into the existing Korean Resource Grammar. The results show us that the grammar we have developed here is feasible enough to parse Korean comparative sentences and yield proper semantic representations though further development is needed for a finer model for contextual information.

• Language and Information
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.75-101
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• 2015

This study investigated the distribution of subject properties in Korean. Based on the previous studies on so-called 'subjecthood diagnostics' in Korean Multiple Subject Constructions (MSCs), the current study investigates how different subject properties are distributed in single subject constructions (Non-MSCs) and MSCs. Focusing on two distinct subject properties - obligatory control (OC) of PRO and coordinated deletion (CD) - an empirical syntactic experiment was designed to test how these two subjecthood diagnostics behave in the Non-MSC and MSC environments. Seventy Korean native speakers were tested over magnitude estimation task, composed of 80 Korean sentences representing different subject properties in single or multiple subject constructions. Overall results showed (i) both OC and CD can be used as subjecthood diagnostic tests in the Non-MSC environments, but (ii) that only OC can be used as a subjecthood diagnostic test in the MSC environments.

• Korean Journal of Cognitive Science
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.15-23
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• 2002

This paper reports an experiment on Broca's aphasics' comprehension of a class of English constructions involving empty categories. Based on Grodzinsky's (1986) account of chance-level performance of agrammatic understanding of movement constructions and their thematic role assignments. I show that Grodzinsky's notion of invisible empty categories can be further extended to include pronomical anaphors (PRO's) in Chomsky's (1981) sense and that the asymmetry in their poor comprehension of subject- and object-control constructions can be explained by the heuristic mechanism of the default thematic role assignment rule. eventually supporting Grodzinsky's claim that empty categories are not visible In agrammatic's syntactic representation.

• Language and Information
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.49-75
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• 2008

English absolutes and free adjuncts, despite their abridged syntactic forms, function as full subordinating adverbial clauses, with their semantic roles varied according to the interpretation of the matrix clauses. This paper investigates how to represent the syntactic structures and semantic variability of absolutes and free adjuncts in a unified way, accounting for overlapping properties among various subtypes of the constructions on the one hand, and differences on the other. In the proposed analysis, the clausal properties of absolutes and free adjuncts are captured by the subject selecting property and the clausal meaning associated with a predicative phrase, thus not calling for a null verb or complementizer. In classifying and defining diverse subtypes of the constructions via type constraints, the present work also provides an account of different uses of with involved in absolutes and free adjuncts.

• Language and Information
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.17-34
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• 2001

Kamp & Reyle's (1993) proposal to represent split antecedents to a plural pronoun in terms of sum- mation and abstraction is critically reviewed in this paper, In point our some weak- nesses of their analysis as well as wrong predictions they make. In propose to treat the partitive reading found in bare numeral constructions by separating the conven-tional DRS construction rules from the cognitively motivated DRS-operations at a different level. A preference rule is also proposed that would constrain the sortal structure of discourse referents when such operations as summation and abstraction are enforced at the DRS's of relevant levels. Evidence for the separate treatment of linguistically motivated processes apart from cognitively motivated ones comes from both English and Korean constructions involving definite plural pronouns and numeral classifiers.

• English Language & Literature Teaching
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.199-216
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• 2009

This study investigates how Korean speakers develop their interlanguage of English passive constructions with a reference to the learners' grammar proficiency levels. Sixty two college students of different levels of English participated in this study. They were asked to complete a sentence-completion task. Their production was classified into accurate passives, malformed passives, pseudo-passives, unaccusatives, and actives according to the use of transitive, ergative and unergative verbs. They then were further analyzed depending on the subjects' levels of grammar by three main factors: L1 transfer, the English voice system, and universal cognitive factors. The results showed that the subjects of the lower group produced more pseudo-passives, malformed passives, and overpassivization than those of the higher group, and even subjects of higher group still made passives for ergative verbs. It was also shown that L1 and universal factors had more influence on the lower group than on the higher group. Based on the analyses of the subjects' responses, the development of the English passive system by Korean learners is shown and some implications are suggested for effective teaching of English.

• Journal of architectural history
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• v.1 no.1 s.1
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• pp.9-17
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• 1992

According to the 17th century palace construction documents, head artisans were called Pyunsoo. In one building constructions, not only carpenters but also masons, plasterers and painters had their own head, Pyunsoos. This meant that Moksoo-Pyunsoo, head carpenter, could not manage the whole design of the building. Moreover, in many cases, selecting and laying the site of the building were determined by the geomancers. Under those working conditions, Moksoo-Pyunsoo could only have charge of designing the wooden parts, such as structural forms or detailed carvings. The documents showed that some dominent carpenters, like Kwak Ki Jong or Lee Choon Bong, had taken on the post of Moksoo-Pyunsoo in almost every palace constructions, especially inner palace buildings. Form the fact that the same carpenters had worked continuosly, it can be presumed that there would have many resemblance of structural forms or carvings among those inner palace buildings.

• Korean Journal of English Language and Linguistics
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.195-227
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• 2004

This paper concerns the issue related to the focus phenomena with a particular reference to the two alternating orders (continuous vs. discontinuous orders) in particle constructions in English. To explain the alternation of word order in particle constructions, I will argue that the choice of word order is closely related to the focus property of the object DPs. Following Drubig (2003), I will assume that focus-feature is taken to be a syntactic feature assigned freely to a lexical head in the process of the mapping into Lexical Array (LA) from the lexicon (LEX). I argue that the focus-marked object DP cannot move out of its focus domain and thus the continuous order is derived. In the case of non-focus-marked object DP, however, the object DP moves out of VP in order to receive an appropriate interpretation. As a result, the discontinuous order is derived.

• Language and Information
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.1-26
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• 2004

This paper investigates the nature of the discourse domain involved with focus sentences. The major theories of focus including Roothian Alternative Semantics are critically reviewed: Alternative Semantics takes a contradictory attitude toward the truth conditional aspect of free focus. The truth conditional differences are treated as a pragmatic inference, while they are captured by the semantic mechanism, that is, the alternative sets generated by focus constructions. In addition, the alternative sets are ad hoc since they are generated only for focus constructions. This paper attempts to show that the alternative sets introduced by foci in the framework of Alternative Semantics are neither necessary nor sufficient for an analysis of focus. It is argued that the domain sets simply provided by the model itself suffices for a proper analysis of focus constructions.

• Language and Information
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.31-58
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• 2014

The distinction of alienable/inalienable possessions plays a crucial role in determining the acceptability of Multiple Case Constructions (MCCs) in Korean. Recently, Yeon (2003, 2010) introduced so-called contiguous alienable possessions and mentioned that these types of possessions also affect the acceptability of MCCs. This paper experimentally examines how these three kinds of possessions influence the acceptability of MCCs. Since animacy also plays a role in the MCCs, this paper also examines how animacy affects the acceptability of MCCs. The experiments were designed following Johnson (2008), and the native speakers' intuition was measured and statistically analyzed. Through the experiment, the following facts were observed: (i) Both three types of possessions and animacy play a role in determining the acceptability of MCCs, (ii) The contiguous possessions behave close to inalienable possessions, rather than alienable possessions, and (iii) There was an interaction between three types of possessions and animacy.