The purpose of this study is to examine the pragmatic constraints of initial indefinite noun phrase in Mandarin. Indefinite noun phrases are often regarded as ungrammatical when used with intransitive verbs. Indefinite noun phrases are typically trans...
The purpose of this study is to examine the pragmatic constraints of initial indefinite noun phrase in Mandarin. Indefinite noun phrases are often regarded as ungrammatical when used with intransitive verbs. Indefinite noun phrases are typically transformed into a verb-subject word order when used with intransitive verbs. However, it has been observed that the acceptability of initial indefinite noun phrase can be improved by semantic-pragmatic factors such as referentiality of transitive object and spatio-temporal location. These factors affect the acceptability of initial indefinite noun phrase at the sentence level. On the other hand, at the discourse level, initial indefinite noun phrase can be analyzed in various ways. At the discourse level, initial indefinite noun phrase can be judged for their locationality through contextual restriction, and their realization can vary depending on their location. Through this, we can see that various pragmatic constraints of initial indefinite noun phrase in natural language are manifested through their mutual relationships in numerous contexts created by natural language.