Negation of the Object in Sesotho

• 作者: Elias Nyefolo Malete
• 来源期刊: Macrolinguistics
• 学科: 社会科学
• 关键词: NEGATION OBJECT Sesotho
• 年，卷（期）: 2009,（1）
• 页码范围: 68-84
• 页数: 17页
• 分类号: G

摘要

This article examines constituent negation in Sesotho. It investigates negation of the object argument in clauses with non-copulative verbs. In the case of non-copulative verbs, transitive and di-transitive constructions will be considered. The article argues that Sesotho does not have a direct means of negating clausal constituents but employs clauses such as cleft sentences and clauses with AGRS [ho] as well as contrastive clauses to effect negation. It further examines negation in terms of Haegeman5s (1995) Neg-Criterion, the well-formedness condition that determines the distribution and interpretation of negative elements. It gives a brief overview of grammatical concepts regarding negation and the notion object argument in its focus and post verbal positions, and explains how constituent negation, [the object argument] is realized in Sesotho.