On modal grounding, reference points, and subjectification

2005 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
pp. 56-77 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bert Cornillie
Keyword(s):  
Reference Point ◽  
Epistemic Modals ◽  
Reference Points ◽  
Epistemic Modality ◽  
Point Function ◽  
Theoretical Underpinning ◽  
Modal Verbs ◽  
Epistemic Modal ◽  
Modal Auxiliaries ◽  
Definition Of

In this paper it is argued that Langacker’s definition of grounding predications is problematic for languages other than English. The idea that in English tense and modal auxiliaries are mutually exclusive grounding elements leads Langacker (1990, 2003) to consider both deontic and epistemic modal auxiliaries as grounding predications, whereas he excludes German modals from being so on the basis of their tense inflection. In this paper I contend that, unlike the deontic modal verbs, and despite their tense marking, Spanish epistemic modals deber ‘must’, poder ‘may’ and tener que ‘have to’ are certainly appropriate for modal grounding due to their reference point function and to the subjectification they undergo. I show that deontic modality is more affected by temporal grounding than epistemic modality. Moreover, the impossibility of inserting an inchoative verb such as ir a ‘to be going to’ corroborates the theoretical underpinning that Spanish epistemic modals effect an epistemic grounding similar to that of the grounding predications in English.

An Alternative Perspective on Recruitment Overfishing and Biological Reference Points

1987 ◽  
Vol 44 (4) ◽  
pp. 913-918 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. P. Sissenwine ◽  
J. G. Shepherd
Keyword(s):  
Fisheries Management ◽  
Reference Point ◽  
Reference Points ◽  
Fishing Mortality ◽  
Alternative Perspective ◽  
Conventional Models ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Yield Per Recruit ◽  
Spawning Biomass

Biological reference points are used to guide fisheries management decisions. The reference points most often used are expressed in terms of fishing mortality rate (F). Fmsy relates to the maximization of sustainable yield. In principle, it is a most useful reference point, but in practice it is difficult to estimate. Fmax and F0.1 relate to certain levels of yield per recruit and are easily estimated, but they ignore conservation of the resource. Recruitment overfishing has usually been understood to occur when a population has been fished down to a point where recruitment is substantially reduced or fails. It has not been used as a basis for a biological reference point because the definition is vague and cannot be readily related to fishing mortality. Levels of spawning biomass below which recruitment seems to be reduced have been used, but their determination from available data is usually difficult and controversial. We propose an alternative definition of recruitment overfishing in terms of the level of fishing pressure that reduces the spawning biomass of a year class over its lifetime below the spawning biomass of its parents on average. Conventional models and types of data can be used to determine this level of F, denoted as Frep, which clearly relates to the replacement of spawning biomass and thus to sustainability of a population and yield in the long term.

Children's epistemic inferences through modal verbs and prosody

2020 ◽  
Vol 47 (6) ◽  
pp. 1132-1169
Author(s):  
Meghan ARMSTRONG
Keyword(s):  
Young Children ◽  
Qualitative Analysis ◽  
Choice Task ◽  
Epistemic Modality ◽  
Metalinguistic Awareness ◽  
Modal Verbs ◽  
Epistemic Modal ◽  
Negative Valence ◽  
Forced Choice Task ◽  
Positive And Negative Valence

AbstractThis study explores how young children infer nuances in epistemic modality through prosody. A forced-choice task was used, testing children's (ages three to seven) comprehension of the might/will distinction (modal condition) as well their ability to modulate the strength of might through two prosodic tunes (prosody condition). Positive and negative valence conditions were included. Younger children were shown to start off performing above chance for the modal condition, and at around chance for the prosody condition, but after age four performance on the prosody condition quickly improved. For both modal verbs and prosody, children performed significantly better when valence was positive. By age seven, children performed at ceiling for all conditions. Qualitative analysis of children's justifications for prosody responses showed metalinguistic awareness of prosodic meaning as early as age four, with the ability to relate prosody to epistemic modal meaning becoming quite common by age seven.

scholarly journals Immediate maximum economic yield; a realistic fisheries economic reference point

2009 ◽  
Vol 67 (3) ◽  
pp. 577-582 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jordi Lleonart ◽  
Gorka Merino
Keyword(s):  
Reference Point ◽  
Fishing Effort ◽  
Reference Points ◽  
Economic Rent ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Fishing Season ◽  
Shrimp Fishery ◽  
Maximum Economic Yield ◽  
Nw Mediterranean ◽  
Definition Of

Abstract Lleonart, J., and Merino, G. 2010. Immediate maximum economic yield; a realistic fisheries economic reference point. – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 67: 577–582. Unregulated or poorly managed fisheries tend towards overexploitation, but fisheries rent does not completely dissipate when immediate rent maximization is sought. The principle of immediate economic rent maximization is the basis of the derivation of a classic model and has led to the definition of a relationship in a catch-and-effort diagram termed the dynamic immediate maximum economic yield (DIMEY) curve. For any initial biomass, if the economic rent in the immediate fishing season is maximized, then the fishing effort and catch strategy that follows will be located on the DIMEY curve. The DIMEY curve is not only used for dynamic simulation but also used to identify a new reference point, the immediate maximum economic yield (IMEY), which is proposed as more realistic than the classic open-access solution for unregulated fisheries. IMEY is proposed as an asymptotic outcome for unregulated or poorly managed fisheries when short-term economic objectives drive fleet activities. IMEY properties are described and compared with traditional fisheries reference points in the yield-and-effort diagram. Theoretical conclusions are compared with empirical evidence provided by the red shrimp fishery off Blanes, Spain (NW Mediterranean). Observed catch-and-effort records are plotted and were positively correlated with the DIMEY curve and IMEY.

scholarly journals EPISTEMIC MODALITY IN TED TALKS ON EDUCATION

2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ton Nu My Nhat ◽  
Nguyen Thi Dieu Minh
Keyword(s):  
Mixed Method ◽  
Middle Level ◽  
Epistemic Modality ◽  
Epistemic Modal ◽  
Qualitative Approaches ◽  
Modal Auxiliaries ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Personal Attitudes ◽  
Ted Talks ◽  
Linguistic Means

This paper aims to investigate the epistemic markers in TED talks. The data for the study is 100 TED talks on education. The mixed method of both the quantitative and qualitative approaches was manipulated to capture the use of the linguistic means to convey epistemic modality in terms of degrees of certainty and range of devices. The findings indicate that epistemic modality is pervasive in this genre, with approximately one-tenth of the sentences in the data being epistemically modalized by TED speakers via a range of linguistic means of different types and epistemic strength. The analysis unveils a clear tendency to select the middle level of commitment and make use of epistemic modal auxiliaries to frame their statements with personal attitudes and opinions. The examination of epistemic devices in the data also suggests speakers’ preference to use epistemic adverbials to realize certainty and employ epistemic modals to denote probability and possibility. The study yields pedagogical implications for developing an efficient use of epistemic modality in oral presentation of academic discourse.

scholarly journals Means of Expression of Epistemic Modality in Russian Political Discourse

2019 ◽  
pp. 19-31
Author(s):  
Živilė Nemickienė
Keyword(s):  
Political Discourse ◽  
Russian Language ◽  
Epistemic Modality ◽  
Shared Knowledge ◽  
Political Leaders ◽  
Epistemic Modal ◽  
Modal Particles ◽  
Modal Auxiliaries ◽  
The Russian Language ◽  
Modal Adverbs

This paper discusses the means of epistemic modality used in Russian political discourse. Russian political leaders most often use epistemic modal adverbs and mental state predicates in their speeches for hedging purposes. Modal particles and modal expressions are employed more often than predicatively used adjectives, modal auxiliaries are never used due to the peculiarities of the Russian language. Most commonly used words expressing epistemic modality in Russian belong to the group of modal adverbs. Due to the structure of Russian, groups of particles and modal expressions conveying epistemic modality are analysed. The study reveals that Russian politicians use words with epistemic meanings mainly to convince the listener that the information is reliable, and rarely to mitigate the content of the proposition or to reduce the author’s responsibility for what is being claimed. The cognitive processes help to recognize the ideas encoded in epistemic utterances. Those processes are based on the shared knowledge and understanding of the context.

scholarly journals Delineating the continuum of marine ecosystem-based management: a US fisheries reference point perspective

2015 ◽  
Vol 73 (4) ◽  
pp. 1042-1050 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tara E. Dolan ◽  
Wesley S. Patrick ◽  
Jason S. Link
Keyword(s):  
Fisheries Management ◽  
Ecosystem Management ◽  
Reference Point ◽  
Marine Ecosystem ◽  
Single Species ◽  
Reference Points ◽  
Current State ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Compare And Contrast ◽  
The Continuum

Abstract Ecosystem management (EM) suffers from linguistic uncertainty surrounding the definition of “EM” and how it can be operationalized. Using fisheries management as an example, we clarify how EM exists in different paradigms along a continuum, starting with a single-species focus and building towards a more systemic and multi-sector perspective. Focusing on the specification of biological and other systemic reference points (SRPs) used in each paradigm and its related regulatory and governance structures, we compare and contrast similarities among these paradigms. We find that although EM is a hierarchical continuum, similar SRPs can be used throughout the continuum, but the scope of these reference points are broader at higher levels of management. This work interprets the current state of the conversation, and may help to clarify the levels of how EM is applied now and how it can be applied in the future, further advancing its implementation.

Italian children's understanding of the epistemic and deontic modal verbs dovere (must) and potere (may)

2002 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 87-107 ◽  
Author(s):  
ELISABETTA BASCELLI ◽  
MARIA SILVIA BARBIERI
Keyword(s):  
Epistemic Modality ◽  
The Other ◽  
Dual Function ◽  
Full Understanding ◽  
Modal Verbs ◽  
Epistemic Modal ◽  
Single Sentence ◽  
Modal Verb ◽  
Deontic Modality

This study assesses children's understanding of the Italian modal verbs dovere (must) and potere (may) in their dual function of qualification of the speaker's beliefs (epistemic modality) and behaviour regulation (deontic modality). 192 children and 60 adults participated in the experiment. Children aged 3;0 to 9;2 were presented with two tasks: one assessed their understanding of modal expressions in the epistemic domain – looking for an object by following the information contained in a sentence; the other assessed their understanding of modal expressions in the deontic domain – acting according to obligations, permissions and prohibitions in the context of a game. Half of the subjects carried out the tasks in a single-sentence format and half carried out the tasks in a double-sentence format. In the single-sentence format the subjects had to follow the directions supplied by a modalized sentence; in the double-sentence format they had to follow the directions supplied by the sentence containing the stronger modal verb. Our results show that the understanding of deontic modal forms precedes the understanding of epistemic modal forms and that a full understanding of the strength of different modal forms is achieved only at eight years.

scholarly journals Epistemic modals in early Modern English history texts. Analysis of gender variation

2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 13
Author(s):  
Francisco J. Álvarez Gil
Keyword(s):  
Epistemic Modals ◽  
Epistemic Modality ◽  
Negotiation Of Meaning ◽  
English History ◽  
Scientific Texts ◽  
Modal Verbs ◽  
Historical Texts ◽  
Female Authors ◽  
History Texts ◽  
Late Modern

<p>In the present study, samples of late Modern English scientific texts have been analysed to evaluate cases of epistemic modality as realised by modal verbs. The aim of this research was to detect if there exist variances in the way modals are used in historical texts from a gender perspective. For this, I have interrogated the Corpus History English Texts (1700-1900) which is part of The Coruña Corpus of English Scientific Texts, which contains history texts written by male and female authors. I have used the Coruña Corpus Tool for retrieval, although manual analyses have been carried out as well. Each of the occurrences found have been categorised according to their contextual meanings. The results obtained account for a high frequency on the usage of these modal verbs according to gender and the diverse pragmatic functions these modal verbs accomplish in the communicative process, such as mitigation and negative politeness. From a pragmatic perspective, epistemic modals have the potential to allow negotiation of meaning between writers and their audience among other functions.</p>

scholarly journals Võimalikkus hispaania keele modaalverbi poder ja eesti keele modaalverbide semantikas. Tõlkevastete analüüs

2016 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 125-158
Author(s):  
Triin Lõbus
Keyword(s):  
Epistemic Modality ◽  
Literary Texts ◽  
Semantic Ambiguity ◽  
Contrastive Analysis ◽  
Modal Verbs ◽  
Subjective Judgement ◽  
Modal Verb ◽  
Situational Meaning ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
The Continuum

Kokkuvõte. Artiklis uuritakse episteemilist modaalsust hispaania ja eesti keele võimalikkusmodaalverbide semantikas. Võrdlus lähtub hispaania keele modaalverbist poder, vaadeldes selle episteemilise kasutuse tõlkevasteid ilukirjandusteostes. Analüüsi aluseks on episteemilise modaalsuse tähendusala täpsem määratlemine. Prototüüpset kõnelejakeskset (subjektiivset) võimalikkushinnangut eristatakse objektiivsest situatsioonilisest võimalikkusest, mis on episteemilise/mitte-episteemilise modaalsuse piiripealne vaheaste. See eristus võimaldab modaalverbide tähendusalasid paremini eritleda ja omavahel kontrastiivses vaates suhestada, kirjeldada episteemilise võimalikkuse semantikat modaaltähenduste kontiinumi skaalal selle olemuslikus seoses mitte-episteemiliste tähendusvaldkondadega ning vaadelda modaalverbe neile omase mitmetähenduslikkuse perspektiivist. Prototüüpne episteemiline tähendus esineb nii poder’i kui ka võima semantikas sulamina koos objektiivse situatsioonilise tähendusega ning näib analüüsitud materjali põhjal olevat viimase kõrval nõrgem tähendus. Samas näib subjektiivsel hinnangulisusel olevat võima semantikas suurem roll kui poder’i puhul. Saama semantikas panen prototüüpse episteemilise tähenduse kahtluse alla; saama näib ühemõtteliselt väljendavat objektiivset situatsioonilist võimalikkust. Pakun välja, et objektiivsus määratleb saama semantikat ka laiemas modaaltähenduste skaalas: võimalikkust ei väljendata tegevusosalise agentiivsuse (või kõneleja subjektiivsuse) keskselt – nagu võima puhul –, vaid situatsiooni asjaolude perspektiivist.Abstract. Triin Lõbus: Possibility in the semantics of the Spanish modal verb poder and the Estonian modal verbs saama and võima. Analysis of translation equivalents. This article deals with epistemic modality in the semantics of the modal verbs of possibility in Spanish and Estonian. The contrastive analysis is centred on the Spanish modal verb poder in its epistemic use and explores the translation equivalences appearing in a corpus of literary texts. The analysis is based on a narrower definition of the semantic domain of epistemic modality. The prototypical speaker-oriented (subjective) modality judgement is differentiated from the objective situational possibility, the last one being a border case between the areas of epistemic and nonepistemic modality. This distinction makes it possible to better differentiate between different meaning areas of the modal verbs and to establish their relationships to each other in a contrastive perspective, to describe the semantics of the epistemic possibility along the continuum of modal meanings in its inherent connection with non-epistemic meaning areas, and to observe the modal verbs from the perspective of the semantic ambiguity characteristic of them. In the semantics of poder as well as of võima, prototypical epistemic meaning merges with the objective situational meaning and, according to the material analysed here, seems to be the less prominent of the two meanings. At the same time, the meaning of a subjective judgement seems to have a more important part in the semantics of võima compared to that of poder. As for saama, the prototypical epistemic meaning is called into question here: saama seems to unequivocally express objective situational possibility. The article suggests that objectivity is what also defines the semantics of saama in a wider range of modal meanings: in case of saama possibility is not expressed as participant’s agentivity (or speaker’s subjectivity) oriented but as conceptualized from the perspective of situational circumstances.Keywords: epistemic modality; possibility; subjectivity; modal verbs; Estonian, Spanish

scholarly journals THE MODE OF ‘MUST’ IN THE MODALITY OF NECESSITY IN ENGLISH AND ITS EQUIVALENTS IN INDONESIAN

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Deden Novan Setiawan Nugraha ◽  
Cece Sobarna ◽  
Sutiono Mahdi ◽  
Nani Darmayanti
Keyword(s):  
Research Method ◽  
Written Language ◽  
Epistemic Modality ◽  
Logical Necessity ◽  
Word Choice ◽  
Sentence Structure ◽  
Modal Verbs ◽  
Descriptive Research ◽  
Modal Auxiliaries ◽  
Epistemic Modalities

The analysis of this research basically concern issue of the cultural in the context of the mode of ‘must’ in the modality of necessity in English and its equivalents in Indonesia. The method used in this research is descriptive research method. The data taken in the form of written language manner with consideration that written manner shows more consistent characteristics in usage of the sentence structure and word choice as well. The data is taken from novels in English and also in the form of its translation in Indonesian. Syntactically, the result of the analysis shows thatthe mode of ‘must’ is actualized in modal forms (modals/modal auxiliaries) refers to ‘the rules for modal verbs’. Modal patterns, in general, used M + Vinf, where modals are always followed by infinitives or main verbs. Semantically, the mode of must is the expression of logical necessity and belongs to an epistemic modality that has a subjective meaning of certainty. The disclosure of epistemic modalities is indicated by the arising of the speaker's certainty involving his knowledge or his beliefs. The equivalent mode must in Indonesian becomes 'must' .

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document