3. Dez 2024
Hella Olbertz
Universidade de Santiago de Compostela
Aspectual verbal periphrases in Spanish
Abstract: Spanish boasts some 30 verbal periphrases, which consist of an auxiliarized finite verb and an infinitive (generally preceded by some nexus) or a gerund of a verbal lexical predicate. What characterizes the periphrastic construction is that the finite verb (i) does not subordinate the lexical predicate and its arguments and (ii) never occurs on its own.
Most of these periphrases belong to the aspectual domain, without however forming a homogeneous group. Some express aspect in its strict sense, i.e. their meanings correspond to “different ways of viewing the internal temporal constituency” (Comrie 1976) of one or more states of affairs, whereas others fit in a wider definition of aspect as “the internal structure of states of affairs” (cf. e.g. Bhat 1999: 43). While periphrases such as progressive estar ‘be’ + gerund and prospective ir a + infinitive ‘be going to’ belong to the former group, periphrases such as continuative seguir ‘continue’ + gerund, and egressive dejar de + infinitive ‘stop + gerund’ belong to the latter. In my talk, I will first distinguish the members of these two types on the basis of their behaviour in the context of agentive predications, and I will then show that (i) their interaction with perfective / imperfective inflectional aspect and (ii) their mutual interaction indicate the appropriateness of this distinction.
References
Bhat, D. N. Shankara. 1999. The prominence of tense, aspect and mood. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
Comrie, Bernard. 1976. Aspect: An introduction to the study of verbal aspect and related problems. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.