Common Contracts
1 similar null contracts
License: Licence agreement concerning inclusion of doctoral thesis in the Institutional Repository of the University of LeidenDecember 13th, 2011
This chapter consists of two case studies: we will examine N of an N constructions (e.g. that idiot of a doctor) and the small clause complement of the verb seem (e.g. He seems a fool.), both of which have been claimed to be environments that involve gradability. It will be shown, however, that it is not gradability that determines the possible occurrence of nouns in these contexts, but rather something different, which can be subsumed under the term "evaluation". The way evaluation plays a role is different in the two cases. N of an N constructions, which are studied in section 2, are sensitive to the expression of a value judgment. This will be argued to be the necessary and sufficient condition for a noun to occur in the first position of N of an N constructions. In the case of seem, which will be examined in section 3, the evaluation has to do with assessing whether a property or a situation holds or not. This is an evidential and/or epistemic notion that will be shown to play a ro
