A Study of Chinese Double Object Construction in Zutangji
Zutangji(祖堂集)is the earliest extant Zen historical work in China and the representative of vernacular literature in the late Tang Dynasty and Five Dynasties period.Based on the semantic characteristics of the predicate verbs,the double object construction in the book is classified into action type(such as giving and obtaining)and speech type(like asking and addressing).The distinct characteristics mainly include that:in terms of form,the preposition"yu(于)"gradually disappears in double object sentences;in terms of semantics,the number of asking and addressing type is the highest,while the giving type is relatively fewer;in terms of component usage,the double objects are clearer,most of which have Zen doctrinal nuances,showcasing diverse syntactic functions of the double object structure.Positioned at the linguistic juncture of Chinese's shift from classical to vernacular,the double object construction in Zutangji holds paramount historical value,manifesting the characteristics as follows:a decline in classical Chinese double object constructs alongside the ascendance of vernacular double object patterns,marking a new era in vernacular literary syntax;a heightened concreteness in the semantics of double objects,with indirect objects simplifying and direct objects growing complex,laying the groundwork for the development of modern Chinese double object syntax;and the coexistence of double object construction with various prepositional structures within Zutangji,signaling a burgeoning diversity in Middle Chinese expressions,thereby laying the foundation for the syntactic development of modern Chinese.
Zutangjidouble object constructionclassical Chinese double object constructionvernacular double object construction
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