飽和關係子句與關係名詞

Gapless Relative Clauses as Clausal Licensors of Relational Nouns

本文從句法結構的角度探討漢語含飽和關係子句的複雜名詞片語，如“橡皮燃燒的味道＂。本文認為這種複雜名詞片語中的子句（如上例的“橡皮燃燒＂）是主語，而其後的名詞（如上例的“味道＂）是謂語。這樣的主謂關係與常規的關係子句複雜結構的子句為謂語名詞為主語的關係正好相反。另外，飽和關係子句是相關名詞的外論元，而補語子句則是相關名詞的內論元。本文亦提出英語因為沒有主語子句，所以沒有含飽和關係子句的複雜名詞片語。

This paper presents a novel analysis of so-called gapless relative clause constructions such as Mandarin xiangpi ranshao de weidao (literally, ‘the smell that rubber burns’). Such constructions have been observed in East Asian languages. It is claimed that the Head noun of such relative clauses are relational nouns, and the clauses are their licensors. Syntactically, the Head nouns are predicates and the clauses are subjects. Compared to regular relative clause constructions, gapless relative clause constructions denote a reversed predication relation between the Head nouns and the clauses. Compared to complement clauses of nouns, gapless relative clauses denote external rather than internal argument of nouns. This new analysis explains a series of differences of the constructions from either regular relative clause constructions or noun-complement construction. Analyzing such constructions helps us to recognize a new type of complex nominals, in addition to the modification and complementation types. The absence of such constructions in English is accounted for by the fact that there is no clausal subject in English. The paper shows that clauses in Chinese and gerund forms in English may occur in true subject positions, and thus may license relational nouns.