現代漢語形容詞的基本功用

The Basic Pragmatic Functions of Adjectives in Mandarin Chinese

以往對於形容詞的語法研究側重於探討該詞彙範疇的句法和語義功能，但對於其語用功能關注較少。本文系統地分析漢語形容詞在使用中的表達功能問題，指出現代漢語形容詞主要表達分類、指定、評價、細陳及描摹等五類基本的語用功能。其中，表分類的形容詞用於為事物劃分出若幹次類；表指定的形容詞用於從眾多事物中選定某個對象作為談論的話題；表評價的形容詞用來表達說話人對事物屬性特徵的看法和態度；表細陳的形容詞用來對事物的特徵進行具體說明，讓聽話人對事物的屬性特徵有更深入的了解；表描摹的形容詞用來對事物的特徵進行生動形象的描述。這些語用功能與形容詞的句法功能和語義類別之間存在著緊密而複雜的對應關係。

The previous grammatical studies on Mandarin adjectives focus on their syntactic and semantic functions, while little light has been shed on their pragmatic functions. This paper systematically examines the pragmatic functions of the adjectives in Mandarin Chinese, indicating that the adjectives are used to fulfill five fundamental functions, namely subcategorization, identification, evaluation, specification and depiction. To be specific, subcategorizing adjectives classify the objects into different categories; identifying adjectives single out specific referent(s) as a topic in the discourse; evaluative adjectives spell out the speaker’s opinion or attitude towards the objects; specifying adjectives provide a concrete and objective illustration of the property of the objects; and depicting adjectives provide a vivid and picturesque description of the state of objects, creating a lively image on the hearers’ mind. An intimate yet complicated correspondence can be identified between these pragmatic functions and the syntactic functions and the semantic categories of adjectives.