Mode-of-Impact as Affordance: Np Macro-Taxa and Role-Alignment in Ditransitives and Beyond

This paper explores the applicability of the concept of affordance (Gibson 1977) to the analysis of grammatical constructions. As originally developed in perceptual and cognitive psychology, affordance refers to the interactive potential of an entity or environment from the perspective of hypothetical Actors, thus amounting to e.g.: what can be done with a rake or in that puddle.A suitably adapted sense of affordance is advanced which renders it a fruitful construct for the analysis of constructional meaning, a fundamental objective of Cognitive-Linguistic frameworks. (e.g. Construction Grammar and Cognitive Grammar). Whereas received definitions characterize interactive potentials as properties of specific entities/environments populating a given scenario, capturing the far more general linguistic properties of grammatical constructions clearly requires reference to the macro-categories to which pivotal elements of a scene belong. Many structures, however, resist tidy analysis in terms of such familiar category labels as Thematic-Roles of NPs. The alternative affordance macro-taxa recognized herein are based on Modes-of-Impact (MI), i.e. generic ways in which entities and environments can be affected (details below). An example is the English Ditransitive predicate configuration [V NP NP]. Systematically within English clause structure, the immediately postverbal NP slot--henceforth [V _ ]--is dedicated to whichever NP is construed as Locus of Primary Effect (LPE). [1a-b] illustrate profiling options available in trivalent scenarios: Ditransitive vs. Prepositional (VP PP). The question arises as to the general semantic value attached to the [V _ ] slot in the Ditransitive construction. As seen in [1a-e], NPs in this position participate in the scene in quite diverse ways, making it awkward to specify a semantic value for [V _ ] using standard event-Roles. While innumerable prior studies (e.g. Levin 1993, Shibatani 1996) note that this slot conflates Dative (1a) with Benefactive (1b), data like [1d-e]--which except for Lewis 2003 have been routinely overlooked in the literature--show that NPs with access to slot [V _ ] are not limited to "Affectee" Roles, but can even have Cause-affiliated semantics. Thus the underlined pronoun in [1d] underscores Agent's "potency", while that in [1e] indexes an anterior instigatory participant at whose behest Agent performs. The three MI-based affordance-types proposed are: Creature (CR), Thing (TH) and Locus (LC). CR involves impacts (cure, scare) that could only be visited on a sentient entity, affecting some facet of its capacity for potency--vitality, beliefs, emotions, sphere-of-control etc. TH comprises impact-types (bruise, yank) which "register" on Undergoers via some modification of material or positional integrity, but do not affect an executive faculty. LC covers impact-types (exit, wander) that fail to register on "Affectee" in any salient sense at all--they merely impinge on an imagined surface and/or boundary of the Locus. These affordance classes are inherent to the frames of both lexical verbs and constructions. Accessibility of NP to [V _ ] then becomes statable as requiring CR affordance. Extending this apparatus to other constructions, such as the English Spray/Load alternation as well as transitive, ditransitive and serial-verb configurations in Gen (Togo/Benin), a more general MI-based hierarchy of accessibility to LPE status readily emerges: CR>TH>LC.Finally, affordance is claimed to provide experiential/embodied underpinnings for broader-scale phenomena such as the Animacy Hierarchy. DATA 1. a) Bilbo gave Frodo the ring. DATIVE (cf. Bilbo gave the ring to Frodo.) b) I will build my love a bower. BENEFICIARY (cf. I will build a bower for my love.)c) Cyrano wrote Roxane / Christian some beautiful letters AMBIGUOUS (DAT/BEN). d) Annie here can throw her (=Annie) a boomerang like a bloody heat-seeking missile. e) COACH: Now you're gonna toss me an alley-oop pass to Lebron for the crowd.