Article published In: Constructions and Frames
Vol. 15:1 (2023) ► pp.119–144
Constructional change and frame element selection
Insights from the French Spending frame
Published online: 19 October 2023
https://doi.org/10.1075/cf.00069.law
https://doi.org/10.1075/cf.00069.law
Abstract
While most work in diachronic construction grammar considers individual constructional changes, these changes share an understudied relationship with broader changes at the level of the semantic frame. Literary corpus data shows that in the Spending frame in French, between the 12th and 20th centuries, the selection rates of four alternating frame elements shifted: Purpose, Cause of expense, Goods, and Seller. This frame-level shift is examined alongside related constructional changes including lexicalization, pejoration, and constructional loss. The analysis suggests that constructional change does not proceed independently but is driven by shifts in framing due in part to sociocultural changes.
Article outline
- 1.Introduction
- 2.Diachronic construction grammar
- 3.The Spending frame
- 4.Data
- 5.Frame element selection
- 6.Constructional change
- 7.Discussion
- 8.Conclusion
References
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