Selasa, 12 November 2013
Negative Inverted Construction
Negative inversion, also referred to as declarative negative auxiliary inversion (NAI) in Lisa Green's work, refers to declarative clauses in which a negated auxiliary or modal precedes a quantificational (or indefinite) subject, as exemplified in (1):
(1) a. Can't nobody beat 'em.
b. Didn't nobody get hurt or nothin'.
c. Won't anybody hit us.
d. Cain't all o' ya go at once.
Negative inversion constructions always have a well-formed non-inverted counterpart. Sentences exhibiting negative inversion are given in the (a) examples and their non-inverted counterparts are given in the (b) examples.
(1) a. Ain't nobody know about no club.
b. Nobody ain't know about no club.
(2) a. Didn't everybody go to the party.
b. Everybody didn't go to the party.
In the southern white speaker varieties, negative inversion constructions are compatible with expletives.
(1) a. They didn't nobody like him.
b. They can’t many people say that.
c. We don't any of us need anything.
d. There didn't five of em go to sleep, and I thought they was gonna be trouble
Negative inversion constructions are incompatible with expletives in African American English, as in (16).
(1) a. *There didn't nobody laugh.
b. *It can't no man round here get enough money to buy they own farm.
c. *Dey didn't nobody see it.
d. *It don't nobody be drinking tea.
Negative inversion is often said to co-occur with negative concord in African American English. The co-occurrence typically refers to the availability of subjects headed by no, as in the (a) examples, and the unavailability of subjects headed by NPI any, as in the (b) examples.
(1) a. Don't nobody break up a fight.
b. *Don't anybody break up a fight.
Other types of subjects that are not negative are possible, such as subjects headed by a andmany.
(1) a. Ain't a damn thing changed.
b. Don't many of them live around here.
In the southern white speech varieties, however, both subjects headed by no and subjects headed by any are possible.
(1) a. Hain't nobody hardly believed it.
b. Dudn't anybody seem to understand.
(2) a. Won't none of the students go to the party.
b. Didn't any of them answer the question.
In the literature on African American English, negative inversion constructions are distinguished from existential negative inversion in which the auxiliary is the copula be(henceforth existential 'be'). The two constructions look superficially similar, as a negated copula occurs clause-initially and is followed by an indefinite subject. Some examples of existential 'be' constructions are given in (1).
(1) a. Wasn't nobody home.
b. Ain't no farmer made money this year.
It can be difficult to tell the two constructions apart because ain't can have several meanings. It can be the negative copula be+n't, but it can also be the negative perfect auxiliary corresponding to have+n't in Standard English or the negative past tense auxiliary do+n't.
refference
http://microsyntax.sites.yale.edu
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