Chapter 5
How and why seem became an evidential
Conceived as an instance of critical meta-linguistics,
this study traces how and why the expert literature has come to categorize seem as a
marker of evidentiality. This by now common claim is seen to depend not on a more
adequate account of the data, but on (axiomatic) decisions guided by underlying
ideologies, the formation of theory communities, and the belief in semantic
essences. As foils for comparison, my contribution will offer panoramic surveys of
the earlier conceptualizations of seem in terms of impression-based qualifications
and hedging. To start off, the article will present my own view on seem, which
assigns the verb an invariable meaning associating two alternative
conceptualizations held at the same time, where one (say, the factive) is
attentionally foregrounded in one context while the other (the fictive) is
backgrounded.
Article outline
- 1.Introduction
- 2.Three research strands of conceptualizing seem
- 2.1An invariable core meaning:
Seem between appearance and reality
- 2.2
Seem and the hedging paradigm
- 2.3How and why seem turned evidential
- 3.Conclusion
-
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