PREPOSITIONS AND THE PP /pi: pi:/ Lecture #4: 2012-03-14 Manneken Pis ("little man piss" in English), is a Brussels landmark. NY artistic installation from 2007: “Refreshment in art”.

What have we done so far? REVIEW

We introduced…

…the P and the PP.

PREPOSTIONS & PPs v.s. other POSs & XPs Other POSs and XPs: Mary is playing interesting games. [NP] Mary is playing games. [NP] Prepositions and PPs: Mary is playing in the garden. [PP: ADVERBIAL] *Mary is playing in. [PP]. The girl in the garden is playing tennis [PP: complement of NP] ENDOCENTRIC PHRASE – THE HEAD DETERMINES THE INTERPRETATION /MEANING OF THE PHRASE (MEANING OF THE HEAD = MEANING OF THE PHRASE) AND THE PHRASE DOES NOT REQUIRE ANY COMPLEMENTATION. EXOCENTRIC PHRASE – THE HEAD DOES NOT HAVE THE SAME MEANING AS THE WHOLE PHRASE IT REQUIRES OBLIGATORY COMPLEMENTATION.

THE PP – its form The PP typically consists of a prepositional head followed by an NP as its complement: PP=P+NP e.g. [PPin [NPa village] ] however, the complement of the preposition is not always an NP, the prepositional complements can also be a FINITE WH-CLAUSE, NON-FINITE -ING CLAUSE or an ADVERB: PP=P+Clause e.g. [PPfrom [Clausewhat you wrote] ] PP=P+Clause e.g. [PPat [Clausereading her novel] ] PP=P+Adv e.g. [PPfor [Advever] ]

THE PP – its form (continued…) Optionally, PPs can be premodified by adverbs: PP= Adv + P + complement [straight Adv through HEAD [NPthe wall ] ] [ right Adv over HEAD [AdvP there ] ] [ exactly Adv from HEAD [Clausewhat you were saying ] ]

THE PP – its function FUNCTIONS OF THE PP INDEPENDENT i.e. it’s a sentence element DEPENDENT / PARTS OF OTHER PHRASES PARTICLES OF PHRASAL VERBS (actually a function of P)

THE PP – its function: independent PP has an independent function in the sentence ADVERBIAL Cs / Co SUBJECT (rarely) ADJUNCT: He lives in a village. CONJUNCT: In a nutshell, she’s OK. DISJUNCT: To my surprise , she’s OK. Cs (subject complement): The play is by Webster. The fence is of wood. Co (object complement): I consider them at great risk. SUBJECT: In love is how I want to feel. In my house is where I want to be.

THE PP – its function: dependent PP is a part of another phrase PART OF NP PART OF AP They can also be parts of AdvP: He drives faster [PP than John]. [ the girl with the funny red hat ] [ the man in the raincoat ] [ the book on the table ] [ grateful for your help] [ suitable for the job ] [ complex beyond our expectations]

THEY ARE TEARING UP THE STREET. They are tearing it up. ADVERB PARTICLE ?They are tearing up it. PREPOSITIONAL PARTICLE aaa

NOW…

The most complex theoretical section on prepositions!

SEMANTIC CLASSIFICATION OF PREPOSITIONS IT’S ALL ABOUT MEANING! SEMANTIC CLASSIFICATION OF PREPOSITIONS

BASIC PREPOSITIONAL MEANINGS SPACE TIME PROCESS CONTINGENCY OTHER MEANINGS

The robbers are IN the bank. WHO IS AT THE BANK? The robbers are IN the bank. The man is AT the bank.

WHICH HORSE IS IN THE FIELD? The horse is IN the field. The horse is ON the field.

Where is the student? The student is ON the Faculty of Philosophy. The student is IN the Faculty of Philosophy. The student is AT the Faculty of Philosophy.

The Ins and Outs of prepositions: A Guidebook for ESL Students Jean Yates Paperback: 272 pages Publisher: Barron's Educational Series (July 1999) Language: English ISBN-10: 0764107577 ISBN-13: 978-0764107573 Price: $8.41

English Prepositions Explained: Revised edition Seth Lindstromberg Paperback: 286 pages Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing Company; 2 edition (August 11, 2010) Language: English ISBN-10: 9027211744 ISBN-13: 978-9027211743 Price: $35.39

END OF REVIEW

Let’s start, then…

You are in WHAT? I am in Antananarivo. I am in a calamitous predicament.

SEMANTIC CLASSIFICATION OF PREPOSITIONS Prepositions express a wide range of meanings. However, all those meanings can be analyzed as either meanings denoting pure notions of physical space or meanings which have been metaphorically/figuratively derived from the meanings denoting pure notions of physical space. E.g. PHYSICAL SPACE: He is in the house. He climbed up the hill. METAPHORICAL EXTENSIONS/FIGURATIVE MEANING: He is in danger. He climbed up the social scale.

SPACE Prepositions denoting spatial relations can be classified into several subgroups on the basis of two criteria: TYPE OF REFERENCE POINT STATIC OR DYNAMIC POSITION Type of reference point:

Prepositions of PHYSICAL Location Prepositions expressing spatial relations are of two kinds: prepositions of location and prepositions of direction Prepositions of location appear with verbs describing states or conditions, especially BE. Prepositions of direction appear with verbs of motion. We will discuss AT, IN and ON – because they can cause a lot of difficulties.

Dimensions and Prepositions Prepositions differ according to the number of dimensions they refer to. We can group them into three classes using concepts from geometry: point, surface, and area or volume Point: prepositions in this group indicate that the noun that follows them is treated as a point in relation to which another object is positioned. Surface: prepositions in this group indicate that the position of an object is defined with respect to a surface on which it rests. Area/Volume: prepositions in this group indicate that an object lies within the boundaries of an area or within the confines of a volume. NOTICE FOR THE MATHEMATICALLY AWARE ONES: although in geometry surface and area go together because both are two-dimensional, in grammar area and volume (2D and 3D) go together because the same prepositions are used for both.

DIMENSIONS - general

Where is…? Where is her car? (POINT) Her car is AT the house. Where is the WiFi antenna? (SURFACE) The antenna is ON the house. Where is the house? (AREA) The house IN Orange County. Where is the new laptop? (VOLUME) The new laptop is IN the living room.

DIMENSIONS - examples All of these sentences answer a question of the form, "Where is _______?" but each gives different information.

Where are we at now? The children spent a wonderful afternoon AT the theme park. The train will be arriving AT platform six. Then, just as it seemed that the situation would unwind, two protesters jumped AT a riot policeman.  POINT  DESTINATION  DIRECTION

AT – important notes In 5a), the bank can be understood as a point defining Tom's location, much as in 1) above. It makes less sense to think of a fair as a point in 5b) since fairs are usually spread out over a fairly large area. Probably at is used in this case just because it is the least specific preposition; it defines Sue's location with respect to the fair rather than some other place. In 6a), at exhibits its cause/effect relationship with to, which cannot be used here: arrival at a place is the result of going to it.

When should you be more scared? Slimer appeared IN the window. Slimer appeared ON the window.

IN and ON – important notes Nouns denoting enclosed spaces, such as a field or a window, take both on and in. The prepositions have their normal meanings with these nouns: on is used when the space is considered as a surface, in when the space is presented as an area. Interesting example: IN the palm of your hand => Why is this treated as an area? Why not as a surface? Maybe because of the way you hold your fingers (slightly bent) when you are holding something in the palm of your hand: e.g. when you’re carrying some water.

IN and ON – important notes Notice that in implies that the field is enclosed, whereas on implies that the following noun denotes a surface and not necessarily an enclosed area.

IN and ON – streets In a) the street is understood as an area enclosed by the sidewalks on either side. Compare b) with the discussion of sentence 3) in the first section. Here on locates the house on either side of Third Street: it doesn't mean that the street is a surface on which the house sits. Because the street is understood as a line next to which the house is situated, on functions much like at in its normal use: it locates the house in relation to the street but does not specify the exact address. For that purpose, at is used because the address is like a particular point on the line. Compare: "Our house is at 323 Third Street." In c) out on the street is an idiom meaning "poor" or "destitute."

IN and ON - transport In and on are also used with means of transportation: in is used with a car, on with public or commercial means of transportation: in the car on the bus on the plane on the train on the ship Some speakers of English make a further distinction for public modes of transportation, using in when the carrier is stationary and on when it is in motion. My friend stayed in the bus while I got out at the rest stop. Two minutes later she called me, while on the bus, to tell me that I had forgotten my backpack. The passengers sat in the plane awaiting takeoff. The passengers sat calmly on the plane throughout turbulences.

DIRECTION DIRECTION - prepositions that express movement toward something: to, onto, and into. The basic preposition of a direction is "to." TO: signifies orientation toward a goal When the goal is physical, such as a destination, "to" implies movement in the direction of the goal.

DIRECTION - compounds The other two prepositions of direction are compounds formed by adding "to" to the corresponding prepositions of location. The preposition of location determines the meaning of the preposition of direction.

IN and ON with verbs of motion With many verbs of motion, "on" and "in" have a directional meaning and can be used along with "onto" and "into". (See the sections below for some exceptions to this rule.) This is why "to" is inside parentheses in the title of the handout, showing that it is somewhat optional with the compound prepositions. Thus, the following sentences are roughly synonymous.

ONTO/INTO vs. ON/IN To the extent that these pairs do differ, the compound preposition conveys the completion of an action, while the simple preposition points to the position of the subject as a result of that action. This distinction helps us understand how directional and locational prepositions are related: they stand in the relationship of cause and effect. She runs in the house literally, it means that a girl is inside a house and running. But English speakers know what is meant by this sentence from the context of the conversation where that sentence was used. So in casual speech you will hear both in and into and on and onto used interchangeably. Traditionally, only into and onto are used to show movement or direction, but many people today use in and on in place of them: She ran in the house. VS. She ran into the house.

DIRECTION – other prepostions Along, off, at, on, by, from, out of, to, toward(s) The women walked along the river. The women walked from the river. The women walked out of the river. The women walked to the river. The women walked toward the river.

TIME

POINT IN TIME One point in time On is used exclusively with days: I will see you on Monday. The week begins on Sunday. At is used with noon, night, midnight, and with the exact time of day: My plane leaves at noon. The movie starts at 6 p.m. In is used with other parts of the day, with months, with years, with seasons (generally: LARGE SECTIONS OF TIME): He likes to read in the afternoon. The days are long in August. The book was published in 1999. The flowers will bloom in spring.

EXTENDED TIME Extended time To express extended time, English most frequently uses the following prepositions: since, for, by, from—to, from-until, during,(with)in She has been gone since yesterday. (She left yesterday and has not returned.) I'm going to Paris for two weeks. (I will spend two weeks there.) The movie showed from August to October. (Beginning in August and ending in October.) The decorations were up from spring until fall. (Beginning in spring and ending in fall.) I watch TV during the evening. (For some period of time in the evening.) We must finish the project within a year. (No longer than a year.)

PROCESS

CONTINGENCY

OTHER MEANINGS

TIPS AND TRICKS regarding Ps and PPs

EVIL PREPOSITIONS: complex prepositions When you think of a preposition, you mostly think of words such as IN, AT, ON, FROM, etc. However, many propositions are COMPLEX: according to, in reference to, ahead of, in regard to, apart from, in spite of, because of, instead of, by means of, on account of, by way of, out of, in back of, up to, in front of, with respect to, etc.

COMPLEX PREPOSITIONS Use in a Sentence According to [Jim], the plan is perfect. The project was completed ahead of [schedule]. Apart from [a few complaints], everyone was satisfied. Work stopped because of [the storm]. The problem was solved by means of [a complex formula]. Take a look at these examples by way of [a contrast]. A stranger stood in front of [me]. No one was in back of [us]. Meaning Jim’s opinion before expected, earlier than scheduled except for a few complaints the cause was the storm by using a complex formula as a contrast before me behind us

THE MOST EVIL PREPOSITIONS: participial prepositions

THE MOST EVIL PREPOSITIONS: participial prepositions This is a small category of prepositions but one that has some important uses. The present participial form of certain verbs, although not true prepositions, sometimes have the characteristic of a preposition and are used as prepositions. However, there are only a few such participles: Concerning, following, considering, regarding and excluding are the most frequent ones.

PARTICIPIAL PREPOSITIONS: you have to distinguish them from other POS Use in a Sentence This is [concerning to me]. He often wrote me concerning [this problem]. The club [was considering] buying new equipment. The group spent countless hours considering [this issue]. Why are you excluding our old friends? We shall meet every Tuesday excluding the first Tuesday in May. An old woman was following us.. The show will go on following one more rehearsal. Meaning participle used as an adjective preposition (about this problem) V in the present participle form AMBIGUOUS: V or preposition (on this issue) preposition (except the first Tuesday in May) preposition (after one more rehearsal)

THE END OF PREPOSITIONS

CLASS #1: AP CLASS #2: AP/AdvP CLASS #3: AdvP, PP CLASS #4: PP CLASS #5: ADVERBIALS CLASS #6: ADVERBIALS CLASS #7: MIDTERM OVERVIEW AND SIMPLE SENTENCE INTRO MIDTERM TEST CLASS #8: SIMPLE SENTENCE CLASS #9: SIMPLE SENTENCE CLASS #10: COMPLEX SENTENCE CLASS #11: COMPLEX SENTENCE CLASS #12: COMPLEX SENTENCE , WRAP-UP & ORAL EXAM HINTS

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