George Boeree | Re: [LFN] Use of the infinitive
- Autor: George Boeree (“cgboeree”)
- Tema: Re: [LFN] Use of the infinitive
- Data: 2007-12-04 20:11
- Mesaje: 2449 (a supra, presedente, seguente)
> Hi, Paul! Nice to hear from you again (even if only to disagree!). I still don't think that the infinitive and participles are inflexions. In lfn, the infinitive is just a way to make a verb into a noun, and the participles are just ways to make verbs into adjectives. If you look at the continuative and the passive constructions, they are literally a subject connected to an adjective by a copula (he is working; he is beaten). Even the optional auxiliary - infinitive can be seen as a verb followed by a verbal noun (he wants to work = he wants work). I think you are applying traditional grammar to lfn literally, while I am only using traditional terms for convenience. Also, I would add that ALL languages have "habits," and an IAL has no choice but to choose a set of "habits" (i.e. grammar). Lfn uses some of the habits of romance speakers (and none that are strictly english!!!), reduced to a form similar to creole languages or others such as indonesian. We could have gone to a purely isolating grammar (e.g. instead of V- nte, we could have gone with "ce V"; instead of V-da, we could have gone with "ce algun V"; instead of V-r, we could have gone with "lo V"; instead of N-s, we could have gone with "las N"), but that is just a matter of taste, not simplicity. Look at the creoles: they all have some useful, simple flexions! We went with ia and va (rather than -va and -ra, as in interlingua) because these were in fact common constructions in some of the romance languages. One more point: When people who speak a creole language, such as haitian creole, need to talk about science or law or medicine, what do they do? They go to the nearest european language, such as french. Lfn was intended to be more than just a marketplace or tourist language, but one that could easily handle sophisticated topics. Hence some of the opportunities for complex constructions. My best, Jorj > > My personal opinion -- and it is only that! -- is that the infinitive > construction is almost never, perhaps never, necessary. In my personal > opinion -- and George Boeree and I have differed on this -- is that > LFN > has four inflections -- one noun inflection (plural) and three verb > (infinitive and two participles, present and past). In my own opinion, > these three verb inflections spoil the creole-like nature of LFN. I > have also noticed that some writers of LFN, especially those whose > native language is English, seem to be obsessive about marking > tense of > verbs, just as in their native language, even if it is not necessary > from context. Generally I think that LFN is a respectable auxiliary > language, if only its (currently) few users could break out of their > native language habits and realize that not all the world does things > the way English does them. > > -- > Paul Bartlett > > _ [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]