Linear vs. hierarchical: Two accounts of premodification in the of-binominal noun phrase

Abstract

AbstractPremodification patterns play a central role in the categorization of of-binominals in general, and particularly in the grammaticalization of the evaluative binominal noun phrase (a beast of a man) into an evaluative modifier (a beast of a Hollywood year), where the first noun functions as an extreme modifier. This paper compares a linear, construction-based account of the premodification patterns of the evaluative binominal noun phrase, evaluative modifier, and other historically related of-binominals to a hierarchical account in Functional Discourse Grammar in order to investigate in what way each theory captures and accounts for these patterns. The paper comprises two parts: First, based on a zone-based premodification model, an empirical study of the synchronic premodification distributional patterns of these of-binominals is presented. Second, the paper discusses a Functional Discourse Grammar explanation of the findings. In the conclusion, the theoretical implications of the explanations of these patterns in the two approaches are discussed.