Temporal constraints in the use of demonstratives in Iberian Spanish

Authors

  • Iker Zulaica Hernández Indiana University-Purdue University, Indianapolis

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.7557/1.1.2.2350

Keywords:

discourse, anaphora, deixis, time, tense, demonstratives, reference

Abstract

Natural linguistic data show that a close relationship exists among demonstratives and time in Spanish. Such connection appears to be of a pragmatic nature whereby linguistic expressions that encode or denote time license the use of demonstratives under certain conditions.The aforementioned connection time-demonstration occurs when speakers employ demonstratives to refer to objects within the textual world (i.e. discourse referents). In this paper I explore the temporal constraints that impose restrictions in the use of demonstratives in Spanish and argue in favor of characterizing the relationship time-demonstration as a discourse deixis phenomenon in close connection with time deixis. The co-referential link that gets established between the distal demonstrative and the temporal expression is formalized and a presuppositional characterization provided for the three demonstratives in their discourse-deictic use.

Author Biography

Iker Zulaica Hernández, Indiana University-Purdue University, Indianapolis

PhD in Spanish Linguistics (The Ohio State University)

Assistant Professor of Spanish Linguistics

Indiana University-Purdue University, Indianapolis

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Published

2012-12-03

How to Cite

Zulaica Hernández, I. (2012). Temporal constraints in the use of demonstratives in Iberian Spanish. Borealis – An International Journal of Hispanic Linguistics, 1(2), 195–234. https://doi.org/10.7557/1.1.2.2350

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Section

Articles