tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Thu Feb 06 15:03:59 1997

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Re: Questions (Re: Phrases)

'Iwvan gives the following examples for discussion:
> 
> (1) a. {mej ghaH 'e' vISov.}  `I know that he left / will leave.'
>     b. {mej ghaH 'e' vIQub.}  `I think that he left / will leave.'
>     c. {mej ghaH 'e' vIHon.}  `I doubt that he leave / have left.'
> (2)  {pa' jIjaH vIneH.}  `I want to go there.'
> 
> We're told that (1a) is actually a shortcut for {mej ghaH.  'e' vISov.}
I don't think it's a _shortcut_; punctuation seems to be inspired more
by what speakers of English might expect than by Klingon sense of where
sentences end or begin.

> Now let's experiment with putting in a question word:
> 
> (3) a. ?{mej 'Iv 'e' DaSov.}
>     b. ?{mej 'Iv 'e' DaQub?}
> 
> These look alike, but are meant to be analysed in radically different
> ways.  (3a) involves a question-as-object (QaO):  {mej 'Iv?  'e' DaSov.}
> `Who left?  You know (the answer to) that.', ie `You know who left.'.
the problem is that the two pronouns {'e'} and {'Iv} seem to compete
for referencing to the same thing. But {'e'} is defined as referencing
to the whole sentence.
Furthermore, "You know who left." is certainly not a question in English
and could be translated {mejbogh nuv DaSov}. To make that "Do you know
who left?" you should add {jIHvaD nuvvam yIngu'}.

> The subtle part is that the question, as it were, has to stand for
> its answer.
> 
I don't know what you mean by that - unless you're referring to what I
called {'e'} and {'Iv} referencing the same thing

> On the other hand, what we have in (3b) (if it is well-formed at all,
> of course) is not a QaO (one can't embed a question under `think':
> *`You think who left' is obviously out).  Here the question is asked
> at the top level: `Who is he such that you think that he left', ie
> `Who do you think left?'.  That is, in (3a) {mej 'Iv} is made into
> an object for {DaSov}; in (3b) {'Iv} is substituted for {ghaH} (or
> whatever) in the SaO sentence (1b).
> 
?? I don't think (3b) works at all. You might say {mej vay' 'e' DaQub
'Iv 'oH nuvvam'e'} or "You believe someone left? Who might that be?"

> Similarly, (4) is not a QaO either; it is derived directly from (2)
> (a sort of SaO) by plugging a question word into the right place
> (fitting it in the position that would be occupied by the answer):
> 
> (4)  {nuqDaq bIjaH DaneH?}  `Where do you want to go?'
> 
doesn't work for me. "where are you going? you want that"
I don't remember the suggestions that have already been made for this;
how about {nuq 'oH HelIj ghoch'e'}
(which makes me wonder: can I say {He Dalo' DaneHbogh} for "the path
you want to use"?)

HomDoq

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