Advances in Role and Reference Grammar

PREPOSITION ASSIGNMENT IN ENGLISH 297

Figure 2: Sequential Situations as Marked by from — Discrete and Over­
lapping

represented in Figure 2. The analyses of non-predicative to and from and
predicative functions oí from thus provide the following semantic structure,
encompassing functions of both prepositions: [stative' (x,y)] & [BECOME
NOT stative' (x,y)] & [BECOME stative' (z,y)] & [stative' (z,y)]

2.6 Analysis of semantic structure: with

With is described in FVV as the paradigm preposition which does not corre­
late consistently with any one thematic relation, as discussed in section 1. J.
Miller's (1985) analysis also states that with has no connection with any
noun and that a local meaning is difficult to specify: "All that with specifies
is that one object is in the same place as another object." (96) Miller intro­
duces an entity, "samespace", to describe the vague correlation marked by
with. In view of this semantic vagueness, it is not surprising that the seman­
tic structure for with is minimal, with thematic relation/macrorole assign­
ment specifying its non-predicative functions.

2.6.1 Predicative with

The sole predicative use of with is that traditionally labeled instrumental, in

activity verb contexts such as sentence (56).

(56) a. John looked at the moon with a telescope.

b. [[DO (John, [see' (John, moon)] & [use' (John, telescope)])]

This predicative use of with is similar to the non-predicative function discus­

sed in the next section: marking effectors which φ A. However, in this

case, the instrument/effector cannot be considered part of the argument