Advances in Role and Reference Grammar

PREPOSITION ASSIGNMENT IN ENGLISH 303

and accomplishment contexts: [want' (x, LS 2 )] & [DO (x,
[LSj...CAUSE...LS 2 ])]· The necessity of positing an obligatory volitional
DO operator in the second semantic structure implied by PURP is based on
the fact that purposive for is anomalous with statives and non-volitional
achievements^18 (which, by definition, do not have DO in LS), as illustrated
in (70) and (71).

(70) John knows Greek for mental exercise.
(71) Rita found a twenty-dollar bill for fun.
Purposive for also occurs with a sub-class of + volitional achievement verbs
— "departure verbs" — having an implied [BECOME NOT be-at'] struc­
ture with no specified source and a stated goal, as in (72).
(72) a. John left for Miami.
b. [DO (John, [BECOME NOT be-at' (0, John)])] PURP
[BECOME be-at' (Miami, John)]
Departure verbs with which for realizes PURP [BECOME be-at' (x,y)]
such as depart, set sail, set forth all have [BECOME NOT be-at'] with an
unspecified source-locative in LS.

2.7.2 Purposive for: class two functions

The purposive role which is most significant for this analysis is that tradi­

tionally labeled "benefactive". In fact, this is the primary prepositional

function for which class two was created. Benef active for usually occurs in

accomplishment contexts, as in (73).

(73) a. John baked a cake for Rita.

b. [[do' (John)] CAUSE [BECOME baked' (cake)]] PURP

[BECOME have' (Rita, cake)]

Sentence (73a) can be paraphrased as in (73c), where the complementizer

toa provides the purposive linkage and give toh Rita — CAUSE [BECOME

have' (Rita,cake)].

(73)  John baked a cake toa give tob Rita.

This paraphrase is significant, because it makes explicit the LS for give to

Rita which is also present in (73a). Both sentences specify an ultimate reci­

pient, rather than an immediate recipient, as in a simple transfer of posses­

sion sentence (e.g., She gave the cake to Mary). Sentence (73a) includes a

[want' (x, LS 2 )] structure where χ = John and LS 2 = [BECOME have'

(Mary, cake)] and a [LSj CAUSE LS 2 ] structure, where LSj = the