Stanley E. Porter - Matthew Brook O’Donnell, «The Greek Verbal Network Viewed from a Probabilistic
Standpoint: An Exercise in Hallidayan Linguistics», Vol. 14 (2001) 3-41
This study explores numerical or distributional
markedness in the verbal network of the Greek of the New Testament. It
extends the systemic analysis of Porter (Verbal Aspect in the Greek of
the New Testament, 1989), making use of the Hallidayan concept of
probabilistic grammar, which posits a typology of systems where features
are either "equiprobable".both features are equally distributed
(0.5/0.5).or "skewed".one feature is marked by its low frequency of
occurrence (0.9/0.1). The results confirm that the verbal aspect system of
the Greek of the New Testament is essentially independent of other verbal
systems, such as voice and mood.
The Greek Verbal Network Viewed from a Probabilistic Standpoint 31
The third set of examples concerns the relation of the FINITENESS system
and ASPECT2 system. This set of systemic choices concerns the options of
±finite and +imperfective/+stative (systems 7 and 3). The results are simple
to summarize here. Choice of ±finite does not affect the skewed distribu-
tion of +imperfective/+stative (0.87/0.13 and 0.86/0.14, respectively), and
choice of +imperfective or +stative does not affect the equiprobable distri-
bution of ±finite (0.60/0.40 and 0.56/0.44, respectively). Similarly, these
results are consonant with the distributional probabilities of system 3.
4. ATTITUDE (12) and ASPECT1 (2)
Realization Statements:
+assertive +perfective >> Aorist Indicative
–assertive +perfective >> Aorist Subjunctive, Imperative & Optative
+assertive –perfective >> Present, Imperfect, Perfect, Pluperfect Indicative
–assertive –perfective >> Present, Perfect Subjunctive, Imperative & Optative
+perfective –perfective
+assertive .................... 5879 0.73 6145 0.83 12024 0.78
–assertive .................... 2199 0.27 1227 0.17 3433 0.22
+assertive –assertive
+perfective .................. 5879 0.49 2199 0.64 8078 0.52
–perfective .................. 6145 0.51 1227 0.36 7372 0.48
The fourth set of examples concerns the relation of the ATTITUDE
system and ASPECT1 system. This set of systemic choices concerns the
options of ±assertive and ±perfective (systems 12 and 2). Choice of ±asser-
tive results in an equiprobable distribution of ±perfective, as is found in
system 2. Choice of –perfective is skewed toward +assertive over –asserti-
ve (0.83/0.17), consistent with the distribution of ±assertive in system 12.
Choice of +perfective is also skewed toward +assertive over –asser-
tive, although the distribution is closer to the border between equiprobable
and skewed (0.73/0.27). This result is consistent with that noted above,
and already described in Verbal Aspect, in which there is a tendency
toward skewed distribution, confirming the markedness of the forms that
grammaticalize the semantic features of –perfective (present and perfect
tense-forms) and –assertive (non-indicative mood forms) 96. The ASPECT1
system, however, is not affected by the ATTITUDE system.
96
See Porter, Verbal Aspect, pp. 97, 181, 323-24, 336-43, 360-61.
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