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In the context of Central South Slavic languages, the phenomenon of complex predicates has been the object of detailed analysis since at least Radovanović 1977 [1990]. Within his generatively inspired structuralist framework, what counts as a decomposed predicate (i.e. complex predicate) is “every two-member predicate constructed following the formula Verbum (verb copula or semi-copulative verb) + Nomen deverbativum, which is synonymous (and therefore commutable) with a semantically equivalent single-member predicate (represented by an autosemantic verb lexeme from which the deverbative noun of the two-member predicate is derived)” (Radovanić 1990: 53). Though supportive of the contention that the verbal constituents of such constructions should be regarded as “semantically empty” (see Renský 1966), Radovanović clearly recognizes the systematicity of the resultant verbo-nominal phrases, noting that they represent “relatively stable associations of deverbative nouns with corresponding copulative or semi-copulative verbs” (Radovanović 1990: 57). The present paper focuses on a subset of such combinations containing the verb baciti (se), e.g. baciti se u trošak ‘go on a splurge’ (lit. ‘throw oneself into expense’), baciti (koga) u očaj ‘throw (sb) into despair’, baciti pogled (na što) ‘take a look (at sth)’ (lit. ‘throw a look’). In line with usage-based constructional approaches (see Langacker 1987/1991, Goldberg 1995), any complex structure that is formed through the association of a verb and a noun (sometimes mediated by a preposition) is regarded as a construction, i.e. “an assembly of symbolic structures linked by correspondences and categorizing relationships” (Langacker 1987: 5). Furthermore, in contrast to much research on grammaticalization, in which the loss of referential content and gain in procedural function that is characteristic of the verbal constituent is regarded as desemanticization (see Lehman 1982), it will be argued that light verbs are best explained in terms of the cognitive process known as schematization (Langacker 1987: 68). However, in addition to acknowledging their schematic nature, the present paper also aims to demonstrate that light verbs are inextricably bound with their heavy counterparts, and therefore to provide support for the claim that “the light verb use or uses of the lexeme resemble heavy or basic use or uses of the same lexeme in importing some part of the force-dynamic schema, usually existing in the basic use in the physical domain, to some more abstract domain which includes psychological (intentional or intensional) factors.” (Brugman 2001: 560) The pairing of the light verb baciti (se) with prepositional phrases (e.g. baciti se u trošak) and with bare accusative nominals (e.g. baciti pogled), as well as its role in the overall scene construal (cf. baciti (koga) u očaj ‘throw sb into despair’ – pasti u očaj ‘fall into despair’), will thus be regarded as explicable with reference to image schemas (Lakoff & Johnson 1980) and force dynamics (Talmy 1988). Complemented by data from actual usage (the World Wide Web and the Croatian Web Corpus, both inclusive of low-register texts such as those found on blogs and forums), the present study will also reexamine the assumption that Croatian complex predicates are predominantly characteristic of high-register texts. |
