Contenu du sommaire : Indéfinis et références, sous la direction de Walter de Mulder et Nelly Flaux

In the large class of "quantified NPs" some theories distinguish a restricted group of so-called "indefinite NPs" (e.g. in French un N, deux Ns, plusieurs Ns). This paper discusses the empirical properties and theoretical analyses which substantiate this distinction, paying special attention to the contrast between indefinites and modified versions of them (e.g. un au moins, un au plus, un exactement), the latter falling by all relevant criteria, outside the class of indefinites, although most denotational approaches consider that the meaning of indefinites is expressed by some of their modified versions.

This article concerns the words chaque and chacun, taken together. We argue that they function as what we term "referential modifiers", and that they must thus be compared with the plural tous, and not, as it is usually the case, with the singular tout. This comparison leads to the conclusion that both chaque/chacun and tous are distributive, but in very different ways. We also distinguish between chaque N and chacun des N, demonstrating why, whereas the first functions well as the subject of universal propositions, the second does not. Then we distinguish between chaque N and les N... chacun, for, when chacun is detached from the noun to which it is bound, it has not necessarily the same interpretation as chaque N: only the detached chacun can function as a "multiplicator". Finally, we describe chaque N in relation to les N and tous les N: les N represents an indistinct globality; tous les N a globality with distinct but connected elements; chaque N a globality of radically separate elements.

The acquisition of the French indefinites plusieurs and quelques is highly problematic for Tunisian children, despite the frequent use of French in Tunisia, especially in school and at the university. We show that this is due to the mistaken idea that these indefinite forms signal different quantities, plusieurs alledgedly referring to a greater quantity than quelques. We further show that this idea cannot be upheld, since both forms can refer to exactly the same quantity, and we defend the idea that plusieurs signals a positive and precise orientation — and is related to exact counting — , whereas quelques tends to direct interpretation towards the negative and the less precise.

The word même in French meaning identity (cf. same in English) occurs regularly among the indefinite adjectives in French grammar. Its syntactic and semantic properties though differ from those of prototypical indefinites. Our investigation tends to prove that même together with the determiner constitutes a sort of complex determiner. Its syntactic, semantic and referential properties depend on the interaction of its two components. The referential instruction carried by même consists in linking the referent to at least two correlates.

When used as a pronominal adjective, tel has the typical distribution of a "qualifying" adjective ("adjectif qualificatif") and is interpreted as a variable referring to the general notion of a "characteristic". This variable is turned into a constant, a specific characteristic, by the context. We describe how syntactic forms (relative, consequential and paratactic correlations) and textual mechanisms (anaphoric, cataphoric and deictic expressions) contribute to the discursive satisfaction of this kind of variable.

We aim to show that the different uses and values of n'importe qui, n'importe quoi, n'importe quel N are founded on a double variation: an internal variation based on the variable ponderation of the components of the word (on the one hand signalling a class: cf. qui, quoi, quel N, but on the other hand rejecting the singularity of the term concerned: cf. n'importe); and an external variation that takes into account the lexical properties of the co-text, the modal status of the predicate, and intersubjective relationships.

This analysis of pronouns / adjectives is not based on their alledged referential value, but on the distinction between different semantic structures. This distinction is essentially based on the opposition illocutionary / locutionary, which is at the heart of the behavioral (neo-behaviorist) model I propose. I call illocutionary all elements of an utterance that are linked to its use as an act and that refer to the intentions of the utterer. I call locutionary, on the other hand, all elements of the utterance that are not related to those intentions and that are only linguistic reflexes of possible acts. The quantifying structure is represented by utterances such as "Certains arbres sont morts" or "J'aime certains arbres": both are affirmations of the existence of This analysis of pronouns / adjectives is not based on their alledged referential value, but on the distinction between different semantic structures. This distinction is essentially based on the opposition illocutionary / locutionary, which is at the heart of the behavioral (neo-behaviorist) model I propose. I call illocutionary all elements of an utterance that are linked to its use as an act and that refer to the intentions of the utterer. I call locutionary, on the other hand, all elements of the utterance that are not related to those intentions and that are only linguistic reflexes of possible acts. The quantifying structure is represented by utterances such as "Certains arbres sont morts" or "J'aime certains arbres": both are affirmations of the existence of trees in such a way that one can say of each one of them "II est mort" or "J'aime cet arbre". These affirmations are present in the utterances at a second level, in the locutionary predicates sont morts or j'aime... Apart from the quantifying structure I introduce the referential structure "Ces arbres sont morts" whose elements are all illocutionary (referential acts by j'or ces arbres, assertion by sont morts or j'aime), the verbal structure, "Des arbres meurent en ce moment", whose illocutionary center is the verb; the generic structure, "Un arbre mort doit être abbatu", where the illocutionary element serves to relate two locutionary predicates être un arbre mort and doit être abattu.