7/30/2019 Markedness Hierarchies Cheat Sheet

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Markedness Hierarchies

 Based on Cynthia Long Westfall’s ‘The Analysis of Prominence in Hellenistic Greek’ 

 Prepared By Nick Elder 

Markedness in Aspect/Tense

Aorist Unmarked Default tense

Imperfect   Distant, indefinite action

Present   Close, indefinite action

Perfect   Definite, contoured

Pluperfect Marked Rare, definite, contoured

Markedness and Mood Markedness and Voice

Markedness and Case Markedness and Person

Accusative Unmarked Object/with respect to

 Nominative   Subject

Genitive   Restrictive

Dative   Relation

Vocative Marked Direct Address

Hierarchical Categorization of Intersentential Conjunction

EMPHATIC Conjunction/Particle Gloss Mkd Unmkd

Adversative/ δέ  ‘but’, ‘on the other hand’ ✔ 

Discontinuity ἀλλά  ‘but’  

πλήν  ‘but’, ‘yet’, ‘however’  

µὲν, οὖν, µενοὖν  ‘contrary’, ‘rather’  

µέντοι  ‘but’, ‘nevertheless’, ‘however’  

τουναντίον  ‘on the contrary’ ✔ 

Inferential/ οὕτω(ς) ‘thus’, ‘so’ ✔ 

Summative οὖν  ‘so then’, ‘therefore’  

διὰ τοῦτο  ‘through this’, ‘therefore’  ὥστε  ‘so that’ (theme)  

διό  ‘therefore’  

ὅθεν  ‘and so’, ‘therefore’  

τοίνυν  ‘for that very reason then’  

τοιγαροῦν  ‘for that very reason then’ ✔ 

Addition πάλιν  ‘again’, ‘once more’ ✔ 

εἶτε  ‘and then’  

εὐθύς  ‘mmediately’  

εὐθέως  ‘immediately’ ✔ 

CONTINUITY

Addition/pos καί  ‘and’ ✔ 

 Asyndeton  No signal (inference)  

κάγω  ‘and I’ ✔ 

Addition/neg ούδέ  ‘and not’ ✔ 

µηδέ  ‘and not’ ✔ 

DE-EMPHATIC

γάρ  ‘for’ ✔ 

µέν  ‘on the one hand’ ✔ 

Other Markers of Prominence: Emphatic lexemes (ἰδοὺ, ἴδε, ἄγε), nearness in time/space (νῦν. νύνι, ἄρτι), interrogatives,

contrast/comparison, elaboration/comment, extra words (participial phrase, unnecessary pronouns), concentration of participants,

summaries/conclusions, patterns/repitition

Indicative Unmarked Default

Imperative   3r  , 2n pers pl.

Subjunctive   1st

person pl/ command

Optative Marked Rare, emphatic

Active Unmarked Default

Passive   Focus on Recipient

Middle Marked Stressed Involvement

3r  sing, Unmarked General, remote. Inclusive

3rd

plural   General, remote

2nd sing.   Present, other 

2n

plural   Present, others

1st sing   Self 

1st plural Marked Self and other(s) present

7/30/2019 Markedness Hierarchies Cheat Sheet

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Salience in Semantic Categories

More Salient Less Salient

Human

AnimateConcrete

Thing-like, solid, discrete

Well-defined, tightly organized

Contoured, surrounded, bounded, enclosed

Localized

With distinguishable parts Near 

Above, in front

Greater contrast

Stable

symmetric

 Non-human

InanimateAbstract

Unformed, diffuse, shapeless, unbroken

Less definite, unstructured, loosely organized

Boundless

Unlocalized

Without distinguishable parts

Far Below, behind

Lesser contrast

Unstable

irregular