Journal
Papers of the Linguistic Society of Belgium, vol. 18 (2024)
Author(s)
Sumin Guan, Benedikt Szmrecsanyi & Weiwei Zhang
Abstract
Analytic passive constructions marked by bèi/gěi/ràng are the predominant strategy to indicate passive voice in Mandarin Chinese. While the Mandarin passive has been studied from various perspectives, it has not yet been analyzed using multifactorial methods to investigate its alternation. This study employs such methods to determine how language-internal factors predict the choice between bèi, gěi, and ràng long passives in Mandarin. Additionally, it examines whether the choice of variant differs between Mainland Chinese and Taiwan Chinese. To determine the combined effect of multiple linguistic factors, we use mixed-effects logistic regression based on a richly annotated dataset, following best practices in variationist (socio)linguistics. The results show that the marker bèi is preferred in atypical passive constructions. Gěi passives convey a more colloquial tone, while ràng passives inherit the attribute of avoidable events from ràng causatives, avoiding inanimate NP1s to prevent ambiguities. In comparison to Mainland Chinese, it is observed that in Taiwan Chinese, the typical passive marker bèi is more closely aligned with the old-before-new information structure paradigm and the traditional requirements of passive constructions in Mandarin Chinese. The marker ràng serves as a substitute for bèi when the context is positive. In contrast, Mainland Chinese is more innovative than Taiwan Chinese in the use of gěi passives.