Equation Constructions in Mandarin Chinese (Studies in East Asian Linguistics)

This book investigates in depth how the concepts of identity and similarity, which are very basic ones for human beings, are expressed in the grammar of Mandarin Chinese. Here, we are interested in a variety of constructions in Mandarin that are used to express equation between entities and kinds, degrees and manners, which generally refer to as "equation constructions." It has been observed cross-linguistically that equation constructions (partially) share the morphological make-up, and the overarching question in this book is to what extent these conceptually related constructions can be formally subjected to a uniform analysis. The main target audience of this book includes linguistics researchers, graduate and advanced undergraduate students in Linguistics or Chinese, and researchers in related disciplines who are interested in the concepts of identity and similarity.