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In addition, not all adjectives of a certain nature can be used in this structure; their overlapping forms
also indicate a deepening of the degree, and they cannot be modified by the word "再".
再长的筷子我也 用。
*再长长的筷子我也 用。
2. PRAGMATIC FEATURES OF THE FORMAT "再X也Y"(再X也Y)
2.1 Subjectivity
Subjectivity refers to the fact that the speaker is subjective and self-centered in his/her speech. Li
Hualan (2007) pointed out in her research that the structure of "再X也Y" is highly subjective, and she
analyzed the markers and manifestations of subjectivity of this structure and set up a subjectivity
scale to help further understand the structure of "再X也Y".
日子再苦也得往 。(余华《活着》)
单为一项工作奋斗,再 也 不死人。(余华《家住龙华》)
The above two example sentences are able to fully reflect the subjective nature of this structure,
showing the speaker's will and his determination to do one thing without ever wavering, no matter
how extreme the conditions are. No matter how hard the days are, and to what extent they are hard, "I"
can only choose to "get on with it"; no matter how "tiring" the work is, it's not tiring to fight for only
one job.
2.2. Conditionality
In this structure, X can act as a condition for Y. And this condition is virtual and without polarity, with
infinite space for reverie, e.g.:
现在我是闹革命,你有再多的钱我也不要。(《人民日报》)
The condition here is "you have more money", but in fact the listener doesn't have more money, the
speaker gives this condition to illustrate the determination of his own determination, assuming that
the listener has money and the money has no scope, no matter how much it is, it can't shake the
speaker's determination, which is enough to illustrate the conditional and virtual nature of this
structure.
2.3. Stability
Stability means that the semantics of the sentence is stable to a certain extent. According to the
different forms of X, Shi Wen classifies the formality of "再X也Y" into two categories: when X is an
adjective/verb+quantity word, the formality can be expressed as "No matter how much the value of X
reaches, the result of Y remains unchanged. "; when X is a bare-bones adjective or verb, the format
meaning can be expressed as "no matter how the amount of X changes, it will not bring about a change
in Y". From this, it can be seen that both of them will not change Y no matter how the condition X
changes, and their semantics are stable and will not change because of the change of the amount.
别说她只小他 岁, 是再年轻十 岁也敌不过他。(孙力、余小惠《都市风流》)
我光想,她长得再 我也 一样 爱她。(史铁生《来到人间》)
2.4. Exaggeration
An important feature of the structure "再X也Y" is that it is hyperbolic, which enhances the tone and
emphasizes the meaning of X. X is modified by "再", which has the meaning of "increase, deepen",
and there is no "increase" in this structure. X is modified by "again", which means "to increase, to
deepen", and this "increase" has no pole, no specific scope, and can be an unlimited increase, with
exaggerated color.
问题再大也不怕,怕的 是 人 。(张平《抉择》)
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