-(으)ㄹ 수 {있/없}-의 의미구조와 양태성

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the meaning structure of the analytic forms -(u)l swu iss- and -(u)l swu eps- from syntactic and semantic views. In effect -(u)l swu iss- and -(u)l swu eps- represents some modal meanings in sentences. Some researchers mentioned that -(u)l swu iss- and -(u)l swu eps- have modal meanings such as epistemic and deontic possibilities and they regard -(u)l swu iss- and -(u)l swu eps- as modal markers, but this perspective is dubious. From the result of a study, some differences and resemblances between -(u)l swu iss- and -(u)l swu eps- in syntactic environments are relevant to the semantic difference, and the resemblance of them are revealed through the syntactic environments. Considering -(u)l swu iss- and -(u)l swu eps- in terms of syntactic and semantic views and adopting a prototype approach, we have come to a conclusion that the core meanings of -(u)l swu iss- is possibleness and the core meanings of -(u)l swu eps- is impossibleness, and they are not real-modal markers but pseudo-modal markers, therefore the modal meanings of them are particular meanings extended from the core meaning of them.