Overview

Most of the questions investigated in this chapter concern the use of determiners. In 5.2, we look at the classification of nouns according to different semantic and syntactic properties, particularly those which are relevant to the use of determiners.

In 5.3, the determiners themselves are focused upon, their function within the NP and the semantic and syntactic properties of different types of determiner. This discussion is guided by two basic questions: whether the determiner is an obligatory component of the NP and whether an NP can contain more than one determiner. Both of these questions require us to define the class of determiners, as opposed to other items (e.g. adjectives) which can precede the noun. This discussion leads us in 5.3.6-5.3.8 to the structural properties of NPs like beaucoup de pommes and beaucoup de ces pommes and similar cases where quantity is expressed by a noun (un kilo de pommes, une bande de voyous).

Some of the issues raised in 5.3 are taken up in greater detail in 5.4, where various constructions in which a part of the NP is introduced by de, are examined, and more particularly the indefinite use of du, de la and des and the use of de in negative sentences. The approach to these constructions is based on the premise that the function of de is to assign a Case feature to some element within the NP.

In 5.5, we investigate the syntactic and semantic properties of tout and tous and other expressions which have a similar function.