The connective -w Countering connectives

170 ʋ mʋ nä ʋ yi NH 3 go: ICP SP 1 NH 3 come: ICP ‘… it his boat comes and goes fast. - bhlɛ waa - lʋʋ, kʋ bʋä CNT 1 3 P : GEN DPF : NH 3 ASF : NH 3 be_slow: ICP However, as for theirs, it is slow …’ [greve 43–45] The instruction for interpretation for the countering connective -bhl ɛ can thus be formulated as follows: • Look for a way in which the information in the clauses before and after -bhl ɛ can be seen to be in contrast. Example 171 illustrates how the idea of simultaneity is still present in the use of -bhl ɛ as a countering connective. 171 klaa mnö sukpɔ -kʋ - mɔɔ field: DEF inside ants BE 1: CP LOC ‘In the field there were ants sp., - bhlɛ sukpɔnʋ suwa nɩ ʋʋ wäl ɩɩ CNT 1 ants: DEM sting:3 P : ICP ADD 1 NH 3: GEN matter: DEF but even though these ants were stinging them wa nɩ - wʋ mänyɩ 3 P XNEG : NHP CNT 2 mind they didnt care about it.’ [cacao 69–71]

8.2.2 The connective -w

ʋ ‘CNT2’ The vast majority of occurrences of the countering connective -w ʋ are found in negative clauses, as illustrated in example 172. 172 nyɩkpaa - wʋ - lɔɔ nyie yëku - kʋ people: XNEG CNT 2 there lagoon beside BE 1: CP ‘… there were no people around on the shore of the lagoon …’ [greve 64] Occurrences in affirmative clauses have been found only in imperatives within represented speech, as in examples 173a-c. The reason for the imperative is some unexpected situation, which the speaker signals by -w ʋ. In examples 173a and 173b that situation is described subsequently in the represented speech itself, while in example 173c it was mentioned previously by the narrator. 19 173 a. duny ʋa lä ɔ a po - wʋ nyukwli village_people: DEF say EXCL 1 2 P listen CNT 2 VC ears ‘The villagers said, “Oh, listen” 19 It is not clear why in example 178c the connective -w ʋ is repeated. The word -zɩkä does not have its usual meaning ‘today’ here but rather something like ‘presently’ or ‘shortly’. In fact, the latter meaning may well be the basic meaning of this word, with the translation ‘today’ just rendering one of its contextual meanings. -mä -awlii klaa -bl ɔɔ kʋ [sese] ADD 4 our_friend: GEN field: DEF : GEN road on NUPT The path to our friend’s field, n ʋgbʋwälɩ ghlä -kä -m ɔɔ mourning_words pass CLU 3 LOC wailing is unexpectedly coming from there”’ [lueuzi 64–65] b. duu kɔgwlɛnyʋa […] wlä a yi - wʋ - zɩkä village: GEN world:last-long: AG : PL : DEF 3 P :say 2 P come CNT 2 at_present ‘The village elders […], they said, “Let’s get together shortly, [sese] -mä ŋnɔɔ wugä - bhɔɔ lä wlu [sese] NUPT ADD 4 woman: DEF : GEN soul leave:3 S LOP head NUPT as the woman has had a rough time lit. the woman’s soul left from her head.”’ [lueuzi 92–94] c. ɔ lä -n yi - wʋ -zɩkä - wʋ 3 S say 2 S come CNT 2 at_present CNT 2 ‘… saying, “Come here”’ [filsprod 188] The procedural meaning of -w ʋ can thus be described by the following instruction for interpretation: • Look for a situation in the context that is contrary to expectation. This instruction is also valid in negative clauses, where -w ʋ has practically been generalized. Indeed, each negative clause contains the ‘voice’ of a different enunciator who is the author of the corresponding affirmative clause. 20 The negative clause typically expresses a counter-expectation. In example 174 the narrator tells the audience that the story he is about to tell will not contain a song. This is contrary to their expectation, since Godié stories normally do contain songs. 174 -nanä n pä ylä nä [sese] aa -w ʋ ‘lʋ’ -kä DEMPR 1 S throw: ICP now: LOP SP 1 NUPT NH 1: XNEG CNT 2 song have ‘This one =story that I am telling here, it doesn’t have a song.’ creation 66–67 Concerning the numerous instances where the element -w ʋ occurs in negative utterances, the question arises as to whether the preceding instruction for interpretation can be applied to those utterances or whether -w ʋ in negative utterances is grammaticalized and part of the negative construction requiring the negative auxiliary and -w ʋ. 21 The following facts do not seem to support the view that -w ʋ is grammaticalized. First, -wʋ occurs neither in negative imperatives to negate possible future events or states nor in negative conditional clauses. Moreover, in conditional clauses, the negative auxiliary nö alone expresses negation, as shown in example 175. 175 a nö gäma nä 2 P XNEG play SP 1 ‘… and if you are not having fun…’ [lueuzi 9] 20 This is argued in the polyphonic approach to negation, as described by Roulet 1996. 21 This would then be a situation similar to French, where negation is regularly expressed by a pair of negative elements, such as in the utterance Cela ne me concerne pas ‘That does not concern me’, where the elements ne and pas are both grammatically necessary. Finally, in negative imperatives and future negation, the particle -lä replaces -w ʋ. 176 a. plɛ kʋʋ sii- -lä liver on: XNEG burn:2 SO DP 2 ‘… dont be angry lit. your liver surface may not burn you …’ [filsprod 277] b. n nöö- -lä të [-kpazebhleku] 1 S XNEG :2 SO DP 2 leave_behind NUPT ‘… I will not leave you behind.’ [kokoleko 134]

8.3 Conclusive connectives