The Passive Construction in the Japanese and the Ainu Language : The Indefinite Evaluative Passive Construction

This study involves a comparative analysis between the passive constructions of Japanese and Ainu language. The formal diversity of passive voice found across languages represents a serious hindrance to any attempt to formulate a valid explicative model for the analysis of cross-linguistic facts, especially if the investigation is based only on a formal approach. The difference between the Japanese and the Ainu language is a good example of such cross-linguistic diversity. The proposal in this study presents a semantic-conceptual investigation of the passive constructions of the Japanese and the Ainu language, and with a focus on the rich polysemy we can find \u22rareru-fonn\u22 and in the \u22a-form\u22, respectively. Furthermore, considering such polysemy, the author argues that there is a type of peculiar passive form both in Japanese language and in Ainu language, which is labeled \u22indefinite evaluative passive\u22. This kind of passive differs from ordinary passive in some respects. First, the agent is indefinite and exercises its influence on the object by an evaluative act. As a result, we have a passive that express a property predication. Second, this passive manifest is an unexpected similarity with potential constructions, especially in Japanese language