Chinese Grammar: A Theoretical Approach (Volume II) — A Milestone Exploration into the Syntactic Structure of the Chinese Language

As a pivotal volume in the Masterpieces in Chinese Linguistics Series, this publication presents the first English edition of the monumental work by the legendary Chinese linguist, Gao Mingkai, masterfully translated by Zhou Rong.

Departing from traditional grammars that overemphasize word classes while neglecting syntax, Professor Gao argues that the defining characteristic of Chinese lies in the grammatical functions of content words and the auxiliary roles of function words within syntax. In actual usage, the grammatical function of a content word is determined entirely by its position and its relationship with neighboring words.

Volume II focuses systematically on Chinese Syntax, unfolding in two main sections: On Sentence Construction and Sentence Patterns. It provides a rigorous, deep-dive analysis into the intrinsic and extrinsic relations between words, such as relations of determination, direction, apposition, coordination, and contact. Furthermore, it extensively examines functional propositions, including negative, interrogative, dubitative, imperative, and exclamatory structures, alongside historical explorations into copulas, ellipses, and complex sentences.

Essential for theoretical linguists, Sinologists, and advanced learners of Chinese, this scholarly masterpiece unveils how Chinese conveys intricate meanings without morphological markers, offering an unparalleled theoretical framework.

Chinese Grammar: A Theoretical Approach (Volume I) — The Foundational Framework of Chinese Morphology and Grammatical Theory

Serving as the foundational volume of the acclaimed Masterpieces in Chinese Linguistics Series, this book brings the pioneering grammatical theories of Professor Gao Mingkai to the global English-speaking audience for the first time.

In Volume I, Professor Gao establishes a rigorous theoretical foundation by defining the unique nature of Chinese grammar, critically evaluating and moving beyond the historical constraints of applying Western Indo-European grammatical models to the Chinese language. This volume concentrates primarily on General Introduction and Morphology. It tackles one of the most enduring debates in Sinology: the nature and classification of word classes in a language devoid of inflectional morphology.

The text provides a profound analysis of the characteristics of content words and function words, illustrating how Chinese utilizes lexical compounding and word order rather than morphological variations to manifest core grammatical categories. Volume I serves as an indispensable prerequisite for understanding the intricate syntactic and sentence patterns explored in Volume II.