Overview
Professor Abusch's research is concerned with the semantics and pragmatics of natural language. She has worked on the semantics of tense in various clause types, including issues of sequence of tense, the representation of futurity, the semantics of infinitives, and the semantics of verbal participles. She has also written about presupposition triggering, the scope properties of indefinite noun phrases, modality, and interactions between aspect and causation. Currently she is working on superlinguistics, a project of applying linguistic methodology in semantics and pragmatics to visual narratives and other non-linguistic materials. In the area of visual narrative, she has written about co-indexing, temporal progression and aspect, free perception constructions, descriptions of pictures in language, and multi-media narratives. Among the tools applied are possible world semantics, DRT/dymamic semantics, and implicature.
Publications
Parallel and differential contributions from language and image in the discourse representation of picturebooks. To appear in the proceedings of Sinn und Bedeutung 27, 2023. With Mats Rooth.
Pictorial free perception. Linguistics & Philosophy, 2022. With Mats Rooth (preprint).
The Holocaust in Comics?. In Maus Now: Selected Writing, edited by Hilary Chute. Penguin Random House, 2022.
Comments on “Unreliability and point of view in filmic narration”. Epistemology & Philosophy of Science, 2022 (preprint).
Temporal and intensional pictorial conflation. With Mats Rooth. Sinn und Bedeutung 26, 2022.
Modalized normality in pictorial narratives. With Mats Rooth. Sinn und Bedeutung 25, 2021.
Possible worlds semantics for pictures. In L. Matthewson, C. Meier, H. Rullmann, and T. E. Zimmermann (eds.), The Wiley Blackwell Companion to Semantics, 2020. Distributed in 2015. Later version.
Indexing across media. With Mats Rooth. Proceedings of 22nd Amsterdam Colloquium. ILLC, University of Amsterdam, 2019.
Picture descriptions and centered content. With Mats Rooth. In Proceedings of Sinn und Bedeutung 21, 2018.
The formal semantics of free perception in pictorial narratives.With Mats Rooth. Proceedings of 21st Amsterdam Colloquium, 2017.
Temporal succession and aspectual type in visual narrative. In Luka Crnič and Uli Sauerland (eds.), The Art and Craft of Semantics: A Festschrift for Irene Heim, vol. 1, MITWPL 70, 2014.
Applying discourse semantics and pragmatics to co-reference in picture sequences. In Proceedings of Sinn und Bedeutung 17, 2012.
Circumstantial and temporal dependence in counterfactual modals. Natural Language Semantics 20.3, 2012. (Preprint).
Presupposition Triggering from Alternatives, Journal of Semantics (2010) 27(1), 37-80. (Preprint).
Focus Presuppositions. In Acta Linguistica Hungarica, volume 55, numbers 3-4, December 2008. DOI 10. 1556/ALing55.2008.3-4.7.
Temporal and Circumstantial Dependence in Counterfactual Modals. Proceedings of the Sixteenth Amsterdam Colloquium. 37-42, 2007. ILLC, University of Amsterdam.
Causatives and Mixed Aspectual Type, in Reference and Quantification: The Partee Effect, Greg Carlson and Jeffrey Pelletier (eds.), Stanford: CSLI Publications, 2005.
On the Temporal Composition of Infinitives, in The Syntax of Time, J. Gueron and J. Lecarme (eds.), MIT Press, 2004.
Empty Domain Effects for Presuppositional and Non-presuppositional Determiners, in Context Dependence in the Analysis of Linguistic Meaning, H. Kamp and B. Partee (eds.), Elsevier Publishers. With Mats Rooth.
Lexical Alternatives as a Source of Pragmatic Presuppositions, in B. Jackson (ed.), Proceedings of SALT 12, 2002. Cornell University, CLC Publications.
Generalizing Tense Semantics for Future Contexts, in Events and Grammar, S. Rothstein (ed.). Kluwer Academic Publishers, 1998.
Sequence of Tense and Temporal De Re, in Linguistics and Philosophy, 20.1, pp. 1-50, 1997.
Epistemic NP Modifiers, in Proceedings of SALT VII, 1997. A. Lawson and A. Cho (eds.), CLC Publications, Ithaca NY.
The Scope of Indefinites, in Natural Language Semantics 2.2, 1993-1994, pp. 83-135.
Temporal Adverbs and the English Perfect, in Proceedings of the 20th North East Linguistic Society, 1990. GLSA, Amherst MA. With Mats Rooth.
Reflexives, Reference Shifters and Attitudes, in Proceedings of the 8th West Coast Conference on Formal Linguistics, 1989. The Stanford Linguistics Association.
Recent and Upcoming Presentations
Parallel and differential contributions from language and image in the discourse representation of picturebooks. Sinn und Bedeutung 27, September 2022.
Intensional and temporal pictorial conflation. Sinn und Bedeutung 26, September 2021.
Modalized normality in pictorial narratives. Sinn und Bedeutung 25, September 2020 (slides).
Indexing across media. 22nd Amsterdam Colloquium, 2019.
Formal semantics of pictorial narratives. One week course at the 30th European Summer School in Logic, Language and Information, Sofia, August 2018.
Presentation at workshop Linguistic explorations beyond language: music, dance and visual narrative, Crete Linguistics School, July 2018.
The formal semantics of free perception in pictorial narratives. Amsterdam Colloquium, December 2017.
Attitudes and free perception in pictorial narratives. University of Frankfurt, July 2017.
Dynamic semantics for picture sequences. Colloquium, McGill, October 2016.
Picture descriptions and centered content. Sinn und Bedeutung 21, Edinburgh, September 2016. (abstract,slides).
Dynamic Semantics for Picture Sequences. Logic group, University of Connecticut. April 2015.
Pictorial discourse referents, bridging and continuous narrative. Discourse and Philosophy Colloquium, ILLC, University of Amsterdam, October 2014.
Pictorial discourse referents, bridging and continuous narrative. Carpentry Workshop, University of Frankfurt, September 2014.
Presentation at Workshop Tense in Semantics and Philosophy of Language, University of St. Andrews, June 2014.
Anaphoric relations in sequential and conflated pictures. Colloquium at Linguistics and Cognitive Science, University of Delaware, March 2014.
Temporal succession and aspectual type in visual narrative. Colloquium at Dept. of Linguistics, Yale, March 2014.
Temporal succession and aspectual type in visual narrative. Colloquium at McGill University, October 2013.
Anaphoric relations in sequential and conflated pictures. Colloquium, Trinity College Dublin, April 2013.
Anaphoric relations in sequential and conflated pictures. Colloquium, University of Edinburgh, April 2013.
Narrative Images and Natural Language. IIT Delhi, February 2013.
Grants
Visual Narrative in Wall Paintings of Rajasthan – Individuation and Temporal Relations. 2012-2013 Humanities Research Grant, Cornell Society for the Humanties.
Applying Discourse Semantics and Pragmatics to Narrative Images: A Study of Stone Reliefs, Miniatures, Cave Paintings, and Temple Sculpture. 2011-2012, Cornell Institute for Social Sciences. Empirical basis is Indian art.
In the news
LING Courses - Fall 2024
- LING 3390 : Independent Study in Linguistics
- LING 4421 : Semantics I
- LING 4493 : Honors Thesis Research
- LING 6421 : Semantics I
- LING 7701 : Directed Research
- LING 7711 : Semantics Seminar