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A Study of the English Article System from the Perspective of Cognitive Grammar
LIU Han
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DOI:10.17265/2159-5836/2025.08.006
College of Foreign Languages, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai, 200093, PR China
Although the English article system is ostensibly composed of two basic forms, “a/an” and “the” actual usage demonstrates a high degree of semantic complexity and cognitive diversity. Traditional grammatical frameworks often treat article usage through a dichotomy of “specific vs. non-specific reference”, yet struggle to effectively explain numerous marginal and unconventional linguistic phenomena, such as expressions like “go to the hospital” and “a Mr. Brown”. With the development of cognitive linguistics, language is viewed as an externalization of mental activity, and the intrinsic connection between linguistic structure and cognitive mechanisms has gained increasing attention. This paper, grounded in Ronald Langacker’s Cognitive Grammar theory, systematically analyzes the semantic construction process and cognitive motivations of English articles by integrating cognitive mechanisms such as figure-ground alignment, subjectivity, and mental spaces. By combining typical sentence examples, the paper reveals the deep cognitive structures underlying article usage from the dual perspectives of semantic representation and communicative function, aiming to provide a more explanatory theoretical framework for the grammatical teaching and cognitive research of English articles.
Cognitive Grammar, English articles, figure-ground, subjectivity, mental space, semantic construction, language cognition
Journal of Literature and Art Studies, August 2025, Vol. 15, No. 8, 642-646
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