1. The Animatedness Hierarchy: human > other animate > inanimate; agent > benefactive/dative > patient; more animated > less animated.2. The Animated First Principle (AFP) relates to Tomlin’s Theme First Principle (TFP, cf. #382) and his Verb-Object Bonding (cf. #1291). Tomlin differentiates between universals and principles; it “should not be construed as an ‘absolute’ linguistic universal, but rather as one of a set of forces which interact to product the distribution of the basic constituent order types.” (Tomlin 1986: 102)Therefore Tomlin 1986: 124 also formulates the Principle of Maximal Realization (MRP): “The ideal basic constituent order for a given verb position is one in which the three principles, AFP, TFP, and VOB are maximized.”
1. The Animatedness Hierarchy: human > other animate > inanimate; agent > benefactive/dative > patient; more animated > less animated.2. The Animated First Principle (AFP) relates to Tomlin’s Theme First Principle (TFP, cf. #382) and his Verb-Object Bonding (cf. #1291). Tomlin differentiates between universals and principles; it “should not be construed as an ‘absolute’ linguistic universal, but rather as one of a set of forces which interact to product the distribution of the basic constituent order types.” (Tomlin 1986: 102)Therefore Tomlin 1986: 124 also formulates the Principle of Maximal Realization (MRP): “The ideal basic constituent order for a given verb position is one in which the three principles, AFP, TFP, and VOB are maximized.”