SATO Takuzo
Studies in the Japanese language, 55(4) 73-84, Oct, 2004 Peer-reviewed
The meaning of the noun moyo (pattern or design) is characterized as a figure contrasting with the ground, which is seen on the surface of some concrete objects. Some sentences with moyo at the end, however, report events, as in Hannin wa sudeni toso shita moyo da (It seems that the perpetrator has already run away). This paper refers to this as "reporting usage" and finds it to be characterized in the following way: The occasion of the utterance is the giving of a formal report, and the attitude of the utterance is the depiction of a situation's appearance. In addition, it is also claimed that the sentences in question do not enunciate the speaker's thoughts and the truth of a report is uncertain as only the appearance of a situation is depicted. Moreover, it is argued that this type of sentence fills in a gap in the functional system where neither kakugen (indicative) nor gaigen (presumptive) sentences function.