Semantic difference between the two imperfective markers in mandarin and its implications on temporal relations

This paper discusses the semantic difference between the two imperfective markers in Mandarin, the progressive marker zai and the durative marker zhe, and how their semantic difference influences temporal relations. It is argued that the progressive zai presents an event ongoing at an instant whereas the durative zhe describes a homogeneous eventuality lasting over an interval larger than an instant. The Imperfective Paradox stipulates that an event presented by zai does not have to come to an end. Therefore, the narrative time of an event presented by zai cannot be advanced. zhe can only go with homogeneous eventualities, i.e. stage-level states and activities, neither of which has a natural final endpoint to reach, and therefore has no Imperfective Paradox. Though an eventuality presented by zhe does not have a natural final endpoint to reach, it can last long enough for another event to come to an end. That is, the narrative time of an eventuality presented by zhe can be advanced only when another event reaches its end during the interval over which the eventuality presented by zhe lasts. Besides, this paper also argues that by default a situation presented by zai or zhe serves as a temporal background and provides a temporal frame in which another event takes place or another eventuality holds.