I hope someone can help me with my grammar work(I am studying Putonghua on a part time basis).
I have a lot of trouble understanding the usage of the particle "le": when it must be used, when it must not be used, when it can be omitted etc. My problems are compounded by the different ways that the particle is used - completed action, continuing action, change of status...
Is there any reliable Internet source that can give me some useful rules to follow ? So far, all that I find are the same "rules" that I know, but this does not help me to apply the to real use of the language. If anyone can suggest any links or can give me any advice, I would be very grateful.
Thanks in advance.
You may want to distinguish two 了's. Let's call them the verbal suffix (VS)了 and the sentence particle (SP)了.
The following discussion focuses on the VS 了:
了 indicates that a process
P (an action or event) is located on the time plane at an instant
Ti, and that this occurrence
Pi has a distinguishable value more than just "something that happened in time": It can be (1) something that is supposed to be done (你拿了签证了吗?), or (2) something that leads to a result (他去了广州 - therefore he is no longer here), or (3) something worth to be mentioned (我吃了一个榴莲、他写了一首诗歌).
In (1), the occurrence is distinguishable because it corresponds to a pre-defined objective.
In (2), 去 is a telic process that implies a transition from one point to another, hence a change of state which makes the occurrence distinguishable. Other telic process include 来,过(桥),开(门),关,死,etc.
In (3), it is simply distinguishable. Why it is distinguishable depends very much on the context, and sometimes can be an object of controversy:
A: 他写了一首情诗,你要看吗?
B: 有什么稀奇的?他一天到晚都写这些乱七八糟的东西,烦死人。
It is interesting to note that in sentences like (3), the quantifier (量词) must be used. It is difficult to say ??我吃了榴莲,??他写了诗歌 (unless when answering to the question 你吃了什么/他写了什么, which implies a pre-defined objective), as opposed to saying 我吃过榴莲/他昨天在家里写诗歌,where the occurrence is just "something that has happened in time".
Precisely, the role of the quantifier is to make the occurrence "quantifiable" so that it can "stand out", can be "seized".
On the other hand, a distinguishable occurrence located at an instant is a closed object (i.e. we can identify this thing clearly on the time plane). That is why the process is usually interpreted as a completed action or closed event.
For lack of time, I won't touch on cases like 他老了、胖了、瘦了、高了、矮了、etc., where the predicate can be associated to a kind of gradient: 相当老、很胖、十分高、非常矮. When we say 她瘦了, it does not necessarily mean that she has become slim: she can still be fat.
A: 几个星期没看到你,你好像瘦了?
B: 是吗?我在减肥呢,不过还是很胖,我要再加把劲!
I hope the above can be of help to your.