The Japanese Imperative

Imperatives are the chief grammatical exponents of one of the basic types of utterance: statements, questions, and commands. This thesis investigates how imperatives in Japanese fit into the cross-linguistic scheme of things and, more importantly, whether and how they stand out. Its aim is to advance our understanding not only of Japanese imperatives, but of imperatives in general. The Japanese Imperative offers a monographic treatment of Japanese imperative constructions from the perspective of