The Oxford Handbook of Cognitive Linguistics Part 85. In the past decade, Cognitive Linguistics has developed into one of the most dynamic and attractive frameworks within theoretical and descriptive linguistics The Oxford Handbook of Cognitive Linguistics is a major new reference that presents a comprehensive overview of the main theoretical concepts and descriptive/theoretical models of Cognitive Linguistics, and covers its various subfields, theoretical as well as applied. | 810 RONNY BOOGAART AND THEO JANSSEN linguistic perspective . on the basis of purely linguistic indications however a temporal link can be conceived of as being merely epiphenomenal. In the first conjunct of example 21 the past-tense form vertrok left was leaving co-occurs with both the past time adverb gisteravond last night and the future time adverb morgen tomorrow . This relationship contrasts with the relationship between the time adverb and tense form in the second conjunct which we turn to now. In the second conjunct of 21 and in 22 the situations referred to are situated in the future. 22 Tomorrow is Sunday. In the second conjunct of 21 the present-tense form vertrek leave are leaving co-occurs with both the present time adverb nu now and the future time adverb overmorgen the day after tomorrow . In English present-tense forms can be used for future situations if the constitution order schedule habit of things is such that the occurrence can be expected to take place Calver 1946 323 see also Langacker 1991 263-66 2001b as is the case in 22 . In Dutch the present-tense form has a somewhat wider range of uses it signals that the situation in question is considered to be on the agenda. Let us now consider the non-time-based tense analyses of Langacker 1978 1991 Brisard 1999 and Janssen 1989 1991 1993 2002 . Langacker 1991 242- 46 holds that present and past tense are grounding predications which relate a situation to an epistemic domain. Since the situation is regarded as directly accessible to the language users they accept it as old information. Langacker relates this acceptance of a directly accessible situation as old information to the definiteness mental contact with a referent of demonstratives. In particular he relates the proximal distal contrast in demonstratives to the present past distinction. In other words in his view the English present- and past-tense forms signal a proximal distal distinction whereby the present pasttime interpretation is .
