Mimo woli and mimowolnie as the exponents of relation ‘mind–body’

Abstract

The subject matter of this article is the adverb mimowolnie, which I compare with such expressions as mimo woli and odruchowo. However the aim of the discussion is to establish the semantic difference between these adverbs.

In the article, I attempt to justify the hypothesis that the semantic relation between them is similar to the one noticed  by A. Wierzbicka, in her work from 1969, where she  emphasizes the non-identicality of subjects in such sentences as Adam waży 70 kg. and Adam jest dobry. (Wierzbicka 1969: 62, 63). In order to prove the hypothesis proposed, I demonstrate the semantic restrictions imposed by the lexical unit mimowolnie on verbs (e.g. perceptual verbs), and then I try to explain what they stem from.

At the end of the article, I put forward the thesis that the adverb mimowolnie contains, in its semantic structure, an explicitly specified object  of activity, which is one's own body and that it designates the agent's attitude towards his or her body that is performing the given activity.