The more I think about this issue, the more it seems that I do not know so much as well.
I was told that the
"the big dog's toy" can be viewed in two ways:
1.
"the {big dog}'s toy" - which, in my humble opinion, means that the genitive acts as a determinative here.
2.
"the big {dog's toy}" - which, in my humble opinion, means that the genitive acts as a modifier here.
From the aforesaid I can surmise that the way in which the genitive is viewed is again a matter of choice of a particular speaker.
(
The Oxford English Grammar, Sidney Greenbaum gives us this example:
A good girls' school is ambiguous between 'a school for good girls' and its more plausible interpretation 'a good school for girls'.)
But is it solely a matter of choice or does language put some restrictions?
It seems that
"the first day's battle" can be viewed only in one way. But what if I put it this way:
"The Battle of Lubrze was
a night battle which took place during the Deluge (part of the Second Northern War) in August of 1656 between Polish forces and a Swedish-Brandenburg force. This was the first
night's battle in the history of the world
(this sentence is fictional).
(Does
"the first {night's battle}" sound natural here?
Can these examples be accepted as natural as well?
1.
"The {first man}'s occupation" - determinative (the occupation of the first man
[Adam?]).
2.
"The first {man's occupation}" - modifier (the first occupation of our ancestors).
Thanks.