Complementizers Relating to Noun Phrases: Rare Constructions within a Theory of Universal Grammar

Course Description

This class explores a unified analysis of a range of crosslinguistically rare constructions which involve ways that complementizers relate to nearby noun phrases. The constructions are: upward C-agreement, as found in central Niger-Congo languages; allocutive agreement, in which a finite verb agrees with the addressee of the sentence; indexical shift, in which participant pronouns inside a complement clause can refer to the arguments of the matrix verb; logophoric pronouns, in which a special third person pronoun inside a complement clause can refer to the subject of the matrix verb; and switch-reference, in which morphology on an embedded verb indicates whether the embedded subject is coreferential with the matrix subject. These constructions are considered side-by-side, based on extensive new data from Ibibio, Magahi, and Japanese. The key unifying hypotheses are that certain complementizers can license special null DPs in the complementizer space, and that these DPs can be controlled by an argument of the matrix verb. In this way, a range of crosslinguistically rare constructions can be built out of pieces provided by Universal Grammar. The class closes by outlining a “Generalized Control Theory” that applies to both ordinary PRO in infinitival clauses and the null DPs in these rarer constructions.

Area Tags: Syntax, Morphology, Semantics

Instructor: Mark Baker