Number is a major research domain in semantics, syntax and morphology. However, no current theory of number is applicable to all three fields. In this work, the author argues that a unified theory is not only possible, but necessary for the study of Universal Grammar. Through insightful analysis of unfamiliar data, the author shows that one and the same feature set is implicated in semantic and morphological number phenomena alike, with syntax acting as the conduit between the two. At the heart of the study is an original treatment of Kiowa, a North American language with a remarkable...
Number is a major research domain in semantics, syntax and morphology. However, no current theory of number is applicable to all three fields. In t...
This book provides a detailed study and a novel Minimalist account of copular sentences in Russian, focusing on case marking alternations (nominative vs. instrumental) and drawing a distinction between two types of copular sentences.On the assumption that Merge is defined in the simplest way possible, it is argued that not all syntactic structures are a(nti)symmetrical. One of the copular sentence types is analyzed as a poster child for symmetrical structures, while the other type is treated as asymmetrical. The originality of this study lies in treating the copula in the two types of copular...
This book provides a detailed study and a novel Minimalist account of copular sentences in Russian, focusing on case marking alternations (nominative ...
Raising and control have figured in every comprehensive model of syntax for forty years. Recent renewed attention to them makes this collection a timely one. The contributions, representing some of the most exciting recent work, address many fundamental research questions. What beside the canonical constructions might be subject to raising or control analyses? What constructions traditionally treated as raising or control might not actually be so? What classes of control must be recognized? How do tense, agreement, or clausal completeness figure in their distribution? The chapters address...
Raising and control have figured in every comprehensive model of syntax for forty years. Recent renewed attention to them makes this collection a time...
Although (almost) all sentences have subjects, not all sentences encode their subjects in the same way. Some languages overtly mark some subjects, but not others, depending on certain features of the subject argument or the sentence in which the subject figures. This phenomenon is known as Differential Subject Marking (DSM). Languages differ in which conditions govern DSM. Some languages differentiate their subjects on the basis of semantic features of the argument such as thematic role, volitionality, animacy, whereas others differentiate on the basis of clausal features such as...
Although (almost) all sentences have subjects, not all sentences encode their subjects in the same way. Some languages overtly mark some subjects, ...
This book is a revision of my doctoral dissertation, completed at the University of British Columbia in 2005. The members of my doctoral committee ? Henry Davis, Rose-Marie Dechaine, Martina Wiltschko ? were instrumental in shaping the content and presentation of this work, and I owe them my gratitude for their considerable input. As my supervisor, Henry gave me great latitude in this project, and his encouragement and enthusiasm made fieldwork all the more exciting. This final product would not have been nearly as strong without the benefit of Rose-Marie s sharp intuition and critiques, and...
This book is a revision of my doctoral dissertation, completed at the University of British Columbia in 2005. The members of my doctoral committee ? H...
This manuscript is a revision of my 1982 MIT dissertation of the same name. A previous version of sections of chapters 1 and 5 appeared as 'Case Agreement in Russian', in The Mental Representation of Gram matical Relations, edited by Joan Bresnan, MIT Press, 1983. I am grateful to MIT Press for permission to reproduce parts of that article here. I would like to express my appreciation to Catherine V. Chvany, who has read several versions of this manuscript over the years, and provided encouragement and invaluable comments. Thanks go also to Johanna Nichols whose careful reading and useful...
This manuscript is a revision of my 1982 MIT dissertation of the same name. A previous version of sections of chapters 1 and 5 appeared as 'Case Agree...
Our book on nominalizations in Quechua summarizes the work we have carried out on. this language over the last ten years. We are happy to offer it as a contribution to linguistic theory. For their interest, friendship and patience, we thank the numerous Quechua speakers who gave us access to their language, making it possible for us to reach an understanding of it which led us to writing this book. More specifically we would like to thank our Cuzco informants who contributed directly in the estab lishment of the data base on which our analyses are built: Angelica and Justo Leon Baca, Evaristo...
Our book on nominalizations in Quechua summarizes the work we have carried out on. this language over the last ten years. We are happy to offer it as ...
principles. A second solution to this problem is to develop a scale for weighing the significance of the conflicting principles in a given case and for concluding which action should be adopted because it is supported by the weightier considerations in that case. Such a solution seems more realistic than the lexical ordering approach, but the development of such a scale is a problematic task. Still other, more complex solutions are possible. Which is the best solution to this problem of conflicting principles of bioethics? We need a moral theory to answer that question. This is the first...
principles. A second solution to this problem is to develop a scale for weighing the significance of the conflicting principles in a given case and fo...
This study is concerned with the structure of verb phrases in English and Spanish, and with syntactic processes involving VP and Vo. A primary focus of attention is auxiliary verbs. It is argued that the structure dominating these verbs is essentially the same in English and Spanish, as is the structure dominating auxiliaries and 'main' verbs in each language. It must be concluded that the occurrence of distinct syntactic processes affecting auxiliaries and other VP constituents in the two languages does not follow from parametrization of phrase structure. It is argued that similarities...
This study is concerned with the structure of verb phrases in English and Spanish, and with syntactic processes involving VP and Vo. A primary focus o...
