Depictive Secondary Predicates and Small Clause Approaches to Argument Structure

2018 ◽  
Vol 49 (3) ◽  
pp. 537-559 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin Bruening
Keyword(s):  
Argument Structure ◽  
Small Clause ◽  
Result State ◽  
Double Object ◽  
Adverbial Modification ◽  
Resultative Construction ◽  
Verb Particle Constructions ◽  
Motion Constructions ◽  
Small Clauses ◽  
Secondary Predicates

Some syntactic approaches to argument structure posit small clause constituents to represent what they take to be the semantics of the constructions being analyzed. For example, this approach would analyze a resultative construction like Martha hammered the metal flat as containing a small clause [the metal flat]. In the small clause analysis, the NP the metal is only an argument of the result state denoted by the small clause, and its referent is not part of the causal hammering event. Depictive secondary predicates show that this analysis is incorrect; the NP referent must be part of the verbal causing event. I show this for several constructions that have been analyzed as small clauses: resultatives, caused-motion constructions, verb-particle constructions, and double object constructions, among others. I also revisit arguments that have been presented in favor of small clause analyses (e.g., the argument from adverbial modification) and show that they do not actually favor small clause analyses. Domains of anaphora, in contrast, converge with depictives as a reliable diagnostic for small clauses, as actual small clauses always constitute opaque domains for anaphora.

scholarly journals A formação de construções resultativas no português brasileiro

2011 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
pp. 79-100 ◽  
Author(s):  
Núbia Rech
Keyword(s):  
Brazilian Portuguese ◽  
Romance Languages ◽  
Small Clause ◽  
Resultative Constructions ◽  
Verb Phrase ◽  
Causative Alternation ◽  
Change Of State ◽  
Motion Constructions ◽  
Secondary Predicates ◽  
Germanic Languages

This paper aims mainly at investigating if there is the formation of resultative constructions with simple adjective in Brazilian Portuguese, since researchers disagree on the existence of these constructions in Romance Languages. To start this discussion, first I make a distinction between resultative, depictive and circumstantial constructions. Then, I relate some of their main characteristics, testing how they appear in sentences written in Brazilian Portuguese. Afterwards, I propose an extension of Folli and Ramchand (2001)’s analysis on the Portuguese. These authors use a structure of verb phrase that consists of three different projections, each one consisting in a subpart of the event: Cause, Process and Result. My hypothesis about the Brazilian Portuguese is that the verbs of causative alternation – as they imply change of state – are the head of Result projection and have as their complement an adjective small clause (SC), whose predicate indicates the telic aspect of event, forming a resultative construction. Following this perspective of analysis, I study the possibility of formation of adjective resultatives with atelic and telic verbs that admit causative alternation. I also approach – although briefly – other types of constructions that express results, whose secondary predicates are, respectively, a complex adjective phrase, a PP or a DP. In this paper, only the constructions resulting from verbal actions are considered. Thus, goal of motion constructions – in which prepositions indicate the following of movement and its ending – and resultative constructions with causative verbs are not considered. The results show that there are not resultative constructions in the Brazilian Portuguese equivalent to those found in Germanic Languages, in which an atelic verb becomes a telic verb by adding a resultative secondary predicate to the sentence.

scholarly journals Small clause results revisited

2001 ◽  
Vol 26 ◽  
pp. 127-152
Author(s):  
Jaume Mateu
Keyword(s):  
Argument Structure ◽  
Small Clause ◽  
Resultative Constructions ◽  
Parametric Variation ◽  
Configurational Theory ◽  
Motion Constructions

The main purpose of this paper is to show that argument structure constructions like complex telic path of motion constructions (John walked to the store) or complex resultative constructions (The dog barked the chickens awake) are not to be regarded as "theoretical entities" (Jackendoff (1997b); Goldberg (1995)). As an alternative to these semanticocentric accounts, I argue that their epiphenomenal status can be shown iff we take into account some important insights from three syntactically-oriented works: (i) Hoekstra's (1988, 1992) analysis of S<mall>C<lause> R<esults>, (ii) Hale & Keyser's (1993f.) configurational theory of argument structure, and (iii) Mateu & Rigau’s (1999; i.p.) syntactic account of Talmy's (1991) typological distinction between 'satellite framed languages' (e.g., English, German, Dutch, etc.) and 'verb-framed languages' (e.g., Catalan, Spanish, French, etc.). In particular, it is argued that the formation of the abovementioned constructions involves a conflation process of two different syntactic argument structures, this process being carried out via a 'generalized transformation'. Accordingly, the so-called 'lexical subordination process' (Levin & Rapoport (1988)) is argued to involve a syntactic operation, rather than a semantic one. Due to our assuming that the parametric variation involved in the constructions under study cannot be explained in purely semantic terms (Mateu & Rigau (1999)), Talmy's (1991) typological distinction is argued to be better stated in lexical syntactic terms.  

scholarly journals A new resultative construction in Spanish? A reply to Rodríguez Arrizabalaga

2021 ◽  
Vol 55 (2) ◽  
pp. 517-546
Author(s):  
Alessandro Bigolin ◽  
Josep Ausensi
Keyword(s):  
Argument Structure ◽  
Resultative Constructions ◽  
Constructivist View ◽  
Resultative Construction ◽  
Recent Claim

Abstract We respond to Rodríguez Arrizabalaga’s recent claim that Spanish shows genuine cases of strong resultative constructions, e.g. Juan apuñaló a Tomás hasta la muerte ‘John stabbed Tom to death’, argued to be equivalent to the English construction with the PP to death. This claim is theoretically relevant as it challenges the verb-framed behavior of Spanish with respect to Talmy’s typology. Adopting a constructivist view of argument structure, we argue that Spanish hasta la muerte and English to death constructions of this type involve two completely distinct syntactic configurations, and that only the English to death PP can be regarded as a resultative phrase. We claim that the Spanish hasta PP is syntactically computed as an adjunct external to the argument structure of the predicate and provides a boundary to the predicate it merges with. We thus show that the Spanish construction with hasta la muerte fully conforms to the class of Talmy’s verb-framed languages in that this type of construction is expected to be fully available and productive in this class of languages.

The effects of the pronoun me on dative comprehension

2019 ◽  
Vol 46 (6) ◽  
pp. 1127-1141
Author(s):  
Erin CONWELL
Keyword(s):  
Argument Structure ◽  
Double Object ◽  
Syntactic Structures ◽  
Dative Alternation ◽  
Pronoun Use ◽  
Object Form

AbstractThe English dative alternation has received much attention in the literature on argument structure acquisition in children. However, the data on the acquisition of this alternation have consistently revealed a counter-intuitive pattern: children look more proficient with the lower frequency prepositional form of the dative than with the higher frequency double object form (Conwell & Demuth, 2007; Rowland & Noble, 2010). This may be because the DO dative typically occurs with pronominal argument types in first post-verbal position, which may result in an over-reliance on stereotyped forms (e.g., give + me) for early comprehension and production (Conwell, O'Donnell, & Snedeker, 2011). This paper presents three studies of the effects of the pronoun me on dative comprehension by three-year-olds. Children's comprehension of the DO dative improved significantly when the first post-verbal argument was pronominal; no other effects of pronoun use were significant. Children's experience affects their ability to use lexically general representations of syntactic structures.

Verbless predicative structures across Romance

2015 ◽  
Vol 52 (3) ◽  
pp. 609-637
Author(s):  
NICOLA MUNARO
Keyword(s):  
Small Clause ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Functional Head ◽  
Phase Extension ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Small Clauses ◽  
Apparent Similarity

This article develops an analysis of a verbless predicative structure attested throughout Romance: in this type of reduced clause the predicate linearly precedes the subject and is separated from it by a clear intonational break, while the missing verb is interpreted as a silent copula. I argue that this structure should be viewed as the result of three movement steps: the first step is to be identified with predicate inversion, that is, extraction of the predicate from the complement position of the predicative small clause to a higher specifier position thanks to phase extension, followed by raising of the predicate to the specifier of SubjP to check the EPP feature, and finally to the specifier of the left-peripheral projection FocusP in order to check a focus feature. The present analysis is based on the crucial, and independently motivated assumption, that the process of phase extension, produced by raising of the small clause internal relator R° to a higher functional head F°, is limited to small clauses associated with individual-level predicates. The verbless predicative structure is then compared to an analogous construction in which the preposed predicate is preceded by awh-item, arguing that, despite their apparent similarity, the two structures should be clearly distinguished.

scholarly journals Apresentação

2011 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-10
Author(s):  
Maria José Foltran ◽  
Carlos Mioto
Keyword(s):  
Small Clause ◽  
Small Clauses

O termo small clause é atribuído a Edwin Williams. Foi usado primeiramente em Williams (1975), no texto Small clauses in English. No Brasil, foi traduzido por mini-oração por Mary Kato e em Portugal o termo escolhido foi oração pequena.

Rules and construction effects in learning the argument structure of verbs

2003 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 797-821 ◽  
Author(s):  
KATHERINE DEMUTH ◽  
'MALILLO MACHOBANE ◽  
FRANCINA MOLOI
Keyword(s):  
Word Order ◽  
Argument Structure ◽  
Rule Learning ◽  
Double Object ◽  
Learning Problem ◽  
Order Restrictions ◽  
Bantu Languages ◽  
Verb Semantics ◽  
Applicative Constructions

Theorists of language acquisition have long debated the means by which children learn the argument structure of verbs (e.g. Bowerman, 1974, 1990; Pinker, 1984, 1989; Tomasello, 1992). Central to this controversy has been the possible role of verb semantics, especially in learning which verbs undergo dative-shift alternation in languages like English. The learning problem is somewhat simplified in Bantu double object constructions, where all applicative verbs show the same order of postverbal objects. However, Bantu languages differ as to what that order is, some placing the benefactive argument first, and others placing the animate argument first. Learning the language-specific word-order restrictions on Bantu double object applicative constructions is therefore more akin to setting a parameter (cf. Hyams, 1986). This study examined 100 three- to eight-year-old children's knowledge of word order restrictions in Sesotho double object applicatives. Performance on forced choice elicited production tasks found that four-year-olds showed evidence of rule learning, although eight-year-olds had not yet attained adult levels of performance. Further investigation found lexical construction effects for three-year-olds. These findings suggest that learning the argument structure of verbs, even when lexical semantics is not involved, may be more sensitive to lexical construction effects than previously thought.

English prototyped small clauses in the interlanguage of Chinese/Taiwanese adult learners

2005 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marina Yueh-ching Chen
Keyword(s):  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Adult Learners ◽  
First Language ◽  
Exceptional Case ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Small Clause ◽  
First Language Transfer ◽  
Chinese Learners ◽  
Small Clauses ◽  
Infinitival Complements

This study of consider and find attempts to shed light on second language acquisition of English small clause complements, as in we consider [Mary intelligent] and we find [Mary interesting]. It examines how learners’ First language (Mandarin Chinese) interacts with the target language. The analysis is based on the results of two kinds of tasks: grammaticality judgements, intended to elicit nonnative participants’ implicit knowledge as compared with the responses of native participants; and oral translations to test their explicit access to this knowledge. The results indicate that Chinese learners tend to avoid sentences that contain small clause complements. A related finding is that, like small clause complements, infinitival complements are under-generated and not preferred by the subjects; tensed clauses and clauses introduced by that are preferred. It is suggested that learners’ difficulty with small clause complements involves underlying first language transfer. On the other hand, the difficulty with infinitive clauses may be related to universal developmental order, as the interpretation for an NP involves an extra mechanism, Exceptional Case Marking.

The issue of specifying slots in argument structure constructions in terms of form and meaning

2021 ◽  
Vol 34 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Herbst ◽  
Peter Uhrig
Keyword(s):  
Argument Structure ◽  
Construction Grammar ◽  
Formal Specifications ◽  
Motion Constructions

Abstract In Construction Grammar theory, constructions are generally described as form-meaning pairings. It will be argued here that the formal specifications of some abstract constructions are so vague that the notion of form needs to be discussed rather critically. We aim to demonstrate how, in the English predicative and intransitive-motion constructions, the slots of more general constructions can be seen as being specified indirectly through sets of mini-constructions.

The Acquisition of Complements

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jill de Villiers ◽  
Tom Roeper
Keyword(s):  
Argument Structure ◽  
Propositional Attitudes ◽  
Theoretical Research ◽  
Structure Control ◽  
Lexical Variation ◽  
Essential Question ◽  
Empty Categories ◽  
Small Clauses ◽  
High Level ◽  
Movement Rules

The development of complementation engages high-level parametric variation, a variety of separate modules, and very specific lexical variation across the possible grammars in UG. In particular, finiteness, argument structure, control, empty categories, and recursion all present separate challenges and create an intricate grammatical acquisition path for any child. The essential question is: how does the CP node expand from small clauses to infinitives to tensed clauses? The next question is: how does the grammar interface with cognition, as complements express propositional attitudes, and false beliefs? We survey empirical research that documents descriptive work on the growth of complementation and theoretical research addressed to linking rules and movement rules. We survey both what is known and new questions that need to be investigated.

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