Exploring VP/vP Preposing in Multiple Nominative Constructions

Ahn, Hee-Don; Cho, Sungeun

doi:10.30961/lr.2023.59.2.115

Lang. Res. 59(2):115-144

pISSN: 0254-4474, eISSN: 2586-7113

DOI: https://doi.org/10.30961/lr.2023.59.2.115

Article

Exploring VP/vP Preposing in Multiple Nominative Constructions

Hee-Don Ahn¹, Sungeun Cho²^,^†

Author Information & Copyright ▼

¹Konkuk University

²Yeungnam University

^†Corresponding Author: Professor Department of English Education Yeungnam University 280 Daehak-ro, Gyeongsan, Gyeongbuk 38541, Korea E-mail: scho1007@ynu.ac.kr

ⓒ Copyright 2023 Language Education Institute, Seoul National University. This is an Open-Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Received: Jul 04, 2023 ; Revised: Aug 03, 2023 ; Accepted: Aug 14, 2023

Published Online: Aug 31, 2023

ABSTRACT

This study investigates VP/vP preposing within the context of Multiple Nominative Constructions (MNCs). In Korean, a verbal constituent can be moved to the sentence-initial position. However, when an unbound trace is contained within the preposed constituent, it violates the Proper Binding Condition (PBC), rendering the sentence ungrammatical. The PBC effect has non-trivial implications for the structure of VP/vP. This paper investigates VP/vP preposing across diverse categories of MNCs in Korean to illuminate their structural characteristics. MNCs occur in various environments, broadly classified into Major Subject constructions and Nominative Object constructions (Kuno 1973). Previous literature classifies the two types of MNCs into several sub-types. An important question is concerned with the structure of the various MNCs. This paper explores whether previous analyses can adequately explain the (im)possibility of VP/vP preposing within each sub-type of MNCs. We show that the (im)possibility of VP/vP preposing in MNCs results from their unique structure, in combination with the PBC effect and many other syntactic principles.

Keywords: VP/vP preposing; proper binding condition; multiple nominative construction; major subject construction; nominative object construction

References

Ahn, H. -D. (1991). Light verbs, VP movement, negation and clausal architecture in Korean and English. Doctoral dissertation, University of Wisconsin, Madison.

Ahn, H. -D., & Cho, S. (2009). Non-case-marked wh-phrases and left dislocation. In K. Grohmann and P. Panagiotidis (Eds.), Selected papers from the 2006 Cyprus syntaxfest, 29-62. Cambridge Scholars Publishing.

Ahn, H. -D., & Cho, S. (2020). A pronoun analysis of null arguments in Korean. Language Research 56(2), 183-223.

Ahn, H. -D., & Cho, S. (2023). Notes on VP preposing in multiple accusative constructions. Studies in Generative Grammar, 33, 177-199.

Bae, S. Y. (2022). Two different types of verb phrase fronting constructions in Korean. Linguistic Research, 58, 119-140.

Brunson, B. (1992). Thematic discontinuity. Doctoral dissertation, University of Toronto.

Cho, J. (1994). Multiple case constructions in Korean. MA thesis, University of Toronto.

Cho, S. -Y. (1999). The syntactic structure of some double nominative constructions in Korean. Linguistics, 7, 335-384.

Cho, Y. (2011). Multiple nominative construction in Korean and its second language acquisition by adult English speakers. Doctoral dissertation, University of Southern California.

10.

Choe, H. (1988). Restructuring parameters and complex predicates. Doctoral dissertation, MIT.

11.

Chomsky, N. (1986). Barriers. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

12.

Fiengo, R. (1977). On trace theory. Linguistic Inquiry, 8, 35-61.

13.

Freeze, R. (1992). Existentials and other locatives. Language, 68, 553-595.

14.

Gramshaw, J. (1990). Argument structure. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

15.

Harley, H. (2002). Possession and the double object construction. Yearbook of Linguistic Variation, 2, 373-395.

16.

Heim, I., & Kratzer, A. (1998). Semantics in generative grammar (Blackwell Textbooks in Linguistics). Blackwell.

17.

Hong, K-S. (1990). Subject-to-object raising in Korean. In Grammatical relations: Cross-theoretical perspective, 215-225. Center for Study of Linguistics and Information. Stanford.

18.

Hong, K.-S. (1997). Yenge-wa kwuke-uy insang kwumwnun pikyo pwunsek (subject-to-object raising constructions in English and Korean). Language Research, 33, 409-434.

19.

Im, H.-B. (1972). Topicalization in Korean. Korean studies 28, Seoul National University.

20.

Im, C. (2002). A minimalist approach to Korean multiple subjects: A strong derivation's view, The Linguistic Association of Korea Journal, 10, 57-76.

21.

Jackendoff, R. (1972). Semantic structures. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

22.

Jo, J.-M. (2013). Predicate contrastive topic constructions: Implications for morpho-syntax in Korean and copy theory of movement. Lingua, 131-80-111.

23.

Jung, Y.-J. (2001). Multiple case marking and its PF interpretation. Korean Journal of Linguistics, 26, 239-268.

24.

Kang, Y.-S. (1986). Korean syntax and universal grammar. Doctoral dissertation, Harvard University.

25.

Kim, D., & Kim, Y.-H. (2002). Multiple spell-out and multiple subjects/objects in Korean (in Korean). Studies in Generative Grammar, 12, 3-45.

26.

Kim, S.-W. (2001). Verb raising and multiple subject constructions. Studies in Generative Grammar, 11, 69-95.

27.

Kim, Y.-H. (2006). A case for ellipsis in Korean: The non-movement multiple object construction. Studies in Generative Grammar, 16, 707-742.

28.

Kim, Y. and Larson, R. (1989). Scope interpretation and the syntax of psyche-verbs. Linguistic Inquiry, 20, 681-688.

29.

Ko, H. (2014). Edges in syntax: Scrambling and cyclic linearization. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

30.

Kuno, S. (1973). The structure of the Japanese language. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

31.

Langacker, R. W. (2009). Investigations in cognitive grammar. Berlin & New York: Mouton De Gruyter.

32.

Lasnik, H., & Saito, M. (1984). On the nature of proper government. Linguistic Inquiry, 15, 235-289.

33.

Lee, H. (2008). Criterial effects and multiple nominative constructions. Studies in Generative Grammar, 18, 477-508.

34.

Lee, I. -H. (1987). Double subject constructions in GPSG. Harvard Studies in Korean Linguistics, 2, 287-296.

35.

Lee, J. -S. (1995). A study on predicate clefting. Studies in Generative Grammar, 5, 531-584.

36.

Li, C., & Tompson, S. (1986). Subject and topic. In C. Li, (Ed.). Subject and topic: A new typology of language. New York: Academic Press.

37.

Lim, D. (1997). Icwung cwuemwunuy thongsa kwuco (syntactic structure of double subject constructions). Korean Culture, 19, 31-66.

38.

Marantz, A. (1991). Case and licensing. Eastern States Conference, 8, 234-253.

39.

Moon, G. -S. (2000). The predication operation and multiple subject constructions in Korean: Focusing on inalienable possessive constructions. Studies in Generative Grammar, 10, 239-263.

40.

Nunes, J. (2004). Linearization of chains and sideward movement. Linguistic Inquiry Monograph. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

41.

O'Grady, W. (1991). Case and categories in Korean. John Benjamins.

42.

Park, B.-S. (1982). The double subject constructions revisited. In linguistic society of Korea, (Ed). Linguistics in the land of the morning calm. Hanshin Publishing Company.

43.

Park, C., & Kim, J.-B. (2022). Nominative objects in Korean. Linguistics 60, 1487-1537.

44.

Park, J. (2009). Decomposing iss in the dative-nominative construction in Korean. Korean Journal of Linguistics, 32, 553-582.

45.

Rizzi, L. (1997) The fine structure of the left periphery. In L. Haegeman, (Ed.). Elements of grammar: A handbook of generative syntax. Dordrecht: Kluwer. 281-337.

46.

Saito, M. (2003). A derivational approach to the interpretation of scrambling chains. Lingua, 113, 481-518.

47.

Saito, M. (2021). Two notes on copy formation. Nanzan Linguistics, 17, 157-178.

48.

Saito, M. (2022). Two notes on the unification of NP-movement and control by Form Copy. Paper presented at GLOW in Asia XVIII.

49.

Schütze, C. 1997. INFL in child and adult language: Agreement, case and licensing. Doctoral dissertation, MIT.

50.

Shibatani, M. (1999). Dative subject constructions twenty-two years later. Studies in the Linguistic Sciences, 29, 45-76. Forum lectures from the 1999 linguistic Institute.

51.

Sohn, H.-M. (1981). Multiple topic constructions in Korean. Hangeul, 174, 669-686.

52.

Stark, E. (2022). Hanging topics and frames in the Romance languages: Syntax, discourse, diachrony. In Oxford research encyclopedia of linguistics. Oxford: Oxford University Press, online.

53.

Suh, J.-.S. (1996). Hyenday hankwuke mwunpepuy kaykwan [Modern Korean Grammar]. Hankuk Publishing Company.

54.

Takita, K. (2010). Cyclic linearization and constraints on movement and ellipsis. Doctoral dissertation. Nanzan University, Nagoya, Japan.

55.

Ura, H. (1996). Multiple feature checking: A theory of grammatical function splitting. Doctoral dissertation. MIT.

56.

Ura, H. (1999). Checking theory and dative subject constructions in Japanese and Korean. Journal of East Asian Linguistics, 8, 223-254.

57.

Vermeulen, R. (2005). Possessive adjunct multiple nominative constructions in Japanese. Lingua, 115, 1329-1363.

58.

Yang, I. -S. (1972). Korean syntax: Case markers, delimiters, complementation and relativization. Doctoral dissertation, University of Hawaii.

59.

Yoon, J. H.-S. (1987). Some queries concerning the syntax of multiple nominative constructions in Korean. Harvard Studies in Korean Linguistics, 2, 138-162.

60.

Yoon, J. H. -S. (1990). Theta theory and the grammar of inalienable possession constructions in Korean. NELS, 20, 502-516.

61.

Yoon, J. H. -S. (2006). The distribution of subject properties in multiple subject constructions. Proceedings of Seoul International Conference of Linguistics, 21-35.

62.

Yoon, J. H. -S. (2007). Raising of major arguments in Korean and Japanese. Natural Language and Linguistic Theory, 25, 615-653.

63.

Yoon, J. H. -S. (2009). The distribution of subject properties in multiple subject constructions. Japanese-Korean Linguistics, 16, CSLI Publications.

64.

Yoon, J. H. -S. (2015). Double nominative and double accusative constructions. In L. Brown, & J. Yeon (Ed.), The handbook of Korean linguistics. 79-97. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

65.

Yoon, J. -Y. (1989). On the multiple 'ka and "lul' constructions in Korean. Harvard Studies in Korean Linguistics, 3, 383-394.

66.

Youn, C. (1990). A relational analysis of Korean multiple nominative constructions. Doctoral dissertation, State University of New York, Buffalo.