Keywords - L322.5 S99

Intermediate Syntax

Week 5: Active Voice and Raising to SP

The active

• In the passive the theta hierarchy is overridden
• the theme is raised to the external argument (the subject)

(19)     Liberace played the piano.

(20)     The piano was played by Liberace.

• Tense is the first operator, relevance the 2nd, and aspect the 3rd we have seen
• Voice is the fourth operator.
• Next tentative step:
• In argument structure, the argument of voice is V-proposition.
• [VOICE [±Passive]].
• Argument of voice is an eventuality (V, A, P)
• [TENSE [+Past] <[REL [-Perf] <[ASP [-Prog] < [VOICE [+Passive] < PLAY <theme: PIANO> <agent: LIBERACE> ] > ] > ] > ] > ].

Raising

• Prominence
  • targets either the internal argument or the external argument
  • PT (Phrase-Target) is the feature of the target
  • It needs a subject as a host
  • The features of the targeted NP are copied to the subject position.
• Subject-Verb agreement
  • T is marked for [ Pers] and [ Pl].
  • These features must be filled through government link agreement.

Course outline.322

Keywords