Ling 461: Assignment 8

NB: This homework is optional, in the sense that your homework grade will be based on your 7 best homework scores. If you are not entirely happy with your homework grades so far, I strongly recommend that you do this one, too! Also, the final will cover chapter 6, and this homework gives you a chance to work on things from chapter 6.

• Ch 6, Exercise I: Draw trees for the italicized constituents according to the S' framework presented in the chapter. You may abbreviate the internal structure of NPs with triangles. (No need to provide evidence for this one, just trees.)

• Section 6.6 claims that all categories can in general be realized as empty categories ('e'), and acknowledges that in particular contexts the empty category option is not in fact grammatical. Choose three categories (e.g., S, D, N'), and provide for each:
  • An example sentence where the category appears to be empty, along with a sentence or two explaining why you think the category is there, even though it's empty.
  • An example sentence where the category can't be empty (i.e., a sentence that becomes ungrammatical if the words realizing the constituent in question are taken away).

  NB: Your examples should be original, not copied from the book.

• Section 6.7 distinguishes two types of verbs among those that take infinitival clausal complements: The first type (also called 'raising verbs') takes an Exceptional Clause. Exceptional Clauses are Ss. The second type (also called 'control verbs') takes two complements: an NP and an S' with an empty subject (called PRO).

  Section 6.7 also gives several tests for distinguishing between them:

  • Subject Expressions can appear as the subject (i.e., the NP after the verb) with raising verbs, but not with control verbs. (105-107),(110)
  • Verbal adjuncts can appear after the V-NP in control verbs, but not raising verbs. (116)
  • The V-NP sequence can prepose with control verbs, but not raising verbs (118-119).
  • With raising verbs, you can make the verb in the complement clause passive without changing the meaning. With control verbs, doing so changes the meaning. (122-123).

  Classify the following verbs as either raising or control, providing two pieces of evidence (i.e., applying two of the tests above) for each:

  • I can't force you to help me.
  • The courts may declare Syntax to be unconstitutional.
  • Nobody will tell you to work harder.
  • Why don't you get Mary to cook the food?

• Ch 6, Exercise VIII: From among the sentences in (1)-(9), find one example each of a constituent that is an S, an S', and an SC. Provide a piece of evidence for each one supporting your analysis.