An ergative analysis of French valency alternations
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Edit Doron✝
Abstract
The French anticausative is attested in two separate constructions: one focuses on the result (Res-AC), e.g. Le rameau s’est flétri; the second focuses on the process (Proc-AC) – Le rameau a flétri, both translated to English as ‘The branch withered’. The paper proposes to explain the differences between the two constructions as follows. Res-AC results from the merge of se under non-active Voice, coupled with the absence of a vP projection, whereas Proc-AC results from the use of active Voice with a v projection lacking a specifier. Anticausative derivations from typologically distinct languages, Hebrew and Neo-Aramaic (an ergative language) provide support for the analysis. In these languages, the merge of v is overtly detectable, whether or not v has a specifier. In Hebrew this is indicated by a dative reflexive clitic, and in Neo-Aramaic, by ergative agreement. The analysis proposed for French extends naturally to these languages, providing support for it.
Abstract
The French anticausative is attested in two separate constructions: one focuses on the result (Res-AC), e.g. Le rameau s’est flétri; the second focuses on the process (Proc-AC) – Le rameau a flétri, both translated to English as ‘The branch withered’. The paper proposes to explain the differences between the two constructions as follows. Res-AC results from the merge of se under non-active Voice, coupled with the absence of a vP projection, whereas Proc-AC results from the use of active Voice with a v projection lacking a specifier. Anticausative derivations from typologically distinct languages, Hebrew and Neo-Aramaic (an ergative language) provide support for the analysis. In these languages, the merge of v is overtly detectable, whether or not v has a specifier. In Hebrew this is indicated by a dative reflexive clitic, and in Neo-Aramaic, by ergative agreement. The analysis proposed for French extends naturally to these languages, providing support for it.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents vii
- Foreword and acknowledgements ix
- Editor’s introduction xi
- Theory and practice in Romance linguistics today 1
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Part I. Morphophonology
- On the origins of /ɨ/ in Romanian 17
- An acoustic investigation of nasal place neutralization in Spanish 33
- An acoustic study of rhotics in onset clusters in La Rioja 49
- Mid front vowel lowering before rhotics in Ibero-Romance 63
- Plural formation in Galician 79
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Part II. Syntax
- On bare subject relative clauses in Old French 101
- Directed motion in Medieval French 117
- An ergative analysis of French valency alternations 137
- Peninsular Spanish pre-nominal possessives in ellipsis contexts 155
- On the nature of nominal features 177
- On the nature of bare nouns in Afro-Bolivian Spanish 191
- Negative imperatives in Portuguese and other Romance languages 205
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Part III. Semantic interfaces
- Another look at Italian generic sentences 223
- The agreement of collective DPS in Romanian 239
- A multidominance account for conjoined questions in Romanian 257
- The Romanian verbal cluster and the theory of head movement 271
- New challenges in the area of semantic dependencies 287
- Polarity particles in English and Romanian 303
- Index 329
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents vii
- Foreword and acknowledgements ix
- Editor’s introduction xi
- Theory and practice in Romance linguistics today 1
-
Part I. Morphophonology
- On the origins of /ɨ/ in Romanian 17
- An acoustic investigation of nasal place neutralization in Spanish 33
- An acoustic study of rhotics in onset clusters in La Rioja 49
- Mid front vowel lowering before rhotics in Ibero-Romance 63
- Plural formation in Galician 79
-
Part II. Syntax
- On bare subject relative clauses in Old French 101
- Directed motion in Medieval French 117
- An ergative analysis of French valency alternations 137
- Peninsular Spanish pre-nominal possessives in ellipsis contexts 155
- On the nature of nominal features 177
- On the nature of bare nouns in Afro-Bolivian Spanish 191
- Negative imperatives in Portuguese and other Romance languages 205
-
Part III. Semantic interfaces
- Another look at Italian generic sentences 223
- The agreement of collective DPS in Romanian 239
- A multidominance account for conjoined questions in Romanian 257
- The Romanian verbal cluster and the theory of head movement 271
- New challenges in the area of semantic dependencies 287
- Polarity particles in English and Romanian 303
- Index 329
