Invisible constituents? Parentheticals as b-merged adverbial phrases
-
Mark de Vries
Abstract
Parentheses are included in their host sentences, but at the same time they show unintegrated behavior. This article studies this Janus-faced phenomenon from a syntactic point of view. There are two main parts. The first introduces the term Invisibility for syntactic independence based on the absence of c‑command relations, which is a particular way of defining structural independence. A number of tests indicate that parentheses and other paratactic constituents are indeed invisible, but specific attention is paid to the various difficulties that show up in establishing such a conclusion. The examples are drawn primarily from Dutch and English. The second part develops a structural proposal for parentheses within a Minimalist type of grammar which takes into account their contradictory properties. Parentheses, it is argued, are adverbial phrases attached by means of a nonsubordinative inclusion relation that can be used in other paratactic configurations as well, in particular appositional constructions.
Abstract
Parentheses are included in their host sentences, but at the same time they show unintegrated behavior. This article studies this Janus-faced phenomenon from a syntactic point of view. There are two main parts. The first introduces the term Invisibility for syntactic independence based on the absence of c‑command relations, which is a particular way of defining structural independence. A number of tests indicate that parentheses and other paratactic constituents are indeed invisible, but specific attention is paid to the various difficulties that show up in establishing such a conclusion. The examples are drawn primarily from Dutch and English. The second part develops a structural proposal for parentheses within a Minimalist type of grammar which takes into account their contradictory properties. Parentheses, it is argued, are adverbial phrases attached by means of a nonsubordinative inclusion relation that can be used in other paratactic configurations as well, in particular appositional constructions.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Preface vii
- List of contributors ix
- Parentheticals 1
-
SYNTAX AND ITS INTERFACES
- Spoken parenthetical clauses in English 25
- Integrated parentheticals and assertional complements 53
- The complement of reduced parentheticals 89
- Long extraction or parenthetical insertion? Evidence from judgement studies 121
- And -parenthetical clauses 145
- On the syntax and semantics of appositive relative clauses 173
- Invisible constituents? Parentheticals as b-merged adverbial phrases 203
-
SEMANTICS/PRAGMATICS AND THEIR INTERFACES
- Reduced parenthetical clauses in Romance languages: A pragmatic typology 237
-
PROSODY AND ITS INTERFACES
- The relation between syntactic and prosodic parenthesis 261
- Quieter, faster, lower, and set off by pauses? Reflections on prosodic aspects of parenthetical constructions in modern German 285
- Name Index 309
- Subject Index 311
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Preface vii
- List of contributors ix
- Parentheticals 1
-
SYNTAX AND ITS INTERFACES
- Spoken parenthetical clauses in English 25
- Integrated parentheticals and assertional complements 53
- The complement of reduced parentheticals 89
- Long extraction or parenthetical insertion? Evidence from judgement studies 121
- And -parenthetical clauses 145
- On the syntax and semantics of appositive relative clauses 173
- Invisible constituents? Parentheticals as b-merged adverbial phrases 203
-
SEMANTICS/PRAGMATICS AND THEIR INTERFACES
- Reduced parenthetical clauses in Romance languages: A pragmatic typology 237
-
PROSODY AND ITS INTERFACES
- The relation between syntactic and prosodic parenthesis 261
- Quieter, faster, lower, and set off by pauses? Reflections on prosodic aspects of parenthetical constructions in modern German 285
- Name Index 309
- Subject Index 311
