Topic prominence and null subjects
-
Marcello Modesto
Abstract
This chapter presents data from Brazilian Portuguese, Finnish and Chinese
which show that, at least in these languages, phonologically null subjects may be
licensed and identified without the participation of verbal agreement. The analysis
proposed treats those cases of null subjects as elided topics (PF-deleted elements)
and so it relates the presence of null subjects in these languages to a parameter
involving topic prominence. Some implications of the analysis are then discussed,
based on Brazilian Portuguese data.
Abstract
This chapter presents data from Brazilian Portuguese, Finnish and Chinese
which show that, at least in these languages, phonologically null subjects may be
licensed and identified without the participation of verbal agreement. The analysis
proposed treats those cases of null subjects as elided topics (PF-deleted elements)
and so it relates the presence of null subjects in these languages to a parameter
involving topic prominence. Some implications of the analysis are then discussed,
based on Brazilian Portuguese data.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Preface & Acknowledgements vii
- Introduction 1
-
I. The locus of (parametric) variation
- Parametric versus functional explanations of syntactic universals 75
- Three fundamental issues in parametric linguistics 109
- On the syntactic flexibility of formal features 143
- Expletives, datives, and the tension between morphology and syntax 175
- Mapping a parochial lexicon onto a universal semantics 219
- Aspect matters in the middle 247
-
II. A classic parameter revisited: the null-subject parameter
- The null subject parameter and correlating properties: The case of Creole languages 271
- The Case-F valuation parameter in Romance 295
- Silent arguments without pro : The case of Basque 311
- Case morphology and radical pro -drop 331
-
III. Parametric clustering
- The macroparameter in a microparametric world 351
- Topic prominence and null subjects 375
- Non-configurationality: Free word order and argument drop in Turkish 411
- Diachronic stability and feature interpretability 441
-
III. The acquisition of parameters
- Can children tell us anything we did not know about parameter clustering? 459
- Parameter setting and input reduction 483
- Index 517
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Preface & Acknowledgements vii
- Introduction 1
-
I. The locus of (parametric) variation
- Parametric versus functional explanations of syntactic universals 75
- Three fundamental issues in parametric linguistics 109
- On the syntactic flexibility of formal features 143
- Expletives, datives, and the tension between morphology and syntax 175
- Mapping a parochial lexicon onto a universal semantics 219
- Aspect matters in the middle 247
-
II. A classic parameter revisited: the null-subject parameter
- The null subject parameter and correlating properties: The case of Creole languages 271
- The Case-F valuation parameter in Romance 295
- Silent arguments without pro : The case of Basque 311
- Case morphology and radical pro -drop 331
-
III. Parametric clustering
- The macroparameter in a microparametric world 351
- Topic prominence and null subjects 375
- Non-configurationality: Free word order and argument drop in Turkish 411
- Diachronic stability and feature interpretability 441
-
III. The acquisition of parameters
- Can children tell us anything we did not know about parameter clustering? 459
- Parameter setting and input reduction 483
- Index 517
