Reasoning and Argumentation

2.1 Simple Sentences 

A. What DP is the antecedent of himself in (5)? Explain your reasoning. 

(5) The boy wrote a letter after embarrassing himself.

 

B. Why are the following sentences unacceptable? Explain your reasoning for each.

(6) *[The boy] i said that PRO i likes milkshakes.

(7) *[The boy] i said that [the girl] g wants to PRO i drink milkshakes. 

(8) *Julia j bought a coffee after feeding her j . 

 

 

2.2 English Raising v. Control 

The verb attempt can take DP complements and infinitival CP complements:

(9) The students attempted the assignment.

(10) The students attempted to complete the assignment.

Argue for one of the following hypotheses about attempt:

Hypothesis A1: attempt is a raising verb.

Hypothesis B1: attempt is a control verb.

A. Use the expletive subject test to show whether attempt is a raising or control verb.

(i) Come up with your own acceptable sentence using attempt.

(ii) Apply the expletive subject test to that sentence, give the resulting sentence.

(iii) State whether the new sentence is acceptable or not.

(iv) If attempt were a raising verb, would we predict that the sentence should be good? Explain why (2-3 sentences)

(v) If attempt were a control verb, would we predict that the sentence should be good? Explain why (2-3 sentences) 

(vi) State which hypothesis your test supports.

 

B. Use the idiom test to show whether attempt is a raising or control verb.

(i) Use the idiom: The cat is out of the bag.

(ii) Use the idiom above to test whether attempt is a raising/control verb. Show the resulting sentence

(iii) If attempt were a raising verb, what readings should be possible with for the sentence you came up with above? Explain why (2-3 sentences) 

(iv) If attempt were a control verb, what readings should be possible with for the sentence you came up with above? Explain why (2-3 sentences) 

(v) State which hypothesis your test supports.

 

 

 

2.3 Kannada Ditransitives 

Looking at data from Kannada, a Dravidian language primarily spoken in southwest India. Kannada is an SOV language. Here are two examples sentences using the ditransitive verb kalis, which is similar to the English verb ‘to send’. The words are the same, but you’ll notice that the word order is different.

(11) a.

Amit Mona-ge       pustaka-vannu        kalis-iKoTT-a.

Amit Mona-DAT     book-ACC                send-BEN-3 SM

‘Amit sent a/the book to Mona.’

b. Amit pustaka-vannu Mona-ge              kalis-iKoTT-a.

Amit book-ACC             Mona-DAT           send-BEN-3 SM

‘Amit sent a/the book to Mona.’

In this sentence, the verb takes three arguments: (i) the agent Amit (a name), (ii) the goal Mona (another name), and (iii) the theme pustaka (‘book’). The -ge that is attached to Amit is a Dative Case marker (in this case it’s similar to the English preposition ‘to’). The suffixc -vannu is the marker for Accusative Case. There are two suffixes on the verb: the first is -iKoTT, which indicates a benefactive reading (glossed BEN). The exact meaning of the morpheme doesn’t matter. The second suffix -a marks subject-verb agreement.

Your job in this section is to determine whether the goal argument in the ditransitive c-commands the theme or vice versa. DO NOT try to diagram the sentence. You need to argue for one of the two hypotheses below based on the data provided alone.

Hypothesis A2: kalis’s GOAL argument c-commands the THEME. Hypothesis B2: kalis’s THEME c-commands the GOAL.

Use the data in (12) to answer the questions below.

A. Which hypothesis is correct? A or B? 

B. Explain your reasoning. Be sure to explain the reasoning behind how you came to your conclusion. 

(12) a.
Amit x Mona m -a           pustaka-vannu aval ∗m/k -ge       kalis-iKoTT-a. 

Amit Mona-GEN              book-ACC         3f.pronoun-DAT  send-BEN-3 SM

‘Amit sent Mona’s book to her.’

b. Amit x aval ∗m/k -ge        Mona m -a      pustaka-vannu kalis-iKoTT-a.

    Amit     3f.pronoun-DAT    Mona-GEN book-ACC            send-BEN-3 SM

‘Amit sent Mona’s book to her.’

If a DP receives a THEME theta role in a passive, what position does it get that theta role in?

Group of answer choices Complement of P SpecTP Complement of V SpecVoiceP          

Assume that it is an expletive in the sentence below. What DP is causing the violation that makes the sentence ungrammatical?

• *It was seen the man next to the highway.

Group of answer choices it the highway the man            

In the sentence below, what head does the DP Junior get its theta role from and what theta role does the DP get?

• Junior appears to lift weights.

Group of answer choices Main Clause V, Theme Embedded SpecVoiceP, Agent Embedded V, Theme Main clause SpecVoiceP, Agent            

In the sentence below, what phrase/head gets the THEME theta role from petted?

• The dog that the kids petted rolled on its belly.

Group of answer choices the kids OP that The dog              

In the sentence below, what theta role(s) does the DP [the professor ... ] get?

• The students greeted the professor who graded the papers.

Group of answer choices THEME THEME & AGENT AGENT            

In the sentence below, how many traces of [which book] are there in the tree?

• Which book did Waffa think that Curt said that the kids should read?

Group of answer choices 1 4 3 2              

In what positions do we find the trace(s) of [which book] in the tree for the sentence below?

• Which book did Waffa think that Curt said that the kids should read?

In the ungrammatical sentence below, does the DP Ashfak c-command the reflexive himself?

• *Ashfakk said that Mary hurt himselfk.

Group of answer choices True False             In the tree corresponding to the sentence below, how many traces are there of the DP [the reindeer] ?

• The reindeer attempted to escape from the zoo.

Group of answer choices 1 0 2              

Consider the sentence below. On the grammatical reading of this sentence, what phrase is the antecedent of the reflexive?

• The man said that the guy next to the tall dude hurt himself.

Group of answer choices the man the tall dude the guy next to the tall dude              

In the sentence below, what DP gets the AGENT theta role from the Voiceactive head immediately above the VP containing "crush"?

• Marjan said that Bob is likely to crush the ice.

Group of answer choices Bob Marjan PRO the ice                

Explain why the sentence below is not grammatical on the reading indicated. Be explicit about what Principle is violated and explain how/why it is violated.

• *The girlg bought a book for herg.

Provide two sentences that illustrate that "each other" is an anaphor, subject to Principle A. One sentence should be grammatical (Principle A should be satisfied), the other should be ungrammatical (Principle A should be violated).

In the sentence below, which phrase the antecedent for the reflexive?

(18) The womanw said that shew nominated herselfw.

Group of answer choices The woman She            

Consider the word zibun in the sentence below.

(A)      Satoshiq-ga        zibunq-o         seme-ta.

             Satoshi-NOM   "zibun"-ACC   blame-PAST

              "Satoshi blamed zibun."

• "Satoshi" is a name.
• State whether the other DP "zibun" an R-expression, pronoun, or reflexive.
• Explain your reasoning in 1-2 sentences.

Given your answer above, would you predict that the following sentence is grammatical or ungrammatical?

(B)      Zibunq-ga      Satoshiq-o       seme-ta.

             Zibun-NOM  Satoshi-ACC  blame-PAST
             "Zibun blamed Satoshi."

• Explain why the sentence should be grammatical or ungrammatical. Your answer should reference Principles/Constraints.

Explain why (21) is unacceptable, but (22) is acceptable.

(C) *Hei suspects that Davei is at home.

(D) Hisi boss suspects that Davei is at home.

• What Principle is violated in (C)? How?
• Why is that principle NOT violated in (D)

Assume that it is an expletive in the sentence below. Why is the sentence ungrammatical? What Principle is violated?

• *It was seen the man next to the highway.

Group of answer choices EPP Principle A Case Filter Theta Criterion

Norwegian Binding 

Norwegian is an SVO language that is syntactically similar to English. Unlike English, Norwegian has two possessive determiners that can be used with male antecedents: hans and sin. (English only has one: his.) In this task you’ll first have to figure out whether hans is an anaphor or a pronoun. Then you’ll have to figure out whether sin is an anaphor or pronoun. In order to show that something is a pronoun or an anaphor, you’ll have to consider whether it follows Principle A or Principle B of the Binding Theory. Remember: your answers should discuss the Norwegian examples, NOT their English translations!

The Possessor Hans

Let’s start with Hans. Here are the two hypotheses under consideration:

Hypothesis A1: Possessive hans is an anaphor. 

Hypothesis B1: Possessive hans is a pronoun.

The data below illustrate how hans can - and cannot - be used. NOTE: I have glossed hans as POSS. HANS. In the English translations, hans is translated as ‘his’. Do NOT base your conclusions about what the sentences mean on the English translations! Base your conclusions on the co-indexation in the examples. Pay attention to which co-indexations are NOT acceptable!

(15) Dave(i) sa     at Frank k spiste hans (i)        mat.

Dave said            that Frank ate         POSS . HANS food

‘Dave said that Frank ate his food.’

(16) Dave(i) sa at hans(i)              mat var kald.

Dave said        that                     POSS . HANS food was cold

‘Dave said that his food was cold.’

(17) Daves(i) far k spiste hans(i)               mat.

Dave’s father          ate        POSS . HANS food

‘Dave’s dad ate his food.’

(18) Dave(i) kom inn. Hans(i)                  mat var kald.

Dave came in              POSS . HANS       food was cold

‘Dave came in. His food was cold.’

Now answer these questions. Again, make your answers complete, precise, and as concise as possible.

A. According to Hypothesis A1 does the antecedent of hans have to be local to its antecedent (i.e. within the same clause)? Why or why not? 

B. According to Hypothesis A1 does the antecedent of hans have to c-command hans? 

C. According to Hypothesis B1 does the antecedent of hans have to be local to its antecedent (i.e. within the same clause)? Why or why not? 

D. According to Hypothesis B1 does the antecedent of hans have to c-command hans? 

E. Can hans corefer with a non-local antecedent? Yes or no? 

- Identify which sentence(s) support(s) your conclusion. (Give the sentence number(s))

- Explain how the sentence(s) support(s) your conclusion.

F. Can hans corefer with a DP does not c-command it? Yes or no? 

- Identify which sentence(s) support(s) your conclusion. (Give the sentence number(s))

- Explain how the sentence(s) support(s) your conclusion.

G. Based on your answers above, state which hypothesis you think is correct. 

Here are the two new hypotheses under consideration:

Hypothesis A2: Possessive sin is a pronoun. 

Hypothesis B2: Possessive sin is an anaphor.

The data below illustrate how sin can - and cannot - be used. Once again sin is translated as ‘his’ in the English translations, but this should not be taken to mean that sin and his are the same. Do NOT base your conclusions about what the sentences mean on the English translations! Base your conclusions on the coindexation in the examples. Pay attention to which co-indexations are NOT acceptable!

(19) Dave(i) sa at Frank(k) spiste sin(k)        mat.

Dave said that Frank           ate POSS.SIN     food

‘Dave said that Frank ate his food.’

(20) *Dave(i) sa at Frank(k) spiste sin(i)                   mat.

Dave said that Frank              ate POSS . SIN            food

‘Dave said that Frank ate his food.’

(21) *Dave(i) sa at sin(i)              mat var kald.

Dave said that           POSS . SIN food was cold.

‘Dave said that his food was cold.’

(22) Daves(i) far(k)        spiste sin( k/∗i)           mat.

Dave’s father                  ate POSS . SIN           food

‘Dave’s dad ate his food.’

labelno4

Now answer these questions. Again, make your answers complete, precise, and as concise as possible.

A. According to Hypothesis A2 does the antecedent of sin have to be local (i.e. within the same clause)? Why or why not? 

B. According to Hypothesis A2 does the antecedent of sin have to c-command sin? Why or why not? 

C. According to Hypothesis B2 does the antecedent of sin have to be local (i.e. within the same clause)? Why or why not? 

D. According to Hypothesis B2 does the antecedent of sin have to c-command sin? Why or why not? 

E. Can sin corefer with a non-local antecedent? Yes or no? 

- Identify which sentence(s) support(s) your conclusion. (Give the sentence number(s))

- Explain how the sentence(s) support(s) your conclusion.

F. Can sin corefer with a DP does not c-command it? Yes or no? 

- Identify which sentence(s) support(s) your conclusion. (Give the sentence number(s))

- Explain how the sentence(s) support(s) your conclusion.

G. Based on your answers above, state which hypothesis you think is correct.

Korean is a Subject-Object-Verb language (so the verb comes at the end of the clause). Morphological case is marked using suffixes on DPs: DPs are marked with different suffixes depending on whether they get nominative, accusative, etc. These suffixes are glossed below as NOM and ACC. With that information, consider the following sentences.

(7) Emma-ka kyehoyk-ul helak-ha-yessta.

Emma-NOM plans-ACC approve-HA-past

’Emma approved the plans.’

(8) Kyehoyk-i helak-toy-yessta.

plans-NOM approve-TOY-past

’The plans were approved.’

Answer the following questions:

A. Which sentence is an active sentence? How can you tell? 

- ’Because I read the English translation’ is not an acceptable answer.

B. Which is a passive sentence? How can you tell? 

- ’Because I read the English translation’ is not an acceptable answer.

C. In (7) there is a morpheme -ha- that comes between the verb helak and the past tense morpheme yessta. In (8) the morpheme -toy- occurs in this position.

(i) What information does the morpheme -ha- contribute? 

(ii) What information does the morpheme -toy- contribute? 

D. If you had to choose which syntactic phrase you thought -ha- and -toy- might be the head of from the options below, which would it be?  

a. VP

b. VoiceP

c. TP

d. AuxP

E. Explain why you chose the phrase you did. 2-3 sentences. 

F. Is Case assignment in the Korean passive similar to Case assignment in the English passive? Explain why you say yes or no.