Download or read book Infinitival Syntax written by Tanja Schmid and published by John Benjamins Publishing. This book was released on 2005-01-01 with total page 280 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: LC number: 2005047822
Download or read book English Syntax written by Andrew Radford and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2004-04-15 with total page 400 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This textbook--an abridged version of Radford's Minimalist Syntax and the Syntax of English--provides a concise and accessible introduction to current syntactic theory, drawing on the key concepts of Chomsky's Minimalist Programme. Assuming little or no prior grammatical knowledge, it takes students through a range of topics in English syntax, beginning at an elementary level and progressing in stages towards more advanced material. There is an extensive glossary, and each chapter contains a workbook section with 'helpful hints', exercises and model answers, suitable for both class discussion and self-study.
Download or read book Infinitival Syntax written by Tanja Schmid and published by John Benjamins Publishing. This book was released on 2005-06-22 with total page 269 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This monograph offers a new analysis of West Germanic ‘Infinitivus Pro Participio’ (IPP) constructions, within the framework of Optimality Theory. IPP constructions have long been problematic for syntactic theory, because a bare infinitive is preferred over the expected past participle. The book shows how the substitution of the past participle by the infinitive in IPP constructions can be captured straightforwardly if constraints are assumed to be violable. The basic idea is that IPP constructions are exceptional because they violate otherwise valid rules of the language. Thus, IPP is a ‘last resort’ or repair strategy, which is only visible in cases in which the past participle would be ‘even worse’ . Furthermore, as the choice of Optimality Theory naturally leads to a crosslinguistic account, the book systematically examines and compares infinitival constructions from seven West Germanic languages including Afrikaans, Dutch, German, West Flemish, and three Swiss German dialects.
Download or read book Infinitives at the Syntax Semantics Interface written by Lukasz Jedrzejowski and published by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. This book was released on 2017-06-26 with total page 372 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The major aim of this volume is to investigate infinitival structures from a diachronic point of view and, simultaneously, to embed the diachronic findings into the ongoing theoretical discussion on non-finite clauses in general. All contributions subscribe to a dynamic approach to infinitival clauses by investigating their origin, development and loss in miscellaneous patterns and across different languages.
Download or read book Parameters in Old French Syntax Infinitival Complements written by E.H. Pearce and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 1990-02-28 with total page 344 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 1.1. AIMS AND ASSUMPTIONS This book presents an analysis of infinitival complement constructions in Old French (OF) from the perspective of the Government-Binding (GB) framework. It aims, therefore, to establish within the terms of the GB framework just how the OF constructions are to be characterized and in just what sense they can or cannot be compared with the corresponding constructions in other Romance languages. The GB framework is an articulated theory about the structure of language which is based on the view that the aim of research into language is to construct a description of language which accurately reflects its essential nature. Whilst we know that individual languages may appear to be superficially very different, we also know that all languages are capable of expressing complex concepts and that all children acquire mastery of the language or languages to which they are exposed. The task, therefore, is to determine both the properties which languages have in common and the bounds within which they may differ. In the pursuit of these aims, the study of various languages of the Romance family has provided a rich source of material for the develop ment of the descriptive apparatus. Evidence of the contribution supplied by such work is apparent in references to Romance material in Chomsky (1981, 1982), in volumes such as Jaeggli (1982), Rizzi (1982a), Kayne (1984b), Burzio (1986), and in numerous papers devoted to particular constructions in a variety of Romance languages.
Download or read book The Rise of the To Infinitive written by Bettelou Los and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2005-01-20 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book describes the historical emergence and spread of the to-infinitive in English. It shows that to + infinitive emerged from a reanalysis of the preposition to plus a deverbal nominalization, which spread first to purpose clauses, then to other nonfinite environments. The book challenges the traditional reasoning that infinitives must have been nouns in Old English because they inflected for dative case and can follow prepositions. Dr Los shows that as earlyas Old English the to-infinitive was established in most of the environments in which it is found today. She argues that its spread was largely due to competition with subjunctive that-clauses, which it gradually replaced.Later chapters consider Middle English developments. The author provides a measured evaluation of the evidence that to undergoes a period of degrammaticalization. She concludes that the extent to which to gains syntactic freedom in Middle English is due to the fact that speakers began to equate it with the modal verbs and therefore to treat it syntactically as a modal verb.The exposition is clear and does not assume an up-to-date knowledge of generative theory. The book will appeal to the wide spectrum of scholars interested in the transformation of Old to Middle English as well as those studying the processes and causes of syntactic change more generally.
Download or read book Infinitives written by Susanne Wurmbrand and published by Walter de Gruyter. This book was released on 2012-10-24 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Infinitives: Restructuring and Clause Structure offers a detailed study of the clausal architecture of infinitival constructions providing a unified analysis of restructuring, control, modals, and raising. The book critically evaluates previous proposals from both syntactic and semantic perspectives and presents a new analysis incorporating many recent developments in generative linguistic theory. In addition to its theoretical contribution, Infinitives contains a detailed descriptive overview of a range of constructions, primarily from the Germanic languages and will thus not only be of value to generative linguists but will also serve as a general reference source for those interested in the Germanic languages.
Download or read book Infinitives at the Syntax Semantics Interface written by Lukasz Jedrzejowski and published by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. This book was released on 2017-06-26 with total page 372 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The major aim of this volume is to investigate infinitival structures from a diachronic point of view and, simultaneously, to embed the diachronic findings into the ongoing theoretical discussion on non-finite clauses in general. All contributions subscribe to a dynamic approach to infinitival clauses by investigating their origin, development and loss in miscellaneous patterns and across different languages.
Download or read book Infinitival Complement Clauses in English written by Christian Mair and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2009-06-25 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This study, the first in the series Studies in English Language, is concerned with the functional and communicative foundations of English grammar, and takes as its specific focus the study of infinitival complement clauses. Much of the illustrative material is taken from the Survey of English Usage at University College London. The work draws on a large amount of data from spontaneous speech, and provides a close analysis of numerous examples in their authentic discourse context. It is based on the assumption that syntactic structures are closely connected with, and partly determined by, conventions of human discourse and the speaker's or writer's desire to express meaning efficiently. The ample documentation will appeal to those interested in the structure of modern British English. For those interested in syntactic theory and discourse, this is an empirical contribution to the debate on discourse-based approaches to functional syntax.
Download or read book Parameters in Old French Syntax Infinitival Complements written by E.H. Pearce and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 338 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 1.1. AIMS AND ASSUMPTIONS This book presents an analysis of infinitival complement constructions in Old French (OF) from the perspective of the Government-Binding (GB) framework. It aims, therefore, to establish within the terms of the GB framework just how the OF constructions are to be characterized and in just what sense they can or cannot be compared with the corresponding constructions in other Romance languages. The GB framework is an articulated theory about the structure of language which is based on the view that the aim of research into language is to construct a description of language which accurately reflects its essential nature. Whilst we know that individual languages may appear to be superficially very different, we also know that all languages are capable of expressing complex concepts and that all children acquire mastery of the language or languages to which they are exposed. The task, therefore, is to determine both the properties which languages have in common and the bounds within which they may differ. In the pursuit of these aims, the study of various languages of the Romance family has provided a rich source of material for the develop ment of the descriptive apparatus. Evidence of the contribution supplied by such work is apparent in references to Romance material in Chomsky (1981, 1982), in volumes such as Jaeggli (1982), Rizzi (1982a), Kayne (1984b), Burzio (1986), and in numerous papers devoted to particular constructions in a variety of Romance languages.
Download or read book The Syntax of Tenselessness written by Anna-Lena Wiklund and published by Walter de Gruyter. This book was released on 2008-08-22 with total page 239 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Tense/Mood/Aspect-agreeing Infinitivals is an in-depth investigation of the syntax of verb-verb agreement phenomena in Swedish, including pseudocoordinations of the form John started and wrote 'John started writing' and double participles of the form John had been-able written 'John had been able to write'. Providing evidence from facts concerning extraction, locality, selection, and interpretation, the book argues that the relevant construction types all involve surface variants of "infinitives in disguise"; infinitivals that agree with the matrix clause in tense/mood/aspect. Arguments are presented in favour of taking the dependencies underlying the agreement to be instances of Agree between functional heads of the same label, a configuration that yields restructuring/clause-union. The main theoretical contributions of the book are two: (i) Agreement is proportional to functional structure: The possibility of "copying" a particular morphosyntactic form is contingent on the presence of the corresponding functional projection in the agreeing XP. (ii) Size constancy between restructuring/non-restructuring infinitivals: The category selected by a verb may remain constant between restructuring and non-restructuring configurations. It is suggested that an important aspect of restructuring may be alternation between unmarked (negatively specified) features and unvalued varieties of the same features, capturing properties such as "tenselessness", "finitelessness", etc. of restructuring infinitivals. The book is an important contribution to the syntax of infinitival clauses, the syntax of clause-union/restructuring, and more generally to the syntax of agreement phenomena in natural language. In addition, it provides a general reference source for anyone interested in the syntax of Swedish and other Scandinavian languages.
Download or read book Prepositional Infinitives in Romance written by Kim Schulte and published by Peter Lang. This book was released on 2007 with total page 416 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book examines the present-day distribution and diachronic evolution of a set of infinitival structures in Spanish, Portuguese and Romanian, making use of extensive corpus data and investigating how pragmatic factors and usage patterns interact with syntax. After a contrastive account of the patterns of clausal subordination in Latin and Romance, the rise of prepositional infinitives is traced through the documented history of the three languages, revealing astonishing parallels in their development. The analysis of the data shows how cognitive principles such as reanalysis and entrenchment combine with parameters such as relevance and usage frequency to cause syntactic change. Beyond providing a genuine explanation for the observed processes in the Romance languages, this study offers new evidence for the existence of language-independent, cross-linguistically applicable principles and mechanisms in language change.
Download or read book Infinitive Constructions with Specified Subjects written by Guido Mensching and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2000-07-06 with total page 282 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Overt subjects are usually considered as a property of finite clauses. However, most Romance languages permit specified subjects in a broad range of infinitive constructions. Guido Mensching analyzes this phenomenon in stages of French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese and other Romance varieties.
Download or read book Natural Language Syntax written by Peter W. Culicover and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2009-01-29 with total page 509 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book introduces the analysis of natural language within the broader question of how language works - of how people use languages to configure words and morphemes in order to express meanings. Its step-by-step account covers every aspect of syntax and includes exercises and suggestions for further reading throughout.
Download or read book Infinitival Complementation in Old and Middle English written by Bettelou Los and published by . This book was released on 1999 with total page 394 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Infinitival vs Gerundial Complementation with Afraid Accustomed and Prone written by Juho Ruohonen and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2020-11-25 with total page 167 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book explores the concept of complementation in the adjectival domain of English grammar. Alternation between non-finite complements, especially to infinitives and gerundial complements, has been investigated intensively on the basis of large corpora in the last few years. With very few exceptions, however, such work has hitherto been based on univariate analysis methods. Using multivariate analysis, the authors present methodologically innovative case studies examining a large array of explanatory factors potentially impacting complement choice in cases of alternation. This approach yields more precise information on the impact of each factor on complement choice as well as on interactions between different explanatory factors. The book thus presents a methodologically new perspective on the study of the system of non-finite complementation in recent English and variation within that system, and will be relevant to academics and students with an interest in English grammar, predicate complementation, and statistical approaches to language.
Download or read book A Brief History of English Syntax written by Olga Fischer and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2017-06-08 with total page 249 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An accessible, up-to-date account of the major changes in English syntax since its beginnings up to the present day.
