Infinitive Constructions with Specified Subjects: A Syntactic Analysis of the Romance Languages (Oxford Studies in Comparative Syntax) - Softcover

Mensching, Guido

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0195133048 ISBN 13: 9780195133042

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 2000

Synopsis

Most Romance languages permit the overt realization of the grammatical subject in infinitive clauses in a considerable number of configurations. Mensching has the following goals: to describe systematically Romance infinitive constructions with specified subjects, taking into account diachronic and dialectical varieties; and then to interpret these facts within a generative framework, examining how overt subjects in infinitive clauses are licensed and what determines their case and position. His findings call for a thorough revision of the principles that have been assumed for analysing the Romance languages. Mensching uses eight Romance languages in his comparisons, among them Italian, Sardinian, Romanian, Spanish, and Portuguese.

About this title

Review

This book is bound to become a reference text for anyone interested in the properties of infinitival clauses in Romance. It is a valuable source of data and also advances our understanding of an interesting class of phenomena that before this book did not receive enough attention in the literature. (Journal of Linguistics)

Edition details

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 2000
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0195133048
• ISBN 13: 9780195133042
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 288