Incomplete Category Fronting: A Derivational Approach to Remnant Movement in German: 42 (Studies in Natural Language and Linguistic Theory, 42) - Hardcover

Müller, Gereon

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0792348370 ISBN 13: 9780792348375

Publisher: Springer, 1997

Synopsis

Incomplete Category Fronting is a detailed investigation of the syntax of incomplete category fronting in German, carried out from a cross-linguistic perspective. The study presents a wealth of empirical evidence involving unbound traces created by remnant topicalization, wh-movement, scrambling, left dislocation, and extraposition. Four characteristic properties of remnant movement are identified that pose severe problems for a representational movement theory. It is argued that these properties can be fruitfully addressed on the basis of Chomsky's minimalist program, and that they follow from a derivational movement theory that incorporates the Barriers Condition, the Strict Cycle Condition, Fewest Steps, Last Resort, and the Minimal Link Condition but completely dispenses with surface filters. Incomplete Category Fronting provides an empirical underpinning for the minimalist program and presents a powerful argument for a derivational theory of grammar.
Audience: Incomplete Category Fronting will interest all linguists working on theoretical syntax, Germanic syntax or the syntax-semantics interface.

About this title

Synopsis

This study investigates the syntax of incomplete category fronting in German, carried out from a cross-linguistic perspective. The study presents a wealth of empirical evidence involving unbound traces created by remnant topicalization, wh-movement, scrambling, left dislocation, and extraposition. Four characteristic properties of remnant movement are identified that pose severe problems for a representational movement theory. It is argued that these properties can be fruitfully addressed on the basis of Chomsky's Minimalist Program, and that they follow from a derivational movement theory that incorporates the Barriers Condition, the Strict Cycle Condition, Fewest Steps, Last Resort, and the Minimal Link Condition but completely dispenses with surface filters. The text provides an empirical underpinning for the Minimalist Program and presents a powerful argument for a derivational theory of grammar.

Edition details

• Publisher: Springer
• Publication date: 1997
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0792348370
• ISBN 13: 9780792348375
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 358