Complexity and Coreference in Grammar: A Study of Condition C Effects
Year: 2015
Type: article
Abstract: As shown above, the pronoun he cannot be coreferential with the R-expression John in (1a-b) (cf. Langacker 1966, Ross 1967). In (2), however, the subject pronoun he may be coreferential with the name John. Since Lakoff (1968), the nature of the data like these has been discussed by Wasow (1972, 1979), Reinhart (1976, 1981), van Riemsdijk and Williams (1981), Gueron (1984), Freidin (1986), Lebeaux (1988, 1990), Saito (1991), Chomsky (1993), Chomsky and Lasnik (1993), Lasnik (2009), among others. In this paper, I aim to suggest that Reinhart’s (1976, 1981) complexity-based analysis of the contrast between (1a-b) and (2) seems to have some interesting features, given recent proposals by Hawkins (1994, 2004, 2014), Phillips (1996), Kempson et al. (2001), Hofmeister and Sag (2010), etc. (cf. the Subjacency Condition). To attain this aim, first, I show how Saito (1991) accounts for examples such as (1a-b) and (2) based on a well-known generalization by van Riemsdijk and Williams (1981), etc. In section 3, however, I attempt to point out that although van Riemsdijk and Williams’ (1981)/Saito’s (1991) account based on the generalization appears to be plausible, there still remain some potential problems for it. In section 4, I try to suggest a complexity-based analysis of coreference possibilities which incorporates into Reinhart’s (1976, 1981) account, Hawkins’ (1994, 2004, 2014) insight into the nature of competence and performance (cf. Chomsky 1965, 1981, 1993, Phillips 1996, Kempson et al. 2001, Hofmeister and Sag 2010, etc.). In section 5, I conclude the discussion of this paper.
Author: Hiroto Hoshi
Language: English
Subfield: Language and Linguistics
Field: Arts and Humanities
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2579145411