On Null Arguments and Phi-features in Second Language Acquisition

要旨

<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title><jats:p>Saito, Mamoru. 2007. Notes on East Asian argument ellipsis.<jats:italic>Language Research</jats:italic>43. 203–227 argues that<jats:italic>argument ellipsis</jats:italic>(AE) is available only in languages that lack phi-feature agreement. Accordingly, Japanese, but not English, permits AE. Under Saito’s theoretical framework, this paper compares experimental data from L1 Japanese learners of L2 English (J-EFL) and L1 English learners of L2 Japanese (E-JFL). Given that sloppy and quantificational reading arises from an ellipsis operation (Hankamer, Jorge & Sag, Ivan. 1976. Deep and surface anaphora.<jats:italic>Linguistic Inquiry</jats:italic>7. 391–426, Takahashi, Daiko. 2008. Noun phrase ellipsis. In Miyagawa, Shigeru & Saito, Mamoru (eds.),<jats:italic>The Oxford handbook of Japanese linguistics</jats:italic>, 394–422. Oxford: Oxford University Press, among others), we hypothesize that J-EFL learners, but not E-JFL learners, allow the reading in point with null arguments: AE is available only in the grammar of J-EFL learners, forced by the lack of phi-features in their L2 English grammar, due to L1 transfer. The results from our main study adopting a truth value judgement task supported the hypothesis. Based on our finding, we suggest that correct L2 phi-feature specification can ultimately be obtained when no phi-features are present in L1 (Ishino, Nao. 2012.<jats:italic>Feature transfer and feature learning in universal grammar: A comparative study of the syntactic mechanism for second language acquisition</jats:italic>. Doctoral dissertation: Kwansei Gakuin University, Miyamoto, Yoichi. 2012.<jats:italic>Dainigengo-ni okeru hikenzaiteki-na yōso-ni kansuru Ichikōsatsu</jats:italic>[A study on null elements in second language acquisition]. Paper presented at the 84th ELSJ annual general meeting: Senshu University, 26 May).</jats:p>