On Minimal Yield and Form Copy: evidence from East Asian languages

要旨

Abstract The FormCopy (FC) analysis of control proposed by Noam Chomsky develops Norbert Hornstein’s movement analysis. This paper points out that there is inconsistency between both analyses and the standard phase theory. Then, it presents a new definition of phase and the PIC that makes reference to ϕ-feature agreement in order to resolve this inconsistency. Minimal Yield (MY) is one of the conditions on Merge that distinguish the FC analysis from the movement analysis. It is a fundamental assumption in the FC analysis but rules out sideward movements employed in the movement analysis. The second part of the paper first introduces Hisatsugu Kitahara’s analysis of “proper binding” effects in terms of MY. Then, it shows that this analysis, together with the newly proposed definition of phase and the PIC, correctly predicts a surprising difference between English and Japanese with respect to the “proper binding” phenomenon. This constitutes further evidence for MY and hence for the FC analysis of control.

主題