1 On tough-movement* Milan Rezac, University ... - Multimania.co.uk

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4.3.2 The Highest Subject Restriction Another positional restriction on the gap in OP clauses is that it cannot be the subject of the matrix of the OP clause. This contrasts with both regular wh-movement and with subject-gap infinitival relatives (Williams 1980, Browning 1989:25f., Bhatt 1999), (55). (55) a. *Nuwa is easy e to halt the flood. b. the woman e to halt the flood. c. the woman that e halted the flood. I propose to identify the phenomenon with the Highest Subject Restriction known from work on resumptive constructions. This blocks a pronoun (but not a trace) from being Ā-bound too locally, e.g. from occupying [Spec, TP] if bound from within the C-system of the same functional sequence; this is illustrated in (56) for Czech (see Borer 1984, McCloskey 1990, Shlonsky 1992, Boeckx 2003:83ff.). (56) a. To je ta holka i [co se *(ji i ) von líbil]. that is that girl such.that SE her-DAT he-NOM appealed.he That's the girl that he appealed to. b. To je ta holka i [co (*vona i ) se mu líbila i ]. that is that girl such.that she-NOM SE he-DAT appealed.she That's the girl that appealed to him. (Czech) Some types of strong agreement are subject to a similar Anti-Agreement Effect (Ouhalla 1993, Richards 2001:147ff.). The two phenomena are probably one and the same, for example because this kind of strong agreement is a pronoun in the relevant respect (Ouhalla 1993, Rezac 2004a:245ff.). It is unlikely that the OP clause matrix, which is infinitival, has agreement of any sort. Straightforwardly interpreted then, the appearance Highest Subject Restriction on the OPgap chain is indicative of the gap being a base-generated pronoun rather than an Ā-movement trace (copy). 25 4.3.3 Subject/object asymmetries in TM gaps Pronominal nature of the gap might be recruited to explain the subject/object asymmetries it shows. Extraction from embedded subject positions in wh-movement is well-formed: the subject of an ECM infinitive, a tensed bridge verb complement lacking a complementizer, and small clause subject, all extract without a problem. In tough-movement however, gaps in these positions are subject to varying degrees of degradation, (57)a. This cannot reflect a general ban on left branch gaps, since selected-for left branch gaps are not nearly as degraded, (57)b. (57) a. *Smith was easy for Jones to expect e to recover. b. Smith was easy for Jones to force e to recover. (Chomsky 1973:254 note 33) 20
The pattern of goodness and degradation in extraction from embedded subject and object positions for the entire group involving non-overt operators in infinitival clauses is nuanced; see Browning (1989:131-5). To summarize her conclusions for TM gaps: (i) both subject and object gaps are degraded (though this needs to be set against a number of quite good object gaps, e.g. (47)), but subject gaps more so; (ii) small clause complement subjects are the least degraded among subject gaps; (iii) the semantics of the embedded verb plays a role (cf. also Dalrymple and King 2000:15, here (58)d vs. (58)e); (iv) intervening tensed clauses degrade grammaticality (cf. ex. (48)); (v) there is amelioration if the clause hosting the subject gap has be or a modal. (58) a. ?Mary was difficult for anyone to consider e arrogant. (Browning 1989:132) b. *Mary was difficult for Jane to believe e to understand the problem. (Browning 1989:132) c. ??This problem was difficult for me to believe Mary to understand e. (Browning 1989:132) d. *Smith was easy for Jones to expect e to recover. (Dalrymple and King 2000:15, from Berman 1973) e. This analysis was hard for us to prove e to be correct. (Dalrymple and King 2000:15, from Nanni 1978, attributed to Barbara Partee). Browning (1989:135ff.) and Cinque (1990:105f., 119-121) note that similar subject/object asymmetries also show up for Ā-gaps in weak islands, (59). Since for Cinque island-internal gaps are pro, he takes this as evidence that TM gaps are pro as well. However, there is not at hand in this case a neat explanation as to what degrades these subject gaps, since pronouns in these positions are fine. 26 This evidence then is less telling about the nature of the TM gap. (59) a. ??Which guy did John wonder when to expect e to show up? (Browning 1989:135) b. ?Which gift did John wonder when to expect PRO to receive e? (Browning 1989:135) It is worth mentioning here another classical puzzle involving subject gaps: the TM gap is strongly ungrammatical if it is the subject in the Romance ECM construction (Rizzi 1982, Kayne 1981) or triggers the qui complementizer in French (cf. Rizzi 1990:56ff., 97, and references): see Browning (1989:138ff.), Cinque (1990:107ff.). The same subject positions also cannot host gaps in weak islands, and again Cinque suggests reducing both phenomena to conditions on pro. 4.3.4 Montalbetti's Overt Pronoun Constraint Montalbetti's (1984) Overt Pronoun Constraint OPC prevents a quantifier or the trace of its Ā- extraction from λ-binding an overt pronoun if pro is available, although a bound pro may itself bind an overt pronoun. (60) a. Muchos estudiantes i piensan que ellos *i/j /pro i/j son inteligentes. many students think that they are intelligent Many students think that they are intelligent. (Montalbetti 1984:82) b. A quienes i Pedro convenció t i de que ellos *i/j son tontos? A who Pedro convinced of that they are foolish Who did Pedro convince that they are foolish? (Montalbetti 1984:98) 21
Page 1 and 2: On tough-movement * Milan Rezac, Un
Page 3 and 4: that it involves an Ā-step between
Page 5 and 6: d. *John is easy that anyone likes
Page 7 and 8: Adopting the copy theory for traces
Page 9 and 10: In tough-movement, the TM subject i
Page 11 and 12: (28) *There were asked what things
Page 13 and 14: . =No person is such that it seems
Page 15 and 16: constructions, all accounts share t
Page 17 and 18: the top of the OP clause. Various q
Page 19: not find an active wh-phrase as a g
Page 23 and 24: Although there is reason to be caut
Page 25 and 26: makes them available to external φ
Page 27 and 28: 14 It is an open question whether O
Page 29 and 30: References Abeillé, A., Goddard, D
Page 31 and 32: Kaplan, R. M. and Bresnan, J. 1982.
Page 33 and 34: Rizzi, L. Forthcoming. "On the form
Page 35: TABLE 1: Properties of "On wh-movem

1 On tough-movement* Milan Rezac, University ... - Multimania.co.uk

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