Phi-features and the Modular Architecture of - UMR 7023 - CNRS

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repair accusative relationships occur across an indefinite phrase-structural distance
without an interpretive relationship to the matrix clause.
(287) Minu-ni täyty-y ti men-nä kaupunki-in näkemään sinu-t / se
me-GEN must-3SG go-INF city-ALL see-INF you-ACC / it-NOM
I must go to the city to see you / it.
(Finnish, section 5.5)
The Agree/Case relations added to unaccusatives by the PCC repair are the accusative
in the nominative-accusative system of Finnish, and the ergative in the
ergative-absolutive one of Basque and Chinook. These two relations share the important
'odd man out' property. The accusative is the relation of the transitive object
O, beside the nominative common to the subject of unaccusatives S and
transitives EA, (288)a; the ergative is the relation of the transitive subject EA,
beside the absolutive common to S and O, (288)b. The ergative and accusative are
the extra Agree/Case relation that transitives have over unaccusatives. This is
Burzio's Generalization in nominative-accusative systems, and its mirror image in
ergative-absolutive ones, and the keystone of the theory of dependent Case.
(288) a. Accusative system: EA ST-nom Ov-acc
b. Ergative system: EAT-erg S Ov-abs
The theory of dependent Case presupposes that the ergative is a structural Case,
as are uncontroversially the accusative, nominative, and absolutive. The assumption
needs some defence. It may be provided from Basque, which will be the language
to illustrate the theory of the dependent ergative, and later of unaccusative
repairs by it.
A variety of analyses exist for ergative-absolutive systems, and appear to match
the underlying variety of the systems themselves. In some, the ergative is inherent
Case (Massam 2006, Anand and Nevins 2006, Woolford 1997, 2006, Legate 2006,
2008). In others it is robustly structural. The structural character of the ergative
Agree/Case relation in Basque may be illustrated briefly in (289) and (290); it is
further discussed in Albizu, Etxepare and Rezac (in prep), drawing notably on Artiagoitia's
(2001ab) study of raising-to-ergative and ergative expletives.
(289) a. [Nesk-ak nekatuta dire-la] iruditzen zai-t
girls-ABS tired R.3pA-that seeming R.3sA.1sD
It seems to me like/that the girls are tired.
b. Nesk-aki [nekatuta (dire-la)] iruditzen zai-zkii-t.
girls-ABSi tired R.3pA-that seeming R.3pAi.1sD
The girls seem to me (like they are) tired.
(290) a. [Nesk-ak nekatuta dire-la] ematen du
girls-ABS tired R.3pA-that seeming R.3sE
It seems like/that the girls are tired.
b. Nesk-eki [nekatuta (dire-la)] ematen du-tei.