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From Utterances to Speech Acts

By Mikhail Kissine

"Kissine offers a new theory of speech acts which is philosophically sophisticated and builds on work in cognitive science, formal semantics, and linguistic typology. This highly readable, brilliant essay is a major contribution to the field."

--François Recanati, Institut Jean-Nicod


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Title: Movement of degree/degree of movement
Subtitle: MIT dissertation
Written By: Ora Matushansky
URL: http://web.mit.edu/mitwpl/dissertations/matushansky.abstract.html
Series Title: MITWPL
Description:

In this project we examine the DP-internal behavior of degree operators contained in attributive extended APs, specifically degree fronting (so sunny a day) and degree right extraposition (a day sunny enough). We argue that both processes have to do with the scope of the degree operator, namely, that degree fronting is a diagnostic of clausal scope of the degree operator, while right extraposition is overt R to the DP-internal landing site where a quantifier can be interpreted. We first show that pre-determiner APs in Germanic languages (so sunny a day) are moved to [Spec, NumP] only if they contain a degree operator, i.e. an element that cannot be interpreted in situ. We will then show that the appearance of the adjectival projection in that position is due to pied-piping, and that different degree operators behave differently with respect to how much material is moved overtly (pied-piping). We then turn to right extraposition. We will show that it can be differentiated from other cases traditionally denoted by the same term (e.g. a professor proud of her children). On the other hand, it has certain properties permitting to assimilate it to DP-extraposition to the right periphery of the vP (Heavy NP Shift) • it has new information status and permits stranding of the argument of the degree operator (a more interesting problem than this). These and similar factors suggest that right extraposition of degree-containing extended APs is overt R of the degree operator accompanied by more or less pied-piping. The overall picture seems to be that R an overt movement processes examined for clausal projections exist in nominal projections as well and have similar properties.

Publication Year: 2002
Publisher: MIT Working Papers in Linguistics
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BibTex: View BibTex record
Linguistic Field(s): General Linguistics
Syntax/semantics interface

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Format: Paperback
ISBN: none
ISBN-13: N/A
Prices: 15