Programm 77. StuTS

The paper explores the unselective binding mechanism as a solution to wh-dependency across English, Chinese, and Japanese, without invoking LF movement. It adopts Optimality Theory (OT) to account for the observed differences in island effects among these languages. Three violable constraints are proposed: Minimal Binding (MB), penalizing long-distance binding; Subjacency (Sub), banning movement across more than one bounding node; and Economy (E), favoring minimal movement. The analysis underscores OT’s flexibility in deriving typological variation through constraint reranking, while unifying disparate phenomena under a single mechanistic framework. By integrating unselective binding with OT, we offer a principled account of wh-dependencies that reconciles empirical contrasts across English, Chinese, and Japanese.

In English, the operator (Op) is base-generated at the head level, attached to wh-words, and moves overtly, violating Subjacency in both wh-islands and complex-NP islands. Chinese generates Op at the sentential level (CP), avoiding movement and island effects entirely, with Economy outranking MB. Japanese initially appears to pattern differently, with Op base-generated at the DP level, but OT analysis reveals it behaves like Chinese—sentential Op and high-ranked Economy explain the lack of genuine wh-island effects. The paper aligns with Tsai (1994) for English and Chinese but revises the analysis for Japanese, showing its Op is also sentential, prioritizing Economy over Subjacency. This result challenges prior claims (Nishigauchi 1986; Watanabe 1992) and supports Lasnik & Saito’s (1984, 1992) view that Japanese lacks true wh-islands.

Info

Tag: 16.05.2025
Anfangszeit: 12:00
Dauer: 00:30
Raum: GWZ 2.316
Track: Theoretical Linguistics
Sprache: en

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