Universal Constructions?-Relativization in English and Chinese

Audrey Yen-Hui Li

《Concentric： Studies in Linguistics》 27卷2期 (2001/06) Pp. 163-187

https://doi.org/10.6241/concentric.ling.200106_27(2).0008

並列摘要

The search for universal phrase structures leads to the question of whether specific constructions also share the same basic structures cross-linguistically - ”universal constructions.” Based on a comparative study of English and Chinese relative constructions, we argue that ”universal construction” is not necessarily a valid notion. Kayne (1994)'s Antisymmetry to phrase structures forces a re-examination of relative structures: they must have a complementation structure, instead of the widely-accepted adjunction structure (Chomsky 1977). Evidence comes from important generalizations regarding the relations between the determiner heading a complex nominal and the relative clause. Kayne further argues that head-initial and head-final relatives are derived from the same basic structure, subscribing to the notion of ”universal constructions.” We demonstrate, however, that head-final relatives in Chinese provide direct evidence for an adjunction structure, in contrast to English relatives, which convincingly support a complementation structure. The difference is traced to the different behavior of the determiner systems in these two types of languages.

並列關鍵字

Relativization ； Universal constructions ； Nominal structures ； Determiner ； Reconstruction

參考文獻

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