Syntax IV

November 23, 2012

Weekday Update• Syntax homework will be posted after class today

• …due on Wednesday (November 28th)

• Next week, we will start working on the analysis of meaning:

• Pragmatics + Semantics

• Also note that the final exam for this course has been scheduled:

• Monday, December 17th, 3:30-5:30 pm

• EEEL 161

Complementizer Phrases• New lexical category: complementizers (C).

• Ex: if, that, whether

• Complementizers function as the heads of complementizer phrases. (CPs)

• The complement of the CP is another IP (sentence).

• Ex: Marge thinks [that [Homer ate the cake]IP]CP.

• Matrix clause = highest-level sentence

• “Marge thinks…”

• Complement, or embedded clause = within the CP

• “Homer ate the cake.”

IP

NP I’

Marge I VP

[-past] V’ CP

V C’

thinks C IP

that NP I’

Homer I VP

[+past] V’

V NP

ate the cakeCP Example

matrix clause

embedded clause

Infinite Recursion, part 2• It is possible to create infinitely long sentences by embedding complementizer clauses within complementizer clauses…

• John said [that Mary thought [that Robin knew [that Angela hoped [that Quinton wished [that Bronwen believed that…]]]]]

• VP V CP V CP

• CP C IP V C IP

• IP NP VPV C NP VP

• VP V CP V C NP V CP

• etc.

Infinite Recursion, part 3• There is one other (very boring) way to produce inifinitely long sentences in language:

• I like baseball and basketball and hockey and football and soccer and rugby and cricket and ultimate and polo and lacrosse….

• Sentences like this take advantage of the syntactic phenomenon of coordination.

• Coordination combines phrases or words of the same type with a conjunction (and, but, or…)

• to create a phrase or word of the same type.

• General coordination rule: Xn Xn Con Xn

• Where Xn = {XP, X’, or X}

Coordination Examples• NP NP and NP

NP The fat man and the little boy

• VP VP or VP

VP fish or cut bait

• IP IP but IP

IP Ringo plays drums but Paul plays bass.

• Coordination of individual words works the same way:

• P P and P

• She went [[above]P and [beyond]P]P the call of duty.

Ambiguity• Coordination can lead to a very simple kind of structural ambiguity.

• I like green eggs and ham.

• Interpretation #1: just the eggs are green.

• I like [[green eggs]NP and [ham]NP]NP.

• Interpretation #2: both the eggs and ham are green.

• I like [green [[eggs]N’ and [ham]N’]NP.

• Let’s check out the trees…

Interpretation #1• Only the eggs are green:

IP

NP I’

Pro I VP

I [-past] V’

V NP

like NP Con NP

AP N’ and ham

green N

eggs

Interpretation #2• Both the eggs and ham are green:

IP

NP I’

Pro I VP

I [-past] V’

V NP

like AP N’

green N’ Con N’

N and N

eggs ham

Further Ambiguity• Let’s try another one:

• The police shot the terrorists with rifles.

• Why is this sentence ambiguous?

• (How can you describe the ambiguity, structurally?)

• Interpretation #1: the terrorists have rifles.

• [with rifles] is a PP embedded in the object NP.

• Interpretation #2: the police have rifles.

• [with rifles] is a PP that modifies the main VP.

• Let’s check out some more trees…

Interpretation #1IP

NP I’

the police I VP

[+past] V’

V NP

shot Det N’

the N PP

terrorists P’

P NP

with rifles

In this one, the terrorists have the rifles.

Interpretation #2IP

NP I’

the police I VP

[+past] V’ PP

V NP P’

shot Det N’ P NP

the N with rifles

terroristsIn this one, the police are using the rifles to shoot the terrorists.

The PP is a modifier of the VP here, not a complement.

= it’s not required by the verb.

Quick Write Greatest Hits

Quick Write Greatest Hits

More Modifiers• From the Quick Write:

IP

NP I’

She I VP

[-past] V’ AdvP

V CP Deg Adv’

wants IP really Adv

I VP badly

to V NP

play tennis

(I’m glossing over some of the structure here)

In this interpretation, “really badly” modifies “wants”.

More ModifiersIP

NP I’

She I VP

[-past] V’

V CP

wants IP

I VP

to V NP AdvP

play tennis really badly

(I’m glossing over some of the structure here)

In this interpretation, “really badly” modifies “play”.