Abstract
Many of the phenomena discussed in this paper usually fall under the domain of control and control theory, that is, the module of the grammar which is responsible for the assignment of reference to null subjects in infinitival and gerundive constructions primarily. It is the purpose of this paper, however, to challenge the existence of an independent module of control. Standard accounts of control and control phenomena are challenged in this work in two ways. First, it is proposed that the null element occupying the [NP, S] position in infinitives and gerunds is the same as the null element occupying the [NP, IP] (= [NP, S]) position in tensed sentences, both being an empty pronominal (so-called small pro). In other words, it is proposed that control effects are not restricted to, or derived from, the status of pronominal anaphors. It is further argued that the distinctions between null subjects in tensed clauses and null subjects in non-tensed clauses follow from independent principles, and not from the properties of the null pronominal itself. Secondly, we propose that control effects, in most accounts taken to involve crucially the fixing of reference of a null element, have, as such, nothing to do with the presence of a null element.
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Borer, H. (1989). Anaphoric AGR. In: Jaeggli, O.A., Safir, K.J. (eds) The Null Subject Parameter. Studies in Natural Language and Linguistic Theory, vol 15. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-2540-3_3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-2540-3_3
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