Advanced Syntax

1. Lecture 7: Tense and Negation Advanced Syntax

2. The clause is made up of distinct structural areas with different semantic purposes • The VP • One or more verbal head introducing arguments • The IP • An inflectional head introducing finiteness • The CP • A complementiser introducing force Introduction: clause structure

3. Between the thematic VP and the IP there can be other elements which are verbal but not thematic • They don’t introduce arguments • These elements are to do with voice and aspect • ... That John has been being followed perfect progressive passive • We have argued that these elements are represented by the bound morphemes • The verb moves to support the nearest one of these • Auxiliaries are inserted to support the rest • -s -en -ing -en The non-thematic VP ha be show be

4. We will distinguish these non-thematic verbal elements by denoting them as “v” (as opposed to V) • This is commonly called ‘little v’ • While little v is clearly verbal and non-thematic, we cannot say that it is functional either, as that would make it indistinguishable from inflection: • Verb = [-F, +V, -N] • Inflection = [+F, +V, -N] • We don’t want to add another categorial feature as that would predict an extra 8 more distinct categories • The solution is to allow categories to be undefined on certain features • Little v = [+V, -N] The non-thematic VP

5. The inflection seems to be able to have a VP or a vP complement, depending on whether there are aspectual morphemes: • He may [VP win the race] • He had [vP been winning the race] • I selects for [-F, +V, -N] complements • This covers thematic VPs which have exactly these features • And vPs, which are not defined for the [F] feature The non-thematic VP structure position

6. Auxiliary verbs are inserted to support verbal morphemes which cannot be supported by the verb • The verb can support at most one overt morpheme • He -ed [VP ] • He -ed -en [VP the paper] • He -ed -ing [VP the paper] The problem smile see read

7. Auxiliary verbs which follow modals and the infinitive to, do not appear to support any morpheme: • They are always in their base form • He may be winning • ... for him to have won • If there is no morpheme here, there is no explanation as to why the auxiliary is present The problem

8. By this reasoning, there must be a morpheme present in these cases • This morpheme is phonologically null • He may be-winning • ... for him to have- won A possible solution

9. It is apparently absent in the presence of a tense inflection: • He be–ed (=was) winning • * He was be- winning • This might suggest that the morpheme has something to do with tense What is this morpheme

10. Modals and the tense morphemes are in complementary distribution • He smiled • He will smile • * he will smiled • But this is not completely true Tense and modals

11. Most modals have two forms • can could • may might • shall should • will would • Historically these are tense forms • In modern English these forms are not usually used to express tense distinctions • He might come  he may come (in the past) • But in some cases they are: • When I was young, I could play the piano Modal forms

12. Modals in subordinate clauses are used to match the tense of the main clause: • I think he will come • I thought he would come • * I thought he will come • This is called tense sequencing Modal forms

13. This suggests that tense is not absent with modals Modal forms

14. One might have thought that tense and infinitives are mutually exclusive • However, again the situation is not so straightforward • Infinitives are always subordinate • Like tense sequencing in finite clauses, the time reference of the infinitive is often dependent on the main clause • Different types of infinitive have different time interpretations Infinitives and tense

15. The temporal interpretation of a control clause is co-temporal with the main clause • He tried [PRO to start the car] • He is trying [PRO to start the car] • He will try [PRO to start the car] • Clearly the ‘trying’ and the ‘starting’ are happening at the same time (regardless of whether it is successful) Control clauses and Tense

16. Raising clauses are like control clauses in that their temporal interpretation is co-temporal with the main clause • The door1 seemed [ t1 to close by itself] • The door1 seems [ t1 to be closing by itself] • The door1 seems [ t1 to close by itself] • Like tensed clauses • the use of the progressive indicates present time • the use of the plain verb indicates the habitual Raising clauses and tense

17. Exceptional clauses often refer to an event which takes place at some point after that referred to by the exceptional verb • I expected [the door to open] • I expect [the door to open] • The door opening (or not) happens at some time after the expectation is formed • I expected the door to open, but when I tried it, it was locked Exceptional Clauses and tense

18. If time reference is mediated through a tense element, it seems that a tense element is present in the infinitive • Though not of the same nature as that in finite clauses • In infinitives the tense element is similar to a pronoun in that its reference is linked to its antecedent • i.e. The tense of the main clause • We might refer to this as ‘anaphoric’ tense Tense in infinitives - conclusion

19. This all suggests that tense and inflection are not the same element in a structure • Therefore we would expect them to have different positions • It could be that tense is the phonologically null morpheme that follows modals and the infinitival marker: • He may be-pres singing • ... for him to be-ana singing Tense and Inflection

20. Clearly the tense element follows the inflection So it must head a phrase that sits in the complement position of the inflection The structural position of tense

21. We know that inflection subcategorises for a [+V, -N] complement Therefore tense must be of the category ‘little v’ The category of tense

22. Tensed clauses are still IPs • So there must be an inflection when there is a morphological tense • The most obvious suggestion would be that the inflection is a null morpheme in this case: • [IP He  [vP -ed [VP smile]]] • This is what was assumed in BESE Tense in tensed clauses

23. But this raises the question of why inflection must be null when tense is overt and tense must be null when inflection is overt There seems to be a conspiracy to make it look like tense and inflection are in complementary distribution when they are not! Tense in tensed clauses

24. Another possibility is that the ‘tense’ morphemes ARE inflections • Therefore they cannot be ‘tense’ • They would get their tense interpretations from the null tense element that accompanies them • [IP He –ed [vP - [VP smile]]] • In this way the tense morpheme is exactly like a modal • Though it carries no modal meaning Tense in tensed clauses

25. This allows a very uniform analysis: • Tense in English is always null • Some inflections select present tense • will, can, shall, may, -s/- • Some inflections select past tense • would, could, should, might, must, -ed • One inflection select anaphoric tense • to Tense in tensed clauses

26. The fact that an auxiliary must be inserted after a modal and an infinitive in cases where the verb is supporting an aspectual morpheme shows that tense is a bound morpheme: • He will - -ing [VP ] Tense as a bound morpheme be read

27. The fact that no auxiliary is inserted when there is no aspectual morpheme shows that the verb can move to support tense • He will - [VP ] Tense as a bound morpheme read

28. When there is a bound inflection (-ed or –s) and the verb cannot support it, we can assume that the auxiliary is inserted into tense and then moves to support the inflection • A verb can support only one OVERT morpheme, but any number of covert ones • He will -ed -ing [VP ] Tense as a bound morpheme be be- - read

29. When there is a bound inflection (-ed or –s) and there is no other over morpheme, the verb can move to support both tense and the inflection • He -ed [VP ] Tense as a bound morpheme read- - read

30. Tense is always null It heads a vP which is the complement of the inflection Different inflections select for different tenses Tense is a bound morpheme which needs supporting When the verb cannot do this, an auxiliary is inserted Whatever supports tense will support the bound inflection by moving from v to I Tense: Summary

31. Negation in English is typically marked by the use of not • This sits behind the inflection and in front of the main verb • You shall not pass • It can sit anywhere between these two (with meaning differences), but not in front of I or behind V • * He not will have been being followed • He will not have been being followed • He will have not been being followed • He will have been not being followed • He will have been being not followed • * He will have been being followed not negation

32. It has been argued that not must be a head of a phrase which sits in the non-thematic verbal part of the structure • This is because it blocks V movement to I • He –d [VP smile] => he smile-d [VP t] The status of the negative particle

33. Normally the verb can move to I (via tense) • He smile1-2-ed [vP t2 [VP t1 ]] The status of the negative particle

34. But when the negative particle is present, this movement is blocked • * he smile1-2-ed [ not [vP t2 [VP t1 ]] • This can be explained by RelativisedMinimality • A head must move to its nearest head position • But this only works if the negative is a head The status of the negative particle

35. In this case, the verb can support the tense • But do has to be inserted to support the inflection • He do-ed [ not [ smile1- [ t1 ]]] The status of the negative particle do

36. If this analysis is correct, the category of the negative particle must be ‘little v’ • Because: • I selects for a vP complement • The phrase headed by the negative can be the complement of I The category of negation

37. Although not does not have many verbal qualities in English, in other languages the negative particle can behave like a verb • Finnish • tiedän en tiedäI-know I-not know • tiedät et tiedäyou-know you-not know Evidence for the verbal status of negation

38. The head status of the negative seems to be supported by negative contraction: • I haven’t seen him • He isn’t here • This might be treated in the same way that bound morphemes are: • The auxiliary moves into the negative head before moving to I • He –s –n’t be- here • As heads can only move to head positions, this seems to show that negation is a head Problems: contracted negation

39. But this predicts the wrong morpheme order as the negation should be closer to the verb than the inflection: • * He be-n’t-s here • It also isn’t clear why main verbs cannot do the same thing: • * He read-n’t the book Problems: contracted negation

40. Modal auxiliaries can also bear the contracted negation: • I wouldn’t know • But modals cannot move through the negation as they are higher in the structure • The contracted modals sometimes have a different base form • Can’t won’t shan’t • Some modals cannot appear with the contracted negation at all • *mayn’t Problems: contracted negation

41. Such observations argue that the contracted negation is better seen as a form of auxiliaries rather than as an independent morpheme Problems: contracted negation

42. When a bound morpheme cannot be supported by the main verb, an auxiliary is inserted • Which auxiliary is used depends on the following verbal morpheme • Main verb  do • -ed you know  did you know • Perfect  have • He –ed –en see  he had seen • Everything else  be • He –ed –ing run  he was running • He –ed –en beat  he was beaten Problems: invisibility of negation

43. However, the choice of the auxiliary is never dependent on the presence of the negation • He did not know me • He had not seen me • He is not running • He was not beaten • In these cases, the negation behaves as though it is invisible • It is the verbal element following the negation that determines which auxiliary to use • But this is unexpected if negation is a verbal head Problems: invisibility of negation

44. In general, modifiers do not interfere with syntactic processes: • Did he always know the answers? • He has sometimes watched the news • He is often running • This might suggest that the negative particle is an adverbial modifier rather than a verbal head • So why does it block head movement? Another possible analysis

45. Negative adverbial modifiers have a restricted position with respect to the verb • I never win • * I win never • This is not so for all adverbial modifiers • I sometimes win • I win sometimes Another possible analysis

46. We know that the negative particle never follows the verb • * he smiled not • When the negative adverb precedes the finite verb, it must precede the inflection which the verb is supporting • He never win-s Another possible analysis

47. Negative adverbs can precede inflections (with special emphasis) • He never will find out • The negative particle cannot precede the inflection – even with special emphasis • * he not will find out Another possible analysis

48. It seems that there are two ordering conditions • The negative particle must precede the main verb • The negative particle must follow the inflection • These two together will prevent the main verb from moving to I • * he not smiled • * he smiled not • The only option left is for the verb to stay below the inflection and for the inflection to be supported by do • He did not smile Another possible analysis

49. Possibly the best analysis for the negative particle is as an adverbial modifier • There are two conditions on its placement • It cannot follow the verb • It cannot precede the inflection • Otherwise it can go anywhere between the two Summary: negation