Edited by Eric J. Reuland, Tanmoy Bhattacharya and Giorgos Spathas
[Linguistik Aktuell/Linguistics Today 108] 2007
► pp. 175–211
This paper studies the mapping of argument structure into higher parts of the clause and examines the relation of argument structure to multiple wh-structuresand Superiority phenomena. Superiority effects are commonly assumed to arise when wh -movement triggered by the feature-checking requirements of a [+Q] C 0 violates economy restrictions on movement (Shortest Move). The paper, however, points out certain serious diffi culties for a purely structural approach to Superiority patterns, and suggests an alternative analysis of the data. First, it is shown that the non-occurrence of Superiority effects in cases of multiple whfronting in Bangla seems to contradict the fact that pair-list answers to multiplewh -questions are expected/required to the same degree as they are in languages with clear wh -movement such as English. The obvious question that is raised is how one should reconcile the lack of Superiority effects in a language with the assumption that genuine wh -movement nevertheless occurs in the language? The paper shows, re-examining the generalizations about English, that Superiority effects are not the result of a purely structural fi lter such as Shortest Move but are rather controlled by a variety of factors: animacy distinctions among wh -phrases, thematic relations of the wh -phrases, stressing and prosodic weight of the wh -phrases and referential familiarity of the expected answer to a wh -question. Finally, the “Superiority” effects observable in multiple wh -sluices in Bangla are attributed to the tendency to copy the argument prominence relation in the non-sluiced clause.