Predicate Argument Structure in Haitian Creole

Ce travail explore les propriétés argumentales des verbes du créole haïtien et, plus particulièrement, les verbes intransitifs, transitifs, et ditransitifs. Nous adoptons une théorie du lexique qui comprend deux niveaux: la structure lexico-conceptuelle et la structure prédicat/argument. Nous proposons que la relation entre les deux niveaux est relativement libre de façon à expliquer le fait qu’un verbe puisse avoir plusieurs structures argumentales. Il est démontré qu’il existe à tout le moins deux opérations de « détransitivation » en créole haïtien : la première s’applique librement alors que la deuxième doit être autorisée par la présence d’un adverbe. Les verbes transitifs et ditransitifs sont classés en fonction du type d’opération qu’ils permettent. Les caractéristiques de ces verbes en créole haïtien sont décrites dans les termes de la théorie du gouvernement et du liage. Enfin, nous signalons pour recherches futures les problèmes que pose le créole haïtien à cet égard.This paper outlines the argument properties of Haitian Creole verbs, including intransitive, transitive, and ditransitive verbs, within a lexical framework which includes a level of Lexical Conceptual Structure and a level of Predicate Argument Structure. There is assumed to be a relatively free mapping relation between these two levels in order to explain the many possible variations in argument structure that most verbs exhibit. We see that there are at least two detransitivizing operations in Haitian Creole: one which operates freely and one which must be adverb-licensed. Transitive and ditransitive verbs are classified in terms of which of these operations they may undergo. The paper presents a description of Haitian Creole verb-types in Government and Binding theoretical terms and highlights several problems which Haitian Creole poses for future research

THE LICENSING OF GENITIVES

In this paper we attempt to clarify the nature of the relation between the possessor and a possessed concrete noun in an English genitive. It is argued that such a relation cannot be thematic, regardless of whether the head or the genitive marker is considered to be the theta role assigner. A view is outlined of both possession and modification which allows the possessor to be interpreted as a pure modifier. In addition, other cases of genitives are considered where the possessive item is either obligatorily (if present) or optionally coindexed with a Lexical Conceptual Structure (LCS) variable. The domain of the notion adjunct argument is modified to allow for the various relations a genitive may have to a head noun. This work supports a view of the Case Filter which considers case to be required by NPs rather than by arguments, and it is supported by the behaviour of post-nominal genitives

Case theory and the Projection Principle

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Linguistics and Philosophy, 1985.MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND HUMANITIESBibliography: leaves 390-407.by Diane Massam.Ph.D