Title: Wh-island Effects in Chinese
Subtitle: A formal experimental study
Series Title: Linguistik Aktuell/Linguistics Today 282
Publication Year: 2024
Publisher: John Benjamins
http://www.benjamins.com/
Book URL: https://benjamins.com/catalog/la.282

Author: Xu Chen
Hardback: ISBN: 9789027214515 Pages: 193 Price: U.S. $ 149.00
Hardback: ISBN: 9789027214515 Pages: 193 Price: U.K. £ 97.00
Hardback: ISBN: 9789027214515 Pages: 193 Price: Europe EURO 115.00
Hardback: ISBN: 9789027214515 Pages: 193 Price: Europe EURO 121.90
eBook: ISBN: 9789027247254 Pages: 193 Price: U.S. $ 149.00
eBook: ISBN: 9789027247254 Pages: 193 Price: U.K. £ 97.00
eBook: ISBN: 9789027247254 Pages: 193 Price: Europe EURO 115.00
Abstract:

This book examines three controversial generalizations concerning wh-island effects in Chinese: argument and adjunct asymmetry, subject and object asymmetry, and D-linked and non-D-linked asymmetry. Experiments under the factorial definition of island effects reveal that: (1) both argument and adjunct wh-in-situ are sensitive to the wh-island, displaying no asymmetry; (2) subject wh-in-situ manifests a larger magnitude of island effects, whereas object wh-in-situ shows a smaller size due to the confounding of double name penalty, exhibiting a special pattern of asymmetry; (3) D-linked and non-D-linked who-in-situ evince no asymmetry, while D-linked and non-D-linked what-in-situ demonstrate a marginal asymmetry. Findings support the theory of covert wh-movement on the interpretation of Chinese wh-in-situ. The pattern of wh-island effects can be attributed to the violation of locality principles during wh-feature movement. This book is primarily tailored for researchers interested in the study of Chinese wh-questions and generative linguistics in the broad sense.

Linguistic Field(s): Syntax

Language Family(ies): Sino-Tibetan

Written In: English (eng)