Abstract
In this article I compare the use of gerunds with perceptive verbs in Spanish and in Gardenese, a Rhaeto-Romance variety spoken in Northern Italy: perceptive gerunds are used as secondary predicates in Spanish, but as defective TP-complements in Gardenese. Following Rizzi's (2014) account of parametric variation, I propose that the differences are due to the interplay of three parameters: a [+progressive] feature on Gardenese perception verbs, the pure lexical status of perception verbs in Gardenese and a [+Agreement] feature on Spanish gerunds. The discussion of the parameters involved leads to more general considerations, as a new proposal for the structure of perceptive ECMs in Romance, the confirmation of Folli/Harley's (2007) analysis of Romance causative constructions and the necessity of both the [+Agreement] and the [+Tense] feature in order to allow nominative non-finite subjects. The comparison with other Romance varieties confirms the role played by this parametric variation in perceptive constructions.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Theoretical Approaches to Linguistic Variation |
| Editors | Ermenegildo Bidese, Federica Cognola, Manuela Caterina Moroni |
| Place of Publication | Amsterdam |
| Publisher | John Benjamins |
| Pages | 53-88 |
| Number of pages | 36 |
| Volume | 234 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 2016 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- overt non-finite subjects
- Generative syntax
- Romance linguistics
- secondary predication
- ECM-constructions
- gerunds