Argument-mapping and extration

Abstract

In this paper, I propose a unified account for argument-mapping and islandhood in the verbal domain, while casting new light on the notion external argument, as well as the interaction of Case and argument-mapping.I argue that both types of syntactic merger (set-merge and pair-merge; Chomsky, 2004) are used for the merger of verbal arguments. The type of merger determines the islandhood of the argument at its base position, and along with Case-checking, it determines the internal or external mapping of the argument. Choice of the type of merger is governed by the feature-composition of the thematic role assigned to an argument, using the thematic feature system developed by Reinhart (2000).This approach is shown to have clear empirical advantages, when compared to existing frameworks. In addition, it provides answers for previously unresolved questions about argument externality.