Synopses & Reviews
Study of the positive/negative systems of several languages, working within Binding Theory.
Synopsis
Ljiljana Progovac presents cross-linguistic data on negative polarity, reflexive binding and the subjunctive mood, and a unified analysis for various languages. She argues that Negative Polarity Items (NPIs), such as âanyoneâand âeverâ, are anaphoric in nature and must be bound in their governing category, while Positive Polarity Items (PPIs), such as âsomeoneâand âalreadyâ, are subject to Principle B of the Binding Theory. She captures many similarities between polarity and anaphora, and accounts for hitherto unexplained facts about polarity items.
Table of Contents
Preface; Introduction; 1. Negative contexts: Serbian/Croatian; 2. Negative contexts: English; 3. Non-negative polarity contexts; 4. Language variation; 5. Rhetorical questions; 6. Subjunctive: domain extensions; 7. Free-choice items; 8. Ladusaw and Linebarger; Notes; References; Index.