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Je-Desto, Je-Umso: An Analysis of the German Comparative Correlative Construction

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 May 2023

André Meinunger
André Meinunger*
Affiliation:
Leibniz-Zentrum Allgemeine Sprachwissenschaft (ZAS)
*
Leibniz-Zentrum Allgemeine Sprachwissenschaft (ZAS) Schuetzenstrasse 18 D-10117 Berlin, Germany [meinunger@leibniz-zas.de]
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Abstract

This paper argues that German je-desto-sentences are regular verb-second structures. Unlike left-dislocation(-like) structures (such as wenn-dann-clauses or free relative clause constructions with case mis-match and resumption), je-desto-strings are normal, regular prefield structures. A proposal from the literature is developed further, accord-ing to which je-clauses, like relative clauses, belong structurally to the clausal constituent into which they are integrated. The head of these constituents remains in its canonical middle field position, whereas relative as well as je-clauses usually extrapose to the right. If the host constituent is moved to the prefield, the attributive clause is carried along with it, with the je-clause realized initially and the relative clause usually finally. However, relatives may also precede their head noun. Such an analysis highlights the common features of clause types that are otherwise treated as fundamentally distinct from one another, without denying the differences and postulating construction-specific verb-third realizations. In addition, various other realization options are discussed and dismissed as grammatical illusions.*

Keywords

comparative correlative constructionleft dislocationverb thirdextrapositiongrammatical illusionDP-internal inversion
Type
Articles
Information
Journal of Germanic Linguistics , Volume 35 , Issue 2 , June 2023 , pp. 148 - 204
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Copyright
© Society for Germanic Linguistics 2023

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Footnotes

*

I have profited from discussions with Christian Fortmann, Hubert Haider, and Werner Frey. I know that they do not agree with everything I propose in the present contribution. Nevertheless, they proved to be very helpful and encouraging, so I want to thank them. Furthermore, I am thankful to the anonymous reviewers, especially to one of them. All shortcomings are my own.

References

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