The Even Yearbook 7 (2006)
#71
volume: 7 (2006)
author: Mark Newson and Vili Maunula
title: Word Order in Finnish: Whose side is the focus on?
keywords: Optimality Syntax, Alignment Syntax, Finnish, Topic, Focus, Contrast, Gradient and Non-gradient constraints
abstract: This paper investigates the organising principles of Finnish sentences and proposes an Alignment Syntax analysis for a number of observed phenomena concerning the positioning of Focus, Topic and Contrastive elements. The main observation is that only contrastive elements are specifically fronted and simple topic and focus elements usually occupy their grammatical function positions (SVO). A focus subject, however, will be postposed in the presence of a fronted contrastive element. We analyse this as the result of the interaction of alignment constraints of two main types: gradient alignments, which place an element with respect to a particular point (a stated host or the edge of a domain) and non-gradient alignments, which place an element with respect to a stretch of the expression (in front or behind the host or domain). This theory is argued to be superior to one which makes use of differentially violated constraints both on empirical and conceptual grounds.
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