volume: 15 (2022)
pages: 50–69
author: Mark Newson and Krisztina Szécsényi
title: Not so exceptional case marking in English
DOI: http://doi.org/10.57133/evenyrbk.22ns
keywords: unmarked case, dependent case theory, exceptional case marking, pronoun realisation
abstract: In this paper, we argue that what is standardly seen as an exceptional phenomenon in English, the accusative subject of certain infinitival clauses, is in fact quite normal. The standard view assumes that English has a nominative-accusative system, where these cases are canonically associated with subject and object position respectively. The accusative subject therefore seems to have object-like properties, entering into a relationship with the verbal system of the higher clause. On the contrary, we argue that English has a neutral system at clause level and that only one case is assigned to all DPs: unmarked case. It is the behaviour of some of the pronouns of the language, five lexical items in total, which give the appearance that a different case is assigned to subjects and objects. All other nominal elements, however, indicate that no such distinction is made. Adopting a Dependent Case Theory perspective, we show that the assumption that no dependent case is assigned at clause level offers a much simpler theory and therefore that distinctions in pronoun forms should be delt with differently. Our claim is that the pronoun forms that realise the single case assigned to them is contextually determined. In fact, the ‘accusative’ realisation is the general one, ‘nominative’ being restricted to the context of a finite tense. Therefore, the ‘accusative’ subject of non-finite clauses turns out to be not only not exceptional but more normal that the ‘nominative’ subject of finite clauses.
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