Phonology-syntax interface in Turkish: evidence from binding and scope phenomena

Abstract

This study analyzes the influence of one particular phonological feature - focus - on binding and scope phenomena in Turkish. The analysis of binding specifically includes pronominal binding. It basically specifies the influence of focus on coreferential reading between a pronoun and its antecedent. With respect to scope phenomena, this study investigates the influence of focus on relative scope order between some quantificational elements including the universal quantifier, the existential quantifier, numerals, reason clauses and negation The basic claim on the interaction of focus with pronominal binding is that focus on either pronoun or its antecedent precludes coreferentiality. The ill-formed sentences in which the antecedent is focused is accounted for by Chomsky's (1981) Leftness Condition (LC). However, it has been noted that the LC is incapable of accounting for ill-formed sentences in which the pronoun, this time, is focused. Consequently, it is pointed out that it is in fact Lujan's (1989) Accessibility Principle (AP) and Bound-Variable Constraint (BVC) which can correctly explain the ill-formed sentences in question. Supportive evidence on the blocking effect of focus on coreferentiality comes from discourse factors according to which the coindexation between a new entity (as a result of focusing) and an old entity gives rise to a clash.With regard to the effect of focus on scope phenomena, it is claimed that two different prosodic patterns yield two different sentences with two different meanings. It has been noted that, the quantificational element, when focused takes wide scope interpretation but when the sentence is uttered with a sentential stress, negation takes wide scope. The focused quantificational element takes its wide scope interpretation through focus movement in the sense of Rizzi (1997) in order to satisfy Focus Criterion (Brody, 1995). The claim on the focused element taking wide scope is supported with the facts observed in the interaction between ne.... ne phrases, focus and negation and also from [wh-] elements having matrix clause scope.