City University of New York (CUNY) CUNY Academic Works All Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects 6-2016 On the Syntax/Semantics of Korean Nominal Particles Han-Byul Chung Graduate Center, City University of New York How does access to this work benefit ou?y Let us know! More information about this work at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/1378 Discover additional works at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu This work is made publicly available by the City University of New York (CUNY). Contact: [email protected] On the syntax/semantics of Korean nominal particles by Han-Byul Chung A dissertation submitted to the Graduate Faculty in Linguistics in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, The City University of New York 2016 © 2016 Han-Byul Chung All Rights Reserved ii On the syntax/semantics of Korean nominal particles by Han-Byul Chung This manuscript has been read and accepted for the Graduate Faculty in Linguistics to satisfy the dissertation requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Sam Al Khatib Date Chair of Examining Committee Gita Mortohardjono Date Executive Officer Jason Kandybowicz Jon Nissenbaum Supervisory Committee THE CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK iii Abstract On the syntax/semantics of Korean nominal particles by Han-byul Chung Advisor: Professor Sam Al Khatib In this dissertation, I investigate the structural positions of i/ka-marked DPs and un/nun-marked DPs in the light of Kratzer (1988; 1995) and Diesing (1990; 1992). In Korean, unlike German (and English in part), vP-external subjects and vP-internal subjects are not distinguishable at the surface. However, by adopting Kratzer (1988; 1995) and Diesing (1990; 1992), we are able to distinguish between vP-external DPs and vP-internal DPs in Korean. According to Kratzer and Diesing, syntactic position of a DP has affect in the interpretation of the DP itself, as well as the interpretation of the sentence that contains the DP; only DPs interpreted within the vP will be given the existential reading, and only sentences with vP-external elements will be allowed the generic reading. That bare DPs and complex DPs marked by i/ka(L) are given the existential reading suggests that i/ka(L)-marked DPs are located within the vP. On the other hand, that simplest intransitive sentences with i/ka(H)-marked DP subjects are allowed the generic reading suggests that the DPs are interpreted outside of the vP. Applying the same diagnostics to un/nun-marked DPs, that sentences with un/nun-marked subjects are allowed the generic reading suggests that the DPs are interpreted outside of the vP. The asymmetry in the linear word order confirms that un/nun-marked DPs are located above i/ka(H)- iv marked DPs (outside of the vP). v Acknowledgments First and foremost, I would like to express my sincere gratitude toward my dissertation committee members, Sam Al Khatib, Jason Kandybowicz, and Jon Nissenbaum, for their support and guidance. I would never have finished my dissertation without my main supervisor, Sam Al Khatib. He accepted to become my supervisor on a very short notice, I would have been lost if it weren’t for his generosity. He also supported me when I had to move back to Korea, and kept in touch with me through weekly early-morning Skype meetings. I have learned a great deal from him through his constant advises and feedbacks. Thank you very much for saving my dissertation, my academic career, and eventually my life. I would also have to thank the rest of the committee members, Jason Kandybowicz and Jon Nissenbaum. They came aboard this ship in such a short notice and helped me shape my dissertation. I am greatly in debt. I also thank my past supervisor, Marcel den Dikken. He was my supervisor since my first year at the Graduate Center, and until my dissertation proposal. He helped me develop my dissertation topic and guided me through the earlier stages of my dissertation. While I wasn’t able to finish my dissertation with him, I blame myself for not being as active as I should have been. I also thank my previous committee members, Bill McClure, and Christina Tortora for their feedbacks and comments. I also thank Prof. Heejeong Ko who taught me syntax at Seoul National University, and guided my M.A. thesis. I am also in debt to Professors, Hyunbok Lee, Younhan Kim, Chungmin Lee, Jae- il Kwon, Seungjae Lee, Seungho Nam, Jongho Jun, Hoyoung Lee, and Hyopil Shin, for their guidance and support throughout my years at SNU. vi I thank Sungyeon Ko for the teaching opportunities and the helpful advises that he gave me. I wouldn’t have survived my later days without his (kind but not so kind) words and his back yard grill. My gratitude also goes out to Jiwon Yoon for letting me stay at the Manor Lane. I also thank Starbucks for all the sugary coffee, Pathmark at Edgewater for providing me with occasional steaks. I also thank Dr. Pepper for being a doctor without a dissertation. And all the other diet drinks that helped me survive the hot summers. I also thank Starwars and Legos for keeping me entertained, and Red Sox, Ortiz, and LeBron James for keeping me afloat during the hard times. I also thank my family members, my dad, my mom, my sister, my brother-in-law, and my nephews. Thank you mom and dad for all your support; mostly financial :). I thank my sister, and my brother- in-law for staying in school with me for all those years. Now it’s your turn to graduate. And I also thank my two nephews Erle and Owen for just being my nephews. Finally, I would need to thank my wife and my son. My son, Ghanouh came into this world when I was writing my master thesis at SNU. I held him in one hand and wrote my thesis with the other. He grew with me (me in weight, him in both height and weight) during my time at the Graduate Center, and now he is already a 3rd grader. Unlike most fathers, I was at home to watch him grow, which was a blessing. Thank you Ghanouh for staying healthy. My wife, Hyun-Joo Kim, I don’t know where I would be without you. But you sure would be in a better place if it weren’t for me. I thank you for all the Korean foods that you fed me, and all the sugary coffee drinks that you introduced me to. I also thank you for marrying me, having my kid, and coming with me to the U.S. But mostly, I thank you for all the extra weight I gained, and the extra wrinkles from the laughs that you induced upon me. My world would not be the same without you. vii Abbreviations ACC accusative PL plural CONT contrastive PRG progressive COMP complementizer PRT particle COP copula PRS present DAT dative Q interrogative DECL declarative REL relativizer EX exhaustive TOP topic FOC focus FUT future GEN genitive HON honorific INF infinitival INT intransitive NEG negation NOM nominative PAST past viii Table of Contents Chapter 1 Introduction ............................................................................................................. 1 1.1. Background: semantic particles and Case particles ......................................................... 1 1.2. Previous analyses ............................................................................................................. 6 1.2.1. The homophonous-particle analyses ......................................................................... 6 1.2.2. The semantic particle analyses .................................................................................. 7 1.2.3. The Case marker analyses ......................................................................................... 8 1.3. The proposal ..................................................................................................................... 9 1.4. Organization ................................................................................................................... 11 Chapter 2 Two types of i/ka-marked DPs ............................................................................. 13 2.1. The exhaustive reading and prosodic prominence ......................................................... 13 2.1.1. The exhaustive DPs................................................................................................. 14 2.1.2. Prosodically prominent i/ka-marked DPs and the exhaustive reading ................... 15 2.1.2.1. I/ka-marked DPs in answers to questions ........................................................ 15 2.1.2.2. I/ka-marked DPs in specificational copular sentences .................................... 17 2.1.2.3. I/ka-marked DPs in kes-clefts .......................................................................... 25 2.1.2.4. Summary .......................................................................................................... 27 2.1.3. I/ka-marked DPs in negated and embedded clauses ............................................... 29 2.1.3.1. I/ka-marked DPs under negation ..................................................................... 29 2.1.3.2. I/ka(H)-marked DPs in embedded clauses ...................................................... 33 2.1.4. Prosodic prominence and the exhaustive reading ................................................... 35 un/nun-marked DPs with prosodic prominence .............................................. 35 2.1.4.2. Particle-less DPs with prosodic prominence ................................................... 39 2.1.5. Summary ................................................................................................................. 41 2.2. I/ka-marked DPs and