1. Syntax
Lecture 9:
Verb Types 2

2. Two argument verbs: a reminder
Each predicate is related to the appropriate argument
agent
theme
Two predicates
null one meaning “do”
lexical one with descriptive content
Complex verb moves to support inflection
Agent moves to subject position
Lexical verb moves to support agentive verb

3. One argument verbs
What are traditionally called intransitive verbs do not behave uniformly
John smiled
He smiled an evil smile (cognate object)
John arrived

4. Cognate objects
The definition of an intransitive verb is one that takes no object
But some can appear with a very limited object which is ‘cognate’ with the verb itself
Cognate = having the same derivation
Latin: pater German: Vater English: father
E.g.
But not
Drink a drink
‘drink’ is not really intransitive
It is transitive but can have an implicit object
He drank =
He drank something
He smiled 
He smiled something
Laugh a sinister laugh
Die a gruesome death
Sleep a fitful sleep

5. One argument verbs
What are traditionally called intransitive verbs do not behave uniformly
John smiled
He smiled an evil smile (cognate object)
John arrived
* He arrived a late arrival
There arrived a stranger (there construction)

6. There construction
In the there construction, what normally functions as the subject appears behind the verb, in object position
An article appeared in the magazine
There appeared an article in the magazine
The subject position is filled by there
A meaningless pronoun
The post verbal position is restricted to indefinites
The article appeared in the magazine
* There appeared the article in the magazine
Some things look like there constructions, but are not
There goes the richest man in the world
The subject is not meaningless but deictic
The object is definite

7. One argument verbs
What are traditionally called intransitive verbs do not behave uniformly
John smiled
He smiled an evil smile (cognate object)
* There smiled a man
John arrived
* He arrived a late arrival
There arrived a stranger (there construction)
In the post arrived a package (locative inversion)

8. Locative inversion
This involves the switching of places between the argument in subject position and a locative PP
At first this looks as though the PP is in subject position, but
In the post there arrived a package

9. Locative inversion
If this is the same structure, then there seems to be an empty ‘there’ subject in locative inversion
In the post --- arrived a letter
This is the only case in English where the subject of a finite clause can be empty, though we do find such things in other languages
(én) sétálok
It is possible that such null subjects are in part licensed by a condition of recoverability
We know the subject is ‘én’ because of the verb’s inflection

10. Locative inversion The same could be true for the there subject
There is a man in the garden
There are men in the garden
As it is the subject which determines the form of the verb, there must have different features in these cases
The features of the there subject are determined by the post verbal argument
It follows that the there subject is recoverable from the post verbal argument in the same way that ‘én’ is recoverable from ‘-ok’

11. Locative inversion
It is an unsolved question why this only works with fronted PPs and not in all there constructions:
In the garden (there) stands a fountain
*(there) stands a fountain in the garden

12. One argument verbs
What are traditionally called intransitive verbs do not behave uniformly
John smiled
He smiled an evil smile (cognate object)
* There smiled a man
* in the theatre smiled a man
John arrived
* He arrived a late arrival
There arrived a stranger (there construction)
In the post arrived a package (locative inversion)

13. The difference between them
Verbs which can have cognate objects but can’t appear in there and locative inversion constructions are called unergatives
Verbs which cannot have cognate objects but can appear in there and locative inversion constructions are called unaccusatives
Unergatives have an agent argument
Unaccusatives have a theme argument

14. Unergatives
The UTAH says that there is a uniform position for each argument type
We have seen that agents appear in the specifier of an abstract agentive verb
This suggests that the analysis of an unergative is:
But the lexical part of smile has no argument
Is this something to worry about?

15. Nominal predicates There are two types of nominals formed from verbs:
Those that refer to the process
Those that refer to the result
The building of a bridge
The building
Result nominals typically do not take arguments
So arguments seem to be something related to verbal things

16. Light verbs
Light verbs are fully meaningful verbs used in situations which do not make use of all their meaning:
He took a walk
He gave her a look
He had a quick peep
All of these verbs take a nominal as their complement
The nominal expresses the lexical content of the process (but has no argument)
The verb adds the argument (but not lexical content)
This is very similar to what we are suggesting for the analysis of unergative verbs
He walked
He looked at her
He quickly peeped

17. Cognate Objects
The analysis also provides a possible position for the cognate object

18. Unaccusatives Unaccusative verbs have a theme argument
Themes go in the specifier of lexical verbs
Therefore the structure of an unaccusative verb is:
This accounts for the absence of the cognate object
The object position is already taken

19. The there construction
In the there construction the theme argument does not move to the subject position
Presumably it stays inside the VP
But the verb ends up in front of the theme
So it must move
The verb is in front of the theme even if it doesn’t move to the I position
There might arrive a letter
So there must be a verbal position between its original place and the I

20. The there construction

21. The there construction
This position must be a head position
This head cannot appear with unergatives
The agentive head is present with unergatives but not unaccusatives
So, this head position is in complementary distribution with the agentive verb
This suggest that the two are the same kind of verb, though they differ in meaning
Agentive = do
There head = ???

22. The there construction

23. Connection to the passive
Recall that the passive morpheme also stands in complementary distribution with the agentive verb
The passive morpheme is also in complementary distribution with the there head: unaccusatives cannot passivise:
* a letter was arrived
The passive morpheme and the there head both have no argument of their own
Unlike the passive morpheme, the there head licences a there subject
The there head selects only unaccusative complements
The passive and agentive heads select only transitive complements

24. 3 structures compared
Agentive
Passive
There construction

25. Conclusion Two types of intransitives Unaccusative Unergative
Consists of
Lexical predicate with theme in specifier
No place for cognate object
No agentive verb
Can appear in there construction
Unergative
Consists of
Agentive verb with agent in specifier + lexical predicate
Has place for cognate object
Agentive verb in complementary distribution with there head
Can’t appear in there construction