The objective of this study is to clarify the language-specific characteristics of relative clauses in Japanese through a comparative analysis of relative constructions in Japanese and Bangla along four parameters: i) degree of nominalization in the relative clause, ii) linking of the relative clause with the matrix clause, iii) referential coherence, and iv) application of the noun phrase accessibility hierarchy in the relative clause. I analyze the language-specific characteristics of Japanese relative clauses to cast light on the controversy as to which kinds of complex noun phrases actually have relative clause status, on the basis of the conditions for desentential nominalization and also specific morphosyntactic criteria. With this analysis, I argue that the constituent formed from a finite clause by a two-phase process of desentential nominalization involving one of the arguments of the corresponding finite clause satisfies the morphosyntactic conditions to be a relative clause. The noun phrase satisfying these conditions receives a relative clause interpretation as its head shares a referent with the element in the gap whose presence is indicated by the predicate of the relative clause.
日本語関係節の再検討 : ベンガル語を参照しながら
papers0802.pdf
(551.65KB)
運用指針、オープンアクセス方針、等
