The Grammar of French Quantification (Studies in Natural Language and Linguistic Theory Book 83)

This book is the first extensive study on French Quantification in the field of Syntax. It provides a typology of four main quantified noun phrases in French (existential, universal, negative and __wh-__), detailing their syntactic, semantic and prosodic behaviors and showing that they can be reduced to two classes—Split-DP structures or Floating quantification. Relying on syntax and semantics, the book establishes a three-way structural typology of __wh__ in-situ phrases and extends it to existentials. It pays special attention to the prosodic properties associated with their different readings and proposes an analysis of the distribution of subextraction and pied-piping. Similarly based on semantic and syntactic tests, the book reveals N(egative) words to be universal Quantifiers. It proposes a new structure of N-words in terms of constituent negation and includes a detailed analysis of the difference between __not an N__ and __not all the N__ in French. This First Extensive Study Of French Quantification In The Field Of Syntax Provides A Typology Of Four Main Quantified Noun Phrases In French (existential, Universal, Negative And Wh- ), Detailing Their Syntactic, Semantic And Prosodic Behaviours. By Lena Baunaz. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Front Matter....Pages i-xii Overview....Pages 1-16 Split-DPs....Pages 17-102 Floating Quantification: French Universal Quantifiers....Pages 103-144 N-Words....Pages 145-202 Intervention Effects Revisited....Pages 203-235 Conclusion....Pages 237-249 Back Matter....Pages 251-260