Syntax

Lecture 10:Auxiliaries

Types of auxiliary verb

• Modal auxiliaries belong to the category of inflection– They are in complementary distribution with• Tense morphemes

– * he may went

• The infinitive marker (to)– * he may to go

• Other modal auxiliaries– * he may can go

Types of auxiliary verb• Non-modal auxiliaries (have and be – aspectual

auxiliaries) are not in complementary distribution with– Tense morphemes

• He had/has gone• He is/was going

– The infinitival marker• ... Him to have gone• ... Him to be going

– Modal auxiliaries• He may have gone• He may be going

• We conclude that these auxiliaries do not belong to the category of Inflection

The place of aspectual auxiliaries

• The auxiliaries have and be precede the main verb but follow the inflection– He may V-en/-ing

• The inflection always takes a VP complement– He may [VP --- ]

• It follows that the auxiliaries must be inside the VP

havebe

The place of aspectual auxiliaries

• There are 4 possible positions any element can be in a phrase– Head– Complement– Specifier– Adjunct

• We can immediately rule out complement as the auxiliary is in front of the verb

The place of aspectual auxiliaries

• For auxiliaries to be specifiers or adjuncts they must be analysed as phrases

• But there is no reason to consider have and be as phrases

• The only feasible analysis is therefore that auxiliaries are verbal heads

Evidence for the V analysis of auxiliaries

• The VP can undergo two specific operations in English– VP fronting

• Give in to blackmail, this government never will

– VP deletion• You might apologise to her but I certainly won’t

• If the auxiliary heads a VP which contains another VP headed by the lexical verb, we would expect either VP to be frontable and deletable

Evidence for the V analysis of auxiliaries

• VP fronting– I thought he might not have written the article but

Evidence for the V analysis of auxiliaries

• VP fronting– I thought he might not have written the article but• [VP Written the article], he might have

Evidence for the V analysis of auxiliaries

• VP fronting– I thought he might not have written the article but• [VP Written the article], he might have

• [VP Have written the article], he might

Evidence for the V analysis of auxiliaries

• VP fronting– I thought he might not have written the article but• [VP Written the article], he might have

• [VP Have written the article], he might

• VP deletion– He won’t have written the article but

Evidence for the V analysis of auxiliaries

• VP fronting– I thought he might not have written the article but• [VP Written the article], he might have

• [VP Have written the article], he might

• VP deletion– He won’t have written the article but• She will have [VP ]

Evidence for the V analysis of auxiliaries

• VP fronting– I thought he might not have written the article but• [VP Written the article], he might have

• [VP Have written the article], he might

• VP deletion– He won’t have written the article but• She will have [VP ]

• She will [VP ]

The nature of auxiliaries

• Have and be are used in different contexts– Be is used• When there is no verbal predicate

– He is tall• In progressive constructions

– He is running• In passive constructions

– He is beaten

– Have is used• In perfect constructions

– He has read the book

The nature of auxiliaries

• In all these cases (except the copula) the auxiliary bears tense and is accompanied by a specific morpheme on the following verb– He is/was running– He is/was beaten– He has/had beaten the eggs

• The ‘double’ appearance of auxiliary + morpheme is rather puzzling – why are both things needed?

The nature of auxiliaries• In situations where tense is not present (special

clauses sometimes called Small Clauses), we get the morpheme, but not the auxiliary– I saw [him running away] (he was running away)– I heard [the window broken] (the window was broken)– Him finished the exam already! (he had finished the exam

already)• This suggests that the auxiliary’s role is simply to

support tense• It is the inflection that carries the appropriate

meaning

Do as a dummy

• Do only ever appears in the inflection position and is in complementary distribution with all free inflections– * He will do not leave– * for him to do not leave

• However, it cannot be analysed as an inflection as it always appears with an inflection – the bound tense morpheme– He did/does not know– * He do not know

Do as a dummy• Do also only ever appears in certain types of construction

– Negative• He did not blink

– Interrogatives• Did he blink• What did he say

• We can account for this behaviour if we assume that do is used to support tense in situations where the main verb cannot:– * he blinked not– * blinked he– * what said he

• The main verb never precedes the negative particle not or the subject

• So when there is a bound inflection and the verb cannot move to support it, something else must

Do as a dummy

Do as a dummy• Seen like this, do is a dummy auxiliary– It adds nothing to the semantics of the sentence, but

performs a purely grammatical role• But – have and be function to support tense – the aspectual meaning they are associated with are

carried by the inflections– So have and be themselves contribute no meaning

• Therefore, have and be also appear to be dummies

Have and be as dummies• Why do we need a dummy in progressive, passive and

perfect constructions?– These constructions are associated with a bound

morpheme• Progressive = -ing• Passive = -en (or irregular forms)• Perfect = -en (or irregular forms)

– Typically it is the main verb which supports these• He is running• He was seen• He has gone

– English is not an agglutinating language• Each head can support only one overt inflection

– * he runninged– * he seened– * he goned

– If the main verb supports the progressive, passive or perfect morpheme, something else must support tense

Have and be as dummies

progressive passive perfect

Have and be as dummies• What determines which

dummy to use?– When the following head is

perfect use have

Have and be as dummies• What determines which

dummy to use?– When the following head is

perfect use have– When the following head is

a thematic verb use do

Have and be as dummies• What determines which

dummy to use?– When the following head is

perfect use have– When the following head is

a thematic verb use do– Use be in all other cases

Have and be as dummies• What determines which

dummy to use?– When the following head is

perfect use have– When the following head is

a thematic verb use do– Use be in all other cases

Combinations

• Because the aspectual heads select for VP complements and project VPs, they are not in complementary distribution

• When they appear together they have a strict order:– Perfect – progressive – passive • He had been running (perf + prog)• He was being followed (prog + pass)• He had been followed (perf + pass)• He had been being followed (perf + prog + pass)

The worst case

Conclusion• The non-modal (aspectual) elements in English

are verbal• They are realised as bound morphemes• Because English is not agglutinating, the main

verb can only support one overt morpheme• When an aspectual morpheme is present, tense

and other bound morphemes therefore have to be bound by a dummy auxiliary

• Have, be and do are all dummy auxiliaries used to bind tense and other morphemes under various situations