Adverbial and Argument-Doubling Clauses in Cree

Description

Publisher: University of Manitoba Publication date: 1999 Number of pages: 138Cree has been described as a pronominal argument language. This classification implies that argument positions in Cree are not available to overt NPs. Instead, argument positions are located within the verbal cornplex, and are filled by non-overt pronominal arguments. Overt NPs are located in non-argument positions. This thesis argues that subordinate clauses are also located in non-argument positions. While this might suggest that pronominal argument languages would lack complement clauses (i.e., no argument position for a clause) there is evidence to show that subordinate clauses can be divided into those with complement-like properties, and those which have adjunct-like properties. Unlike previous treatments of subordinate clauses, where these clauses were differentiated by a difference in structural position (i.e., argument versus adjunct) this analysis does not base the division on structural position. Following a distinction found in overt NPs, I propose that subordinate clauses are differentiated by whether or not they are an argument-doubling expression.