Abstract Adjuncts differ from arguments by a number of properties, in particular i) optionality and ii) their island status, which renders them opaque for extraction of subconstituents. Conjuncts, too, are optional and forbid extraction. Starting from this basic observation, I demonstrate that islandhood is a direct consequence of optionality in every framework where extraction involves some dependency at the target site, for instance via feature checking. Given current generative assumptions about movement, it is thus unsurprising that optional constituents —- which I call ojuncts —- are islands.

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Adjuncts, Islands, Algebra (with a Sprinkling of Semantics)

Graf, Thomas

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@Misc{Graf14CUNYtalk,
  author    = {Graf, Thomas},
  title     = {Adjuncts, Islands, Algebra (With a Sprinkling of
          Semantics)},
  year      = {2014},
  note      = {Invited talk, November 4, CUNY Graduate Center, New York,
          NY}
}

Optionality Implies Islandhood

Graf, Thomas

Files [pdf] [code]

@Misc{Graf13NYUtalk,
  author    = {Graf, Thomas},
  title     = {Optionality Implies Islandhood},
  year      = {2013},
  note      = {Invited talk, November 1, Department of Linguistics, NYU,
          New York, NY}
}

Islands Without Islands

Graf, Thomas

Files [pdf] [code]

@Misc{Graf13Delawaretalk,
  author    = {Graf, Thomas},
  title     = {Islands Without Islands},
  year      = {2013},
  note      = {Invited talk, October 4, Department of Linguistics and
          Cognitive Science, University of Delaware, Newark, DE}
}

The Syntactic Algebra of Adjuncts

Fri 19 April 2013 | in Papers |
| syntax | islands | algebra | adjunct island constraint | coordinate structure constraint |

Graf, Thomas

Abstract This paper gives a theory-neutral account of the Adjunct Island Constraint. I show that the island status of adjuncts is a consequence of two properties that set them apart from arguments: optionality and independence. Adjuncts can be omitted without affecting grammaticality, and …
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The Syntactic Algebra of Adjuncts
Fri 19 April 2013 | in Presentations |
| syntax | islands | algebra | adjunct island constraint | coordinate structure constraint |

Graf, Thomas
Abstract I argue that the special behavior of adjuncts is a consequence of two properties that set them apart from arguments: optionality and independence.
- Optionality Adjuncts can be omitted.
- Independence Independently well-formed adjuncts can be combined.
These properties yield several grammaticality inferences that …
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The Price of Freedom: Why Adjuncts Are Islands

Thu 14 March 2013 | in Presentations |
| syntax | islands | algebra | adjunct island constraint | coordinate structure constraint | features |

Graf, Thomas

Abstract I propose that if one takes seriously the Minimalist idea that syntax is driven by Merge and the feature calculus, the status of adjuncts as strong islands follows immediately from the properties that set them apart from arguments: optionality and iterability. This …
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