Abstract: Infinite Komplementation, Tibor Kiss, 1995
This study considers the syntax of German infinitive constructions,
with the concepts of control versus raising and coherence being drawn
upon as fundamental criteria for the investigation. After an
introduction to the phenomena involved and a discussion of the seminal
work by Gunnar Bech (1955/57) on this topic, a formal analysis of
optional and obligatory coherence, as well as of equi and raising is
presented within HPSG. The analysis elaborates and extends the
argument inheritance approach developed in Hinrichs/Nakazawa (1990) to
distinguish Bech's optionally coherent verbs from the class of
obligatory coherent verbs. It is argued that the syntactic properties
of equi and raising verbs are best captured by postulating a SUBJ
feature (similar to Borsley's SUBJ) but to assume that the value of
this feature will never change in syntax. In German, equi and raising
verbs differ w.r.t. the selection of the complement's SUBJ value. The
approach includes a discussion of passivization and of the scope of
nominal and adverbial operators.