The historical development of the it-cleft: A comparison of two different approaches

• Amanda L. Patten ^[1]
  1. [1] Northumbria University

     Northumbria University

     Reino Unido

     
• Localización: Studies in language: International Journal Sponsored by The Foundation "Foundations of Language", ISSN 0378-4177, Vol. 36, Nº 3, 2012, págs. 548-575
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • This paper compares two approaches to a particular grammatical change. While Ball (1991, 1994) investigates the development of the it-cleft configuration from within the generative tradition of the 1990s, I have recently re-examined the historical it-cleft data from a constructional perspective (see Patten 2010, forthcoming). In this paper, I show how our different theoretical assumptions lead us to categorize and analyse the data differently. I conclude that a constructional approach is better at interpreting the diachronic facts.