ABSTRACT
In this chapter we propose that the fundamental difference between “stage” and “individual” level predicates is not lexico-semantic and is not expressed in thematic/aspectual terms. We study the apparent differences between small clauses with an individual and a stage level interpretation (which are selected by different types of matrix verbs) and argue that these differences are best expressed by way of purely syntactic devices. In particular, we argue that what is at stake are differences in information (theme/rheme) structure, which we encode in the syntax through different mechanisms of morphological marking. There are no individual-level predicates, but simply predicates which in some pragmatic sense “are about” their morphologically designated subject (an idea already present in Milsark 1977). There are no stage-level predicates, but simply predicates which rather than being about their thematic subject are about the event they introduce. The distinction corresponds roughly to what Kuroda (1972) calls a categorical and a thetic judgment (a terminology we adopt). The former is about a prominent argument (for us, a CATEGORY), while the latter is simply reporting on an event. A minimalist grammar encodes differences of this sort in terms of morphological features. These features are checked in a designated site F which interfaces with the performative levels, where aspects of intentional structure are expressed. Having argued for this syntactic account, the chapter proceeds to posing two related semantic questions. We deal with why it should be that categorical (individual level) predication introduces a standing characteristic of a CATEGORY, while thetic (stage level) predication introduces a non-standing characteristic of a standard subject argument. We also propose a line of research for why CATEGORIES should be “strong” in quantificational terms, while standard arguments may be “weak,” roughly in Milsark’s original sense. We suggest that these two semantic properties follow from, and do not drive the syntactic mapping. Our approach, thus, is blind to semantic motivation, although it is not immune to semantic consequence. Our main motivation in writing this chapter is that this is the correct order of things, and not the other way around.
