On the nature of the superiority effect in Russian: Grammatical relations or c-command
Kseniia Studenikina
Lomonosov Moscow State University, Pushkin State Russian Language Institute
Abstract. The paper deals with the syntax of superiority in Russian ignoring the subject-object asymmetry between wh-words and regarding only c-command. The wh-subject in multiple questions has different properties from the other wh-words. In this study, I consider questions with two wh-objects (the matrix clause object and the dependent clause object) in order to investigate the influence of the structural priority itself. The study shows that in constructions with wh-subject and wh-object, d-linking of the wh-subject is determinative for superiority, while in questions with two wh-objects the linear order and the length of wh-phrases turned out to be important.
Keywords: multiple wh-questions, discourse linking, superiority effects, c-command, subject-object asymmetry
For citation: Studenikina К. On the nature of the superiority effect in Russian: Grammatical relations or c-command. Typology of Morphosyntactic Parameters. 2020. Vol. 3, iss. 1. Pp. 131–151. (In Rus.)