354 LAURA Α. MICHAELIS
As an accomplishment, this predicate licenses the following thematic roles:
x=effector, y=locative, and z=theme. Both the locative and theme argu
ments bear accusative case, and the coding principle (24b) might then lead
us to believe that both bear a macrorole. This belief would, however, force
us to reject the principle that no predicate can assign more than two mac-
roroles. In fact, this principle can probably be preserved: it appears that
only one of the two accusative NPs represents a macrorole-bearing argu
ment. As observed by Jensen (1981:15), the passive forms of such ditransi-
tives allow only the locative argument to occupy subject status, as shown in
(29a-d). These examples demonstrate that it is only the argument repre
senting a locative that can be endowed by the passive construction with the
behavioral and coding properties of a subject:
(29) . C. Flaminius sententiam rogatus est.
C. Flaminius(N-M-sG) thought(A) asked(N-MSG) is
"C. Flaminius was asked his thoughts."
b. Sententia C. Flaminium rogata est.
thought(NF-sG) C. Flaminius(A) asked(N-FSG) is
"C. Flaminius thoughts werre asked him."
Pueri philosophiam docti est ab eo.
boys(NM-PL) philosophy(A) taught(NMPL) is by him()
"The boys were taught philosphy by him."
d. Philosophia pueros docta est ab eo.
philosophy(N-FSG) boys(A) taught(N-FSG) is by him()
"Philosophy was taught the boys by him."
As macrorole status is an absolute prerequisite for PrP status, and as the
accusatively marked theme argument cannot apparently achieve PrP status,
one can thereby conclude that this argument does not bear a macrorole,
having been deprived of undergoer status by a marked linkage of locative to
U. This deprived theme argument, however, does not bear the ablative or
genitive case predicted by (26). The small class of Latin ditransitives must
then be marked as an exception to that coding principle.
The second class of exceptions to the coding principles advocated here
are the activity verbs taking ablative non-subject arguments. These verbs
are exemplified in (16); they have traditionally been said to denote "use
and enjoyment". Here the ablative, like the dative appearing with such
activity verbs as servio, serves merely to code a non-macrorole core argu-