Chapter 7 Complementiser Phrases
In this chapter we continue to present the parts of the English clause, extending it
further upwards. So far we have seen that the clause has a number of layers to it,
relating to certain syntactic and semantic properties. The lower layer consists of the
thematic part of the VP, including the -assigning light verbs, which concern
argument and event structure. Above this we have the non-thematic part of the verb
phrase where the morphemes of aspect and tense are introduced. Finally above this we
have the IP in which agreement and modal auxiliaries are situated. The IP also
provides the surface Case position for the grammatical subject.
Above the IP the structure of the clause continues and in particular the
complementisers, which a large part of this chapter will be about, are found to reside.
We will see that this part of the clause structure also has its semantic impact on the
interpretation of the whole sentence, mainly in terms of the notions of declarative and
interrogative, i.e. whether the sentence is supposed to be making a statement or
asking a question. This aspect of meaning has been referred to as the Force of the
sentence.
As with the previous chapter, we start with a general discussion of the general
organisation of the super-IP structure. We then turn to look at complementisers
themselves and the part they play in certain syntactic processes. We will look at the
specifier of the complementiser and its use in various English constructions and finally
turn to phenomena that suggest the existence of a certain degree of structure between
the complementiser and the IP.
1 The structure of CP
In embedded contexts we often find that clauses are introduced by a small set of words
known as complementisers:
(1) a Knut knows that [water is wet]
b for [Stan to save the world], he needs a red cape
c I don’t remember if [I told you about my mother]
These words form a constituent with the following IP, but are not part of its structure.
So, the clause can be moved along with its complementiser, the clause and its
complementiser can be replaced by a pronoun and the clause and its complementiser
can be coordinated with another such string:
(2) a that water is wet, Knut now knows
b they told me that Stan saved the world, but I don’t believe it
c I thought that your mother was a racing driver and that she won the Grand
Prix