356 Chapter 11 Complex sentences
This structure is unavailable with other matrix predicates.
(93) *Moso Embuk, karces-sa la enga' e-bagi ka kondhektur.
by eld.sister ticket-DEF already remember OV-give to conductor
(Big Sister remembered to give her ticket to the conductor.)
There are some differences between the two classes of predicates. As
illustrated in section 4, coreference of the complement subject and the matrix
argument is optional—a non-coreferential complement subject is possible with
coba' ‘try’, jajal ‘try’, and terro ‘want’, (71) and (72). This option is unavaila-
ble for aspectual predicates. Thus the sentences in (94) and (95) are both unac-
ceptable.
(94) *Pa' Salim la ambu ana'-na ng-eccet bengko-na.
Mr Salim already stop child-DEF AV-paint house-DEF
(Pak Salim stopped his son painting the house.)
(95) *Ina molae Siti maca sorad-da Ebu'.
Ina start Siti AV.read letter-DEF mother
(Ina started Siti reading Mother’s letter.)
The aspectual predicates also differ from coba' ‘try’, jajal ‘try’, and terro
‘want’ as well as object control predicates as their complement clause may not
be in object voice if a complement object is not the matrix subject.
(96) *Ina molae sorad-da Ebu' e-baca.
Ina start letter-DEF mother OV-read
(Ina started reading Mother’s letter.)
(97) *Kaka' terros bengko rowa e-eccet.
eld.brother continue house that OV-paint
(Big Brother continued to paint the house.)
Thus, it is impossible for the complement of an aspectual predicate to
have an overt subject distinct from the matrix subject, neither a non-
coreferential actor argument (94-95) nor the complement object (96-97). There-
fore, despite the acceptability of object voice marking in the complement (87-
88), the complement of aspectual predicates appears not to include a syntactic
subject position.