Bivalency and Intransitivity by David A Basilico

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Summary

With examples from a range of languages, this is one of the few book-length, theoretical treatments of the antipassive construction. It gives an up-to-date theoretical analysis of antipassives within generative linguistics making it essential reading for linguists whose focus is the syntax/semantics interface, especially valency-changing phenomena.

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Bivalency and Intransitivity by David A Basilico

One of the few full-length, theoretical treatments of the antipassive construction, this book provides an in-depth study of antipassives and their interaction with applicatives and causatives in natural language, three constructions that have long represented a puzzle to syntacticians. It argues that the antipassive reveals more about the introduction of the external argument than the demotion or elimination of the direct object, and demonstrates that there are at least two types of antipassives:Voice antipassives and verbalizing antipassives. Other valency-changing phenomena, like the applicative, causative, and reflexive, and their interaction with the antipassive, are also addressed. The book takes a cross-linguistic view and includes data from the Central Alaskan Yup'ik, Halkomelem Salish, Yidiɲ, Diyari, Russian, and Latvian, among others. Providing an up-to-date theoretical analysis of antipassives within the framework of generative linguistics, this is essential reading for researchers and advanced students whose focus is the syntax/semantics interface, especially valency-changing phenomena.
David A. Basilico is Director of Linguistics at the University of Alabama, Birmingham. He has been researching valency-changing and argument-rearranging phenomena for over thirty years. His published work has appeared in Linguistic Inquiry, Natural Language and Linguistic Inquiry, Language, and Lingua, among other publications.
SKU Unavailable
ISBN 13 9781009417211
ISBN 10 1009417215
Title Bivalency and Intransitivity
Author David A Basilico
Series Cambridge Studies In Linguistics
Condition Unavailable
Binding Type Paperback
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Year published 2026-08-31
Cover note Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.