The Categorial Status of Control Infinitivals and the Distribution of PRO

The Categorial Status of Control Infinitivals and the Distribution of PRO

This paper investigates the relation between the categorial status of control infinitivals and the distribution of PRO. There are three different types of approaches to the distribution of PRO; the binding-theoretic approach, the Case theoretic approach, and the movement approach. The binding-theoretic approach appeals to the CP/IP distinction to account for the distribution of PRO, the Case theoretic approach is compatible with and argues for the IP analysis of controls, and the movement approach takes the CP analysis of controls. I suggest a general constraint on passivization as an alternative of the CP analysis of Hornstein to account for the cases of control over a passive verb, since the CP analysis faces problems in dealing with Boskovic's (1997) examples. Still, I suspect that the two different views on the categorial status of controls, i.e., IP analysis vs. CP analysis, in fact reflect the fact that controls in itself bears a dual property. It behaves as if it is IP or a weak phase as long as Boskovic's (1997) examples are concerned but it behaves as if it is CP or a strong phase as long as the relatively free distribution are concerned. I propose that the CP deletion hypothesis in Chomsky (1981), rephrased here in terms of the C deletion in consideration of economy, is a way to deal with the dual categorial property of controls.