The third construction and strength of C: A gradient harmonic grammar approach

This paper addresses the third construction in German, i.e., sentences that combine clause-internal movement from a control infinitive with extraposition of that infinitive. I argue that conflicting evidence regarding the degree of bi-/mono-clausality of the extraposed infinitive (as evidenced by Santorini & Kroch’s 1991 observation that long-distance scrambling is possible whereas wide scope of negation is not) is best captured by assuming that it qualifies as a CP with a C head that has more strength than the C of a preverbal restructuring infinitive embedded under a control verb, but less strength than the C of a non-restructuring infinitive (or a finite clause). This presupposes an approach to syntax in which a number of different strength assignments to a given type of category (like C) can be postulated, and can have a direct effect on the (non-) application of syntactic operations. I will show that a version of minimalist syntax incorporating the Phase Impenetrability Condition (Chomsky 2001; 2013) that is embedded in a gradient harmonic grammar approach (Smolensky & Goldrick 2016) can account for the variable strength of C in a principled way.