Multiple Case Sharing and Syntactic Structure

Abstract

In this paper, I propose that multiple Case marking in Korean is a result of Case sharing among verbal head, Tense head and maximal projections in-between. I first show that multiple Case marking in floating quantifier constructions and inalienable possession constructions is not a uniform phenomenon and must be treated separately in syntax. Specifically, I argue that floating quantifiers show obligatory Case sharing whereas inalienable possessor may show optional Case agreement in certain derived contexts. I develop an analysis for the diverging Case patterns under the framework arguing that syntactic agreement is feature sharing. I adopt a series of arguments that Case agreement is T-feature agreement. I show that the current approach may capture a systematic correlation between underlying constituency and optional/obligatory Case agreement. I employ a Magnitude Estimation Task to obtain quantifiable psychological data for multiple Case marking constructions in Korean.