On Carlson’s “A Unified Analysis of the English Bare Plural”

Abstract

This chapter discusses Carlson’s classic paper on the English bare plural, which proposes a unitary account for the quasi-universal and the existential readings of bare plurals in English (Dogs are easily trained vs. Dogs are sitting in my back yard). The summary points out the empirical basis for this unitary analysis, the structure and force of the argumentation, and the novel semantic tools this the account employs. The last part of the article provides a synopsis of the reactions to this proposal, especially in terms of its limitations when the empirical horizon is widened to include languages other than English, where bare plurals only have the existential reading.KeywordsBare pluralsGenericsState/individual level predicates