On the Derivation of the Non-Canonical Object Construction in Mandarin Chinese

Abstract

This paper makes a study of the derivation of the non-canonical object construction in Mandarin Chinese. In light of the transitivity of verbs, two cases in the NOC are discussed: a) the non-canonical object construction with transitive verbs and b) the non-canonical object construction with unergative verbs. Based on the theory of phase and phase extension, a mixture of direct object properties and PP object properties in the non-canonical object construction can be explained in that the non-canonical object is licensed by both the preposition and the verb.