The Syntax of Clausal and Verbal Pro-form/Ellipsis in Korean: Focusing on mit- 'believe' and sayngkakha- 'think' Verbs

Abstract

This paper examines the pro-form replacement and ellipsis in the construction containing mit- 'believe' and sayngkakha- 'think' verbs in Korean. These verbs are known to allow the embedded subject to be either Nominative and Accusative Case-marked. We will first investigate how the kulehkey '(do) so' replacement and ellipsis apply to the embedded clause of these verbs when its subject is Nominative or Accusative. Noting that the pro-form kulehkey '(do) so' replaces the embedded clause but allows an expression to move out of it as a remnant or surviving element, we propose that the kuleh substitute (excluding the clause-typing morpheme -key) is in fact a replacement of the embedded TP and allows for extraction of the embedded remnant to the embedded [Spec,CP] before the replacement applies. We then go on to examine the kulay 'do so' replacement of the matrix VP involving these verbs and argue that this replacement can be analyzed on a par with the Pseudogapping construction in English. In particular, the kulay substitute replaces a VP, but like the kuleh substitute, it allows for extraction of the object DP before the replacement applies.