On V-stranding Negative Replies with an Implicit Conjunction in English

Abstract

This paper investigates the scopal interaction of V-stranding negation and conjunction in English. We first show that V-stranding negative replies are different from VP/TP/NP ellipsis negative replies, in that the former give raise to a strong/‘neither’ reading, apparently taking narrow scope below a phonologically suppressed conjunction, but the latter allow for a weak/‘not both’ reading in compliance with one component of De Morgan’s laws (i.e., NOT (X ∩/AND Y) <==> NOT X ∪/OR NOT Y). We propose that the contrast between V-stranding and other types of ellipsis in negation-conjunction interaction stems from the difference in the availability of an ellipsis-licensing functional head. When this head is available to a VP/TP/NP ellipsis negative reply, it serves as a proxy for the antecedent of an elided phrase, thereby being in the scope of the negation. By contrast, since such a head is not available to a V-stranding negative reply, the negation on it is scopally restricted to the main verb, precluding its interaction with the following phonologically suppressed conjunction. This accounts for a strong/ ‘neither’ reading where the implicit conjunction is kept intact by the negation.