Precede-and-command revisited revisited

Abstract

Basing his argumentation on an analysis of condition C effects, Bruening (2014) proposes to replace the familiar notion of c-command underlying dependency relations with a precede-andcommand condition, which defines dependency relations as precedence relations within a local domain (phase). In this reply I argue that condition C effects cannot be used to show the relevance of phases for the definition of syntactic dependency, and I question the conceptual necessity of the notion phase as currently defined.*

Phase-command and minimal binding

“…In contrast to Zwart (2005Zwart ( , 2014aZwart ( , 2014b, who unifies precedence with (asymmetric) Merge, I assume that linear order is imposed by the components of externalisation (the SM interface) following evidence discussed by Chomsky (2012) and Berwick & Chomsky (2011). Further, when Bruening stresses that we only see forward command and not backward command, while this may be true, there is no conceptual reason why we need to build this notion into narrow syntax when it is likely an SM interface property.…”