The French Ethical Dative. 13 syntactic tests

Mélanie Jouitteau (1) , M. Rezac

1 LLING - Laboratoire de Linguistique de Nantes

We discuss the properties of ethical datives in French, assembling diagnostics to differentiate them from other datives and to establish their properties. Ethical datives are introduced above the thematic and Case/A-movement domains, and do not participate in these systems, unlike both core and extended (benefactive, possessor) datives. They are also independent of the C-system properties of Force, Finiteness and Tense. However, they are nevertheless integrated into the morphosyntax of the clause.

Mots clés: French syntax; ethical datives; Clitics

Mots clés: Syntaxe du français; Datifs éthiques; Clitiques simples

Domaines: Linguistique

Mélanie Jouitteau, M. Rezac. The French Ethical Dative. 13 syntactic tests. Bucharest Working Papers in Linguistics, 2008, IX (1), pp.97-108. ⟨halshs-00746352⟩