Subject-less Clefts in Korean: Towards a Deletion Analysis

Abstract

This paper explores the syntactic category of a phonologically suppressed subject in the so-called subject-less cleft construction in Korean, and investigates into its derivation. In the previous analyses, Takahashi (1994) and J.-S. Kim (1997) argue against the cleft analysis of the construction at issue, proposing that the construction involves deletion of IP or a smaller category than IP. On the other hand, Nishiyama et al. (1996) and K.-w. Sohn (1998/2000) argue for the cleft analysis of the construction at issue, maintaining that the subject of the construction can be an overt or empty pronominal. In this paper, keeping in line with the latter analysis, I argue that the construction at issue is analyzed as a cleft construction. Departing from it, however, I also argue that the empty subject of the construction must be regarded as a clefted clause rather than as a pronominal subject, and results from deletion of the clefted clause.