Focalization matters. On focus typology, feature checking and the position(s) of focus

Abstract

The present dissertation explores the properties of focalization, considering some of the main unsolved problems concerning its theoretical account. The first problem regards the possibility of having a focus typology, namely the distinction of (at least) two types of focus and the description of their different realizations and properties. The second one concerns two distinct accounts which try to explain focus movement and its trigger: a feature-driven approach, which claims the necessity of checking a [+ focus] feature contra a non-feature driven approach, which states the importance of the prosodic relation (rather than the syntactic one) between focus and stress. Whether or not [+ focus] is an inherent and legitimate feature, and the possibility of having more than one feature, will be considered. The last problem I will take into account is about the movement of focused constituents. This is still a debated question in the literature: according to some authors there is movement to the left periphery, whereas others claim that focus may be in situ or that it can have two positions. Moreover, I will consider the position(s) of focus in the syntactic structure and I will try to explain how these data can account for some of the most problematic focused structures, such as parasitic gaps and negative words. Since these problems are strictly connected, they must be considered in order to solve this open issue.