Citation:

Abstract:
In current Minimalism Move/Attract is considered to be a Last Resort operation driven by the need to eliminate features unreadable at the PF or LF interfaces (see, e.g., Chomsky 1995). Crucially, if elements move because they are forced to, then there should be no language exhibiting a structure with the same Numeration and yet with different linear orders.1 Consequently, optional movement poses a problem for current Minimalism. In this paper I will discuss certain properties of various word orders in Polish and will attempt to propose a minimalist account of Polish optional movement. As a starting point, I will assume the minimalist framework proposed in Chomsky (1995, Chap.4) and later modified in his MIT 1997 lectures.