TITLE:
A Dual-Path Analysis of Korean Right-Node Raising: Convergences and Tensions with English
AUTHORS:
Xinjiawen Lin
KEYWORDS:
Right-Node Raising, Ellipsis, Korean Syntax, Multidominance
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Modern Linguistics,
Vol.15 No.6,
December
22,
2025
ABSTRACT: This paper examines right-node raising (RNR) in Korean through a dual-path perspective that distinguishes ellipsis-based derivations from multidominance-based ones. Building on insights from Barros and Vicente (2011) and Belk et al. (2023), the analysis asks whether Korean—given its honorific morphology, strict head-final structure, and productive coordination—provides independent evidence for the dual-path view. Three empirical domains are considered: (i) apparent honorific mismatches involving -si, which pattern with PF-ellipsis; (ii) cumulative effects associated with the dependent plural -tul; and (iii) cross-conjunct interpretations involving reciprocals and wide-scope quantifiers, both of which support a multidominance analysis. The overall pattern suggests that Korean RNR exhibits both ellipsis-type and multidominance-type properties, although some data present complications that prevent a fully categorical split. To account for the shared right-edge linearization across both derivations, the paper adopts a pruning-based PF mapping following Wilder (1999). The findings contribute to ongoing cross-linguistic discussions of whether RNR should be analysed as a single phenomenon or as a structurally heterogeneous one.