The who/whom puzzle: On the preservation of an archaic feature

Citation
H. Lasnik et N. Sobin, The who/whom puzzle: On the preservation of an archaic feature, NATUR LANG, 18(2), 2000, pp. 343-371
Citations number
22
Categorie Soggetti
Language & Linguistics
Journal title
NATURAL LANGUAGE & LINGUISTIC THEORY
ISSN journal
0167806X → ACNP
Volume
18
Issue
2
Year of publication
2000
Pages
343 - 371
Database
ISI
SICI code
0167-806X(200005)18:2<343:TWPOTP>2.0.ZU;2-U
Abstract
It is commonly assumed that the English interrogative/relative pronoun whom is parallel to him and them in manifesting objective pronominal Case. We a rgue instead that whom is not Case-marked along with these pronouns. Rather , its Case marking follows a different paradigm. Whom in modern English der ives from a set of extra-grammatical rules called 'grammatical viruses'. Sp eakers call upon such rules to check Case and (possibly) agreement features which the normal system of syntax cannot check, but which prestige usage d emands. Sentences with whom are typical of sentences resulting from grammat ical viruses. Such virus-licensed products have a 'prestige' status, they a re not typical of child language, and the intuitions about their use are st rikingly different from intuitions about the use of other grammatical eleme nts that they are traditionally claimed to work along the lines of. In the latter instance, intuitions about the use of whom differ markedly from intu itions about the use of ACC personal pronouns.