Parasitic Gaps as Backward Argument Ellipsis

Overt wh-movement is irrelevant to licensing Japanese PGs. Rather, Japanese PGs should be analyzed by the argument ellipsis strategy, following Takahashi (2006). This paper has shown that instances of covert wh-movement lead to eliminating Takahashi’s (2006) generalization. Their slight awkwardness is triggered by backward ellipsis which is also responsible for their structural ambiguity and co-reference. If the present proposal is on the right track, Japanese does not have PGs. Theoretical explanations of backward ellipsis remain to be fully explored in the future.