Narrow scope de re and generalization X: aspect and different evaluation indices for verbs and nouns
The narrow scope de re phenomenon suggests that representations contain world pronouns. Percus (2000) shows that this view overgenerates, proposing generalization X to block certain representations with world pronouns. Keshet (2011) presents an account without world pronouns relying on a rule of predicate abstraction over worlds. This system without specific constraints on movement and semantic reconstruction, however, would also be in need of a version of generalization X. I investigate a modification of Keshet's system. On that view verbal predicates have situation pronouns next to them manifesting the overt manifestation of tense and mood on verbs. Nominal predicates, on the other hand, are evaluated with the help of a situation parameter reflecting absence of tense and mood. Perfective or progressive aspect binds the situation pronoun and the situation parameter. Now, narrow scope de re readings obtain when the DP containing a nominal predicate scopes above aspect, thereby escaping capture of the situation parameter, but below the embedding intensional operator. While verbal predicates could also move above aspect, subsequent semantic reconstruction will not lead to binding of the situation pronoun. The resulting representation and interpretation are shown to be problematic for independent reasons.
