Antecedent-Contained Deletion in Japanese: Support for the VP-Ellipsis Analysis

In this article, I demonstrate that antecedent-contained deletion (ACD) exists in Japanese, thereby supporting the V-stranding VP-ellipsis analysis, and that the infinite regress resolution with such ACD cases must be made by overt movement. I suggest that this way of infinite regress resolution is a universal property, demonstrating that English ACD cases can be analyzed along these lines. I also argue that what seems like a case of Japanese ACD involves argument ellipsis, even though it violates the anti-c-command requirement, and that the apparent violation is resolved by adopting the late insertion of adjuncts and the derivational definition of c-command.