The Temporal Interpretation of Complement and Relative Clauses: Contrasting English and Samoan

Abstract

Based on data from original fieldwork, this paper investigates the temporal interpretation of two subordinate constructions in Samoan, an aspect-prominent language. We show that both relative and complement clauses are interpreted as temporally dependent on the matrix sentence. Embedding a past perfective under a past perfective always yields a backward shifted interpretation, while embedding an imperfective yields a simultaneous interpretation. We derive this pattern by positing lambda abstraction over a temporal proform in the embedded constituent, which in the case of the past perfective is its presupposition.