the current FunkNet discussion

[Suzette Haden Elgin]

June 23, 2004

Dear Professor Nathan,

In your recent FunkNet posting you wrote that it was grammatical in English
to say "What did Mary say John was looking at ___?" and continued...

"but if the embedded clause is an indirect question the result is
ungrammatical in English and in virtually all other languages (although not
absolutely all):
*What did Mary ask whether John was looking at ___?
This sentence is crashingly bad, in fact almost incomprehensible..."

It happens that that sentence "What did Mary ask whether John was looking
at?" is entirely grammatical and acceptable in my own Ozark English
dialect, and is a structure no more uncommon than "What did Mary say John
was looking at?" It's copying rather than chopping -- forgive me for being
quaint -- but it's absolutely a grammatical sentence.

Sincerely,

Suzette Haden Elgin