Comparative Paths to an Optimal Interpretation

Abstract

In this paper we discuss a particular type of comparatives, that we call reflexive comparatives. These reflexive comparatives have the property that they compare an object with itself, but with respect to different temporal, spatial or scalar indices. We argue that this property can be viewed as the optimal outcome of a conflict between two general constraints on the arguments of a semantic relation. A semantics of reflexive comparatives is proposed which is based on paths in scalar and other domains.