Impersonal se Constructions in Romance and the Passivization of Unergatives

Romance constructions of the type SE V_unerg (e.g., si dorme) are shown to rely not only on nominative SE, as in Italian finite clauses, but also on accusative middle-passive SE. The latter analysis is needed for Romanian, because this language does not have nominative SE, as well as for Italian nonfinite clauses, in which nominative SE is illegitimate. According to my restatement of Cinque's (1988) generalizations, [+/−1arg] features are not needed. I assume a constrained theory of passivization, according to which the suspended Agent role cannot surface in the syntax as either -en or SE. The passivization of unergatives depends on analyzing unergatives as transitives with null cognate objects.