Root, templatic and argument filler’s constraints on the (anti)causative alternation in Italian: synchronic and diachronic aspects

This article presents a qualitative investigation of synchronic and diachronic aspects of the morphosyntax of the (anti)causative alternation in Italian, in relation to the variability in the presence/absence of the reflexive morpheme si and the parameters determining it, templatic (reflecting the aspectual properties of the verbs/predicates allowing this type of intransitive alternation), root/lexical, resulting from the nature of the verb’s inherent meaning, the lexical root (e.g., the type of root (property concept vs result root) and of the change encoded (e.g., reversible/non-reversible) and of the ensuing state (e.g., result vs target state), considering also thematic (e.g., agentivity) and inherent (e.g., animacy) properties of argument fillers of verbal arguments