Karen Corrigan
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780748634286
- eISBN:
- 9780748671441
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9780748634286.001.0001
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Sociolinguistics / Anthropological Linguistics
This book focuses on the sociolinguistic consequences of historical contact between indigenous Irish peoples and newer English and Scottish settlers in what is now the territory of Northern Ireland ...
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This book focuses on the sociolinguistic consequences of historical contact between indigenous Irish peoples and newer English and Scottish settlers in what is now the territory of Northern Ireland (NI). The contact varieties that resulted represent the oldest L2 ‘Englishes’ globally. Moreover, the degree of admixture from English, Irish and Scots in the contemporary dialects of NI reflects various external forces. Naturally, these varieties share certain structural features with sister Celtic Englishes and indeed with other vernacular Englishes globally (partly because of extensive emigration from NI post-1700 and partly due to universal tendencies of various types). However, there are other linguistic traits that seem to be unique and therefore essentially local. Irish English, Volume 1: Northern Ireland aims to provide insights into the evolution of language in 21st century NI and to promote an understanding of linguistic diversity in this region in the context of World Englishes.Less
This book focuses on the sociolinguistic consequences of historical contact between indigenous Irish peoples and newer English and Scottish settlers in what is now the territory of Northern Ireland (NI). The contact varieties that resulted represent the oldest L2 ‘Englishes’ globally. Moreover, the degree of admixture from English, Irish and Scots in the contemporary dialects of NI reflects various external forces. Naturally, these varieties share certain structural features with sister Celtic Englishes and indeed with other vernacular Englishes globally (partly because of extensive emigration from NI post-1700 and partly due to universal tendencies of various types). However, there are other linguistic traits that seem to be unique and therefore essentially local. Irish English, Volume 1: Northern Ireland aims to provide insights into the evolution of language in 21st century NI and to promote an understanding of linguistic diversity in this region in the context of World Englishes.
Michael Potter
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- May 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199252619
- eISBN:
- 9780191712647
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199252619.003.0012
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Logic/Philosophy of Mathematics
In Vienna during the 1920s there emerged a group of philosophers — the logical positivists — who wished to deny that any metaphysical questions were meaningful. Although they held much of the ...
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In Vienna during the 1920s there emerged a group of philosophers — the logical positivists — who wished to deny that any metaphysical questions were meaningful. Although they held much of the Tractatus in high regard, they took the parts of it which gestured towards the unsayable — especially the mystical sections near the end of the book — to embody a straightforward mistake on Wittgenstein's part. If they accepted the Tractarian conception of language, even in outline, their position thus amounted to a denial of the concept of the self. This chapter examines the extent to which the positivists' account of arithmetic, the locus classicus for which is Carnap's Logical Syntax of Language, survives their denial of metaphysics.Less
In Vienna during the 1920s there emerged a group of philosophers — the logical positivists — who wished to deny that any metaphysical questions were meaningful. Although they held much of the Tractatus in high regard, they took the parts of it which gestured towards the unsayable — especially the mystical sections near the end of the book — to embody a straightforward mistake on Wittgenstein's part. If they accepted the Tractarian conception of language, even in outline, their position thus amounted to a denial of the concept of the self. This chapter examines the extent to which the positivists' account of arithmetic, the locus classicus for which is Carnap's Logical Syntax of Language, survives their denial of metaphysics.
Peter W. Culicover and Ray Jackendoff
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199271092
- eISBN:
- 9780191709418
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199271092.001.0001
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Syntax and Morphology
This book offers a perspective on the structure of human language. The fundamental issue it addresses is the proper balance between syntax and semantics, between structure and derivation, and between ...
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This book offers a perspective on the structure of human language. The fundamental issue it addresses is the proper balance between syntax and semantics, between structure and derivation, and between rule systems and lexicon. It argues that the balance struck by mainstream generative grammar is wrong. It puts forward a new basis for syntactic theory, drawing on a wide range of frameworks, and charts new directions for research. In the past four decades, theories of syntactic structure have become more abstract and syntactic derivations have become more complex. The book traces this development through the history of contemporary syntactic theory, showing how much it has been driven by theory-internal rather than empirical considerations. It develops an alternative that is responsive to linguistic, cognitive, computational, and biological concerns. At the core of this alternative is the Simpler Syntax Hypothesis: the most explanatory syntactic theory is one that imputes the minimum structure necessary to mediate between phonology and meaning. A consequence of this hypothesis is a richer mapping between syntax and semantics than is generally assumed. Through analyses of grammatical phenomena, some old and some new, the book demonstrates the empirical and conceptual superiority of the Simpler Syntax approach.Less
This book offers a perspective on the structure of human language. The fundamental issue it addresses is the proper balance between syntax and semantics, between structure and derivation, and between rule systems and lexicon. It argues that the balance struck by mainstream generative grammar is wrong. It puts forward a new basis for syntactic theory, drawing on a wide range of frameworks, and charts new directions for research. In the past four decades, theories of syntactic structure have become more abstract and syntactic derivations have become more complex. The book traces this development through the history of contemporary syntactic theory, showing how much it has been driven by theory-internal rather than empirical considerations. It develops an alternative that is responsive to linguistic, cognitive, computational, and biological concerns. At the core of this alternative is the Simpler Syntax Hypothesis: the most explanatory syntactic theory is one that imputes the minimum structure necessary to mediate between phonology and meaning. A consequence of this hypothesis is a richer mapping between syntax and semantics than is generally assumed. Through analyses of grammatical phenomena, some old and some new, the book demonstrates the empirical and conceptual superiority of the Simpler Syntax approach.
Jeff MacSwan (ed.)
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- May 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780262027892
- eISBN:
- 9780262320351
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262027892.001.0001
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Sociolinguistics / Anthropological Linguistics
Codeswitching is the alternate use of two or more languages among bilingual interlocutors. It is distinct from borrowing, which involves the phonological and morphological integration of a word from ...
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Codeswitching is the alternate use of two or more languages among bilingual interlocutors. It is distinct from borrowing, which involves the phonological and morphological integration of a word from one language into another. Codeswitching entails the mixing of phonologically distinctive elements into a single utterance: Mi hermano bought some ice cream. This volume examines the grammatical properties of languages mixed in this way, focusing on cases of language mixing within a sentence. It considers the grammar of codeswitching from a variety of perspectives, offering a collection of theoretically significant work by the leading researchers in the field. Each contribution investigates a particular grammatical phenomenon as it relates to bilingual codeswitching data, mostly from a Minimalist perspective. Data analyzed include codeswitching in Spanish-English, Korean-English, German-Spanish, Hindi-English, and Amerindian languages. Contributors are Shoba Bandi-Rao, Rakesh M. Bhatt, Sonia Colina, Marcel den Dikken, Anna Maria Di Sciullo, Daniel L. Finer, Kay E. González-Vilbazo, Sílvia Milian Hita, Jeff MacSwan, Pieter Muysken, Monica Moro Quintanilla, Erin O’Rourke, Ana Teresa Pérez-Leroux, Edward P. Stabler Jr., Gretchen Sunderman, and Almeida Jacqueline Toribio.Less
Codeswitching is the alternate use of two or more languages among bilingual interlocutors. It is distinct from borrowing, which involves the phonological and morphological integration of a word from one language into another. Codeswitching entails the mixing of phonologically distinctive elements into a single utterance: Mi hermano bought some ice cream. This volume examines the grammatical properties of languages mixed in this way, focusing on cases of language mixing within a sentence. It considers the grammar of codeswitching from a variety of perspectives, offering a collection of theoretically significant work by the leading researchers in the field. Each contribution investigates a particular grammatical phenomenon as it relates to bilingual codeswitching data, mostly from a Minimalist perspective. Data analyzed include codeswitching in Spanish-English, Korean-English, German-Spanish, Hindi-English, and Amerindian languages. Contributors are Shoba Bandi-Rao, Rakesh M. Bhatt, Sonia Colina, Marcel den Dikken, Anna Maria Di Sciullo, Daniel L. Finer, Kay E. González-Vilbazo, Sílvia Milian Hita, Jeff MacSwan, Pieter Muysken, Monica Moro Quintanilla, Erin O’Rourke, Ana Teresa Pérez-Leroux, Edward P. Stabler Jr., Gretchen Sunderman, and Almeida Jacqueline Toribio.
Peter W. Culicover and Ray Jackendoff
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199271092
- eISBN:
- 9780191709418
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199271092.003.0011
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Syntax and Morphology
This chapter examines another binding phenomenon outside the treatment of ‘core’ binding in MGG: the behaviour of the obviative element else in English and related referentially dependent elements. ...
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This chapter examines another binding phenomenon outside the treatment of ‘core’ binding in MGG: the behaviour of the obviative element else in English and related referentially dependent elements. The goal is to clarify the nature of the referential dependency that else expresses as well as the proper formulation of this dependency within the grammar. A number of alternative analyses are explored. It is shown that the best one on empirical grounds is one that conforms to the Simpler Syntax Hypothesis, in that no covert syntactic structure is associated with else. Evidence is uncovered that casts doubt on the generality, and hence theoretical usefulness of a covert syntactic level of Logical Form in the sense of MGG, again providing support for Simpler Syntax.Less
This chapter examines another binding phenomenon outside the treatment of ‘core’ binding in MGG: the behaviour of the obviative element else in English and related referentially dependent elements. The goal is to clarify the nature of the referential dependency that else expresses as well as the proper formulation of this dependency within the grammar. A number of alternative analyses are explored. It is shown that the best one on empirical grounds is one that conforms to the Simpler Syntax Hypothesis, in that no covert syntactic structure is associated with else. Evidence is uncovered that casts doubt on the generality, and hence theoretical usefulness of a covert syntactic level of Logical Form in the sense of MGG, again providing support for Simpler Syntax.
Peter W. Culicover and Jackendoff Ray
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199271092
- eISBN:
- 9780191709418
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199271092.003.0013
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Syntax and Morphology
This chapter explores syntactic constructions in which the syntactic connection between clauses does not match their semantic connection. The construction of concern is coordination with a so-called ...
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This chapter explores syntactic constructions in which the syntactic connection between clauses does not match their semantic connection. The construction of concern is coordination with a so-called ‘left-subordinating’ and (LS-and or and LS). It is shown that there is at least one use of asymmetric conjunction which is coordinate in syntactic structure, just the way it looks, in conformance with the Simpler Syntax Hypothesis, but which corresponds explicitly to subordination at the level of CS.Less
This chapter explores syntactic constructions in which the syntactic connection between clauses does not match their semantic connection. The construction of concern is coordination with a so-called ‘left-subordinating’ and (LS-and or and LS). It is shown that there is at least one use of asymmetric conjunction which is coordinate in syntactic structure, just the way it looks, in conformance with the Simpler Syntax Hypothesis, but which corresponds explicitly to subordination at the level of CS.
Andrea Moro
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- May 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780262034890
- eISBN:
- 9780262335621
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262034890.001.0001
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Psycholinguistics / Neurolinguistics / Cognitive Linguistics
Understanding the nature and the structure of human language coincides with capturing the constraints which make a conceivable language possible or, equivalently, with discovering whether there can ...
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Understanding the nature and the structure of human language coincides with capturing the constraints which make a conceivable language possible or, equivalently, with discovering whether there can be any impossible languages at all. This book explores these related issues, paralleling the effort of a biologist who attempts at describing the class of impossible animals. In biology, one can appeal for example to physical laws of nature (such as entropy or gravity) but when it comes to language the path becomes intricate and difficult for the physical laws cannot be exploited. In linguistics, in fact, there are two distinct empirical domains to explore: on the one hand, the formal domain of syntax, where different languages are compared trying to understand how much they can differ; on the other, the neurobiological domain, where the flow of information through the complex neural networks and the electric code exploited by neurons is uncovered and measured. By referring to the most advanced experiments in Neurolinguistics the book in fact offers an updated descriptions of modern linguistics and allows the reader to formulate new and surprising questions. Moreover, since syntax - the capacity to generate novel structures (sentences) by recombining a finite set of elements (words) - is the fingerprint of all and only human languages this books ultimately deals with the fundamental questions which characterize the search for our origins.Less
Understanding the nature and the structure of human language coincides with capturing the constraints which make a conceivable language possible or, equivalently, with discovering whether there can be any impossible languages at all. This book explores these related issues, paralleling the effort of a biologist who attempts at describing the class of impossible animals. In biology, one can appeal for example to physical laws of nature (such as entropy or gravity) but when it comes to language the path becomes intricate and difficult for the physical laws cannot be exploited. In linguistics, in fact, there are two distinct empirical domains to explore: on the one hand, the formal domain of syntax, where different languages are compared trying to understand how much they can differ; on the other, the neurobiological domain, where the flow of information through the complex neural networks and the electric code exploited by neurons is uncovered and measured. By referring to the most advanced experiments in Neurolinguistics the book in fact offers an updated descriptions of modern linguistics and allows the reader to formulate new and surprising questions. Moreover, since syntax - the capacity to generate novel structures (sentences) by recombining a finite set of elements (words) - is the fingerprint of all and only human languages this books ultimately deals with the fundamental questions which characterize the search for our origins.
Neil Myler
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- May 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780262034913
- eISBN:
- 9780262336130
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262034913.001.0001
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Theoretical Linguistics
A major question for linguistic theory concerns how the structure of sentences relates to their meaning. There is broad agreement in the field that there is some regularity in the way that lexical ...
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A major question for linguistic theory concerns how the structure of sentences relates to their meaning. There is broad agreement in the field that there is some regularity in the way that lexical semantics and syntax are related, so that thematic roles are predictably associated with particular syntactic positions. This book examines the syntax and semantics of possession sentences, which are infamous for appearing to diverge dramatically from this broadly regular pattern. On the one hand, possession sentences have too many meanings: in a given language, the construction used to express archetypal possessive meanings (such as personal ownership) is also often used to express other apparently unrelated notions (body parts, kinship relations, and many others). On the other hand, possession sentences have too many surface structures: languages differ markedly in the argument structures used to convey the same possessive meanings, with some employing a transitive verb HAVE, and others using a variety of constructions based around an intransitive verb BE. Examining and synthesizing ideas from the literature and drawing on data from many languages (including some understudied Quechua dialects), this book presents a novel way to understand the apparent irregularity of possession sentences while preserving existing explanations for the general cross-linguistic regularities we observe in argument structure.Less
A major question for linguistic theory concerns how the structure of sentences relates to their meaning. There is broad agreement in the field that there is some regularity in the way that lexical semantics and syntax are related, so that thematic roles are predictably associated with particular syntactic positions. This book examines the syntax and semantics of possession sentences, which are infamous for appearing to diverge dramatically from this broadly regular pattern. On the one hand, possession sentences have too many meanings: in a given language, the construction used to express archetypal possessive meanings (such as personal ownership) is also often used to express other apparently unrelated notions (body parts, kinship relations, and many others). On the other hand, possession sentences have too many surface structures: languages differ markedly in the argument structures used to convey the same possessive meanings, with some employing a transitive verb HAVE, and others using a variety of constructions based around an intransitive verb BE. Examining and synthesizing ideas from the literature and drawing on data from many languages (including some understudied Quechua dialects), this book presents a novel way to understand the apparent irregularity of possession sentences while preserving existing explanations for the general cross-linguistic regularities we observe in argument structure.
Tanya Reinhart
Martin Everaert and Marijana Marelj (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- January 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780262034135
- eISBN:
- 9780262333177
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262034135.001.0001
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Historical Linguistics
The present book introduces one of Tanya Reinhart's major contributions to linguistic theory, namely the Theta System, a theory of the interface between the system of concepts and the linguistic ...
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The present book introduces one of Tanya Reinhart's major contributions to linguistic theory, namely the Theta System, a theory of the interface between the system of concepts and the linguistic computational system. The core of the book – part Ia – is her seminal paper The Theta System: Syntactic Realization of Verbal Concepts, pre-published as Reinhart (2000). It is enriched with extensive annotations relating it to subsequent developments, and a summary of the approach based on Reinhart (2002). In part Ib Marijana Marelj's contribution provides an in-depth analysis of the role of accusative Case in the system. Chapter II by Julia Horvath and Tal Siloni evaluates the role of the lexicon versus the syntax in building the ‘thematic’ (vP) phase. They challenge syntacticocentric approaches to argument structure; develop an alternative, active-lexicon approach and diagnostics demonstrating that (certain) valence-changing operations apply before syntactic structure is available. Part III, by Marijana Marelj and Eric Reuland, addresses the nature of the Lexicon-Syntax parameter (Reinhart and Siloni 2005), which distinguishes two broad classes of languages. They show that this parameter can be reduced to whether or not a language has syntactic clitics, and to how valence reduction of a verb affects its Case properties.Less
The present book introduces one of Tanya Reinhart's major contributions to linguistic theory, namely the Theta System, a theory of the interface between the system of concepts and the linguistic computational system. The core of the book – part Ia – is her seminal paper The Theta System: Syntactic Realization of Verbal Concepts, pre-published as Reinhart (2000). It is enriched with extensive annotations relating it to subsequent developments, and a summary of the approach based on Reinhart (2002). In part Ib Marijana Marelj's contribution provides an in-depth analysis of the role of accusative Case in the system. Chapter II by Julia Horvath and Tal Siloni evaluates the role of the lexicon versus the syntax in building the ‘thematic’ (vP) phase. They challenge syntacticocentric approaches to argument structure; develop an alternative, active-lexicon approach and diagnostics demonstrating that (certain) valence-changing operations apply before syntactic structure is available. Part III, by Marijana Marelj and Eric Reuland, addresses the nature of the Lexicon-Syntax parameter (Reinhart and Siloni 2005), which distinguishes two broad classes of languages. They show that this parameter can be reduced to whether or not a language has syntactic clitics, and to how valence reduction of a verb affects its Case properties.
Scott Soames
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- October 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780691160726
- eISBN:
- 9781400850464
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Princeton University Press
- DOI:
- 10.23943/princeton/9780691160726.003.0002
- Subject:
- Philosophy, American Philosophy
This chapter discusses the methodology that guided logico-linguistic analysis from Gottlob Frege’s 1879 Begriffsschrift to Rudolf Carnap’s 1934 The Logical Syntax of Language. In the first four ...
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This chapter discusses the methodology that guided logico-linguistic analysis from Gottlob Frege’s 1879 Begriffsschrift to Rudolf Carnap’s 1934 The Logical Syntax of Language. In the first four decades of this period, culminating with Bertrand Russell’s 1918–19 lectures on The Philosophy of Logical Atomism, analysis was viewed as an increasingly powerful tool employed in the service of solving traditional philosophical problems. The logicist reduction of arithmetic to what was taken to be logic was the driving force, providing the exemplar of philosophical analysis and the model for extending it beyond the philosophy of mathematics. The methodology is indicated by the role played by A2 in answering Frege’s guiding philosophical questions Q1 and Q2.Less
This chapter discusses the methodology that guided logico-linguistic analysis from Gottlob Frege’s 1879 Begriffsschrift to Rudolf Carnap’s 1934 The Logical Syntax of Language. In the first four decades of this period, culminating with Bertrand Russell’s 1918–19 lectures on The Philosophy of Logical Atomism, analysis was viewed as an increasingly powerful tool employed in the service of solving traditional philosophical problems. The logicist reduction of arithmetic to what was taken to be logic was the driving force, providing the exemplar of philosophical analysis and the model for extending it beyond the philosophy of mathematics. The methodology is indicated by the role played by A2 in answering Frege’s guiding philosophical questions Q1 and Q2.
Martin Everaert, Marijana Marelj, and Tal Siloni (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199602513
- eISBN:
- 9780191739200
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199602513.001.0001
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Syntax and Morphology, Semantics and Pragmatics
Taking the unique perspective of Reinhart's Theta system (Reinhart 1991, 1996, 2000, 2002 et seq.) as its anchor, this book contributes to the understanding of the interface between the system of ...
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Taking the unique perspective of Reinhart's Theta system (Reinhart 1991, 1996, 2000, 2002 et seq.) as its anchor, this book contributes to the understanding of the interface between the system of concepts and the computational system directly, and the inference systems, indirectly. The volume presents the Theta system, evaluates its merits and shortcomings, and introduces proposals for its refinement, from both a theoretical and an experimental perspective. The fact that it nurtures an active dialogue between the competing lexicalist and syntactic approaches on a broad array of lexico-semantic issues gives this book an extra dimension. The authors are not only researchers adhering to different frameworks, but also researchers working in different fields (be it semantics, syntax, morphology, or language acquisition). In empirical terms, the volume not only examines some of the notorious puzzles from a new theoretical perspective, but also brings new data and findings to light.Less
Taking the unique perspective of Reinhart's Theta system (Reinhart 1991, 1996, 2000, 2002 et seq.) as its anchor, this book contributes to the understanding of the interface between the system of concepts and the computational system directly, and the inference systems, indirectly. The volume presents the Theta system, evaluates its merits and shortcomings, and introduces proposals for its refinement, from both a theoretical and an experimental perspective. The fact that it nurtures an active dialogue between the competing lexicalist and syntactic approaches on a broad array of lexico-semantic issues gives this book an extra dimension. The authors are not only researchers adhering to different frameworks, but also researchers working in different fields (be it semantics, syntax, morphology, or language acquisition). In empirical terms, the volume not only examines some of the notorious puzzles from a new theoretical perspective, but also brings new data and findings to light.
Peter Wright (ed.)
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- January 2014
- ISBN:
- 9781846310577
- eISBN:
- 9781846314056
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Liverpool University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5949/liverpool/9781846310577.003.0025
- Subject:
- Literature, Criticism/Theory
In this article, Wolfe satirises declining standards in literacy by providing wry redefinitions of a variety of common words that often pun on misinterpretations, malapropisms and general ignorance. ...
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In this article, Wolfe satirises declining standards in literacy by providing wry redefinitions of a variety of common words that often pun on misinterpretations, malapropisms and general ignorance. The redefinitions themselves are appropriately and ironically ungrammatical.Less
In this article, Wolfe satirises declining standards in literacy by providing wry redefinitions of a variety of common words that often pun on misinterpretations, malapropisms and general ignorance. The redefinitions themselves are appropriately and ironically ungrammatical.
LUTZ MARTEN
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199250639
- eISBN:
- 9780191719479
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199250639.003.0002
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Semantics and Pragmatics, Syntax and Morphology
This chapter provides the theoretical background to the study. Based on the two major theories behind the analysis — Dynamic Syntax and Relevance Theory — it develops a formal model of utterance ...
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This chapter provides the theoretical background to the study. Based on the two major theories behind the analysis — Dynamic Syntax and Relevance Theory — it develops a formal model of utterance interpretation which assumes that 1) linguistic knowledge is directly reflected in the linguistic abilities of speaking and understanding; and that 2) a formal model of linguistic understanding can be developed independently of production. The description of this model includes a detailed discussion of Dynamic Syntax and Relevance Theory and addresses also the role of phonology and the lexicon in the model. The second part of the chapter gives an introduction into the formal tools of Dynamic Syntax which will be employed in the following chapters.Less
This chapter provides the theoretical background to the study. Based on the two major theories behind the analysis — Dynamic Syntax and Relevance Theory — it develops a formal model of utterance interpretation which assumes that 1) linguistic knowledge is directly reflected in the linguistic abilities of speaking and understanding; and that 2) a formal model of linguistic understanding can be developed independently of production. The description of this model includes a detailed discussion of Dynamic Syntax and Relevance Theory and addresses also the role of phonology and the lexicon in the model. The second part of the chapter gives an introduction into the formal tools of Dynamic Syntax which will be employed in the following chapters.
Ahmad Alqassas
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- September 2019
- ISBN:
- 9781474433143
- eISBN:
- 9781474460156
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9781474433143.003.0007
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Semantics and Pragmatics
This chapter summarizes the central points argued for in the analyses chapters. The multi-locus analysis goes beyond the limitations of the parametric approach and can explain the rich variation and ...
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This chapter summarizes the central points argued for in the analyses chapters. The multi-locus analysis goes beyond the limitations of the parametric approach and can explain the rich variation and change in the syntax of negation. This multi-locus approach explains variation (and change) by looking into the interface between syntax on the one hand, and morphology and semantics on the other hand. This approach also provides a solid ground for investigating other syntactic categories such as the syntax of adverbs, subjects, tense and the left periphery. The ability to explain the syntactic behaviour of these categories (their co-occurrence restrictions, semantic ambiguities and subtle interpretational contrasts) leads to better understanding of key issues related to the syntax of subjects, the movement of adverbs and head movement of verbal and non-verbal predicates. Moreover, the multi-locus analysis of negation gives us insights into the syntactic licensing of a vital category of Negative Sensitive Items (NSIs) in Arabic. The syntactic licensing of these categories in Arabic bears on key theoretical issues in the cross-linguistic studies of negation and NSIs. Such issues include the syntactic licensing configurations for these items, their feature structure and availability of syntactic agreement with negation.Less
This chapter summarizes the central points argued for in the analyses chapters. The multi-locus analysis goes beyond the limitations of the parametric approach and can explain the rich variation and change in the syntax of negation. This multi-locus approach explains variation (and change) by looking into the interface between syntax on the one hand, and morphology and semantics on the other hand. This approach also provides a solid ground for investigating other syntactic categories such as the syntax of adverbs, subjects, tense and the left periphery. The ability to explain the syntactic behaviour of these categories (their co-occurrence restrictions, semantic ambiguities and subtle interpretational contrasts) leads to better understanding of key issues related to the syntax of subjects, the movement of adverbs and head movement of verbal and non-verbal predicates. Moreover, the multi-locus analysis of negation gives us insights into the syntactic licensing of a vital category of Negative Sensitive Items (NSIs) in Arabic. The syntactic licensing of these categories in Arabic bears on key theoretical issues in the cross-linguistic studies of negation and NSIs. Such issues include the syntactic licensing configurations for these items, their feature structure and availability of syntactic agreement with negation.
Neil Myler
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- May 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780262034913
- eISBN:
- 9780262336130
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262034913.003.0001
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Theoretical Linguistics
This chapter introduces the two major puzzles posed by possession sentences: the too-many-meanings puzzle and the too-many-(surface)-structures puzzle. The too-many-meanings puzzle is that languages ...
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This chapter introduces the two major puzzles posed by possession sentences: the too-many-meanings puzzle and the too-many-(surface)-structures puzzle. The too-many-meanings puzzle is that languages often use the same construction to speak of having a car, having a sister, and having brown eyes, amongst other things, despite these relations being notionally distinct. The too-many-surface-structures puzzle is that languages differ radically in the argument structure used to convey the same possessive meanings. The chapter goes on to lay out the theory of the architecture of the grammar assumed in the main body of the book, and sketches how that architecture gives rise to a solution to both puzzles. A particularly important facet of this solution is the idea that a head which introduces a thematic role in the semantics might fail to take a specifier in the syntax, causing the relevant role to be saturated higher in the structure (Wood 2015)—a circumstance this book refers to as delayed gratification, and which turns out to be commonly attested in the typology of possession sentences. The core predictions of the present approach are presented. A concluding section summarizes the structure of the rest of the book.Less
This chapter introduces the two major puzzles posed by possession sentences: the too-many-meanings puzzle and the too-many-(surface)-structures puzzle. The too-many-meanings puzzle is that languages often use the same construction to speak of having a car, having a sister, and having brown eyes, amongst other things, despite these relations being notionally distinct. The too-many-surface-structures puzzle is that languages differ radically in the argument structure used to convey the same possessive meanings. The chapter goes on to lay out the theory of the architecture of the grammar assumed in the main body of the book, and sketches how that architecture gives rise to a solution to both puzzles. A particularly important facet of this solution is the idea that a head which introduces a thematic role in the semantics might fail to take a specifier in the syntax, causing the relevant role to be saturated higher in the structure (Wood 2015)—a circumstance this book refers to as delayed gratification, and which turns out to be commonly attested in the typology of possession sentences. The core predictions of the present approach are presented. A concluding section summarizes the structure of the rest of the book.
Norvin Richards
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- January 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780262034425
- eISBN:
- 9780262332330
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262034425.003.0001
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Theoretical Linguistics
This chapter introduces the core claim of the book: that the construction of phonological representations begins in the narrow syntax, and that syntactic operations can be driven by phonological ...
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This chapter introduces the core claim of the book: that the construction of phonological representations begins in the narrow syntax, and that syntactic operations can be driven by phonological requirements. It sketches two kinds of arguments for this conclusion which will recur in what follows: first, that syntactic computation makes reference to some, but not all facts about the final phonological representation, suggesting that it cannot be the final representation that the computation makes reference to; and second, that careful analysis reveals many cases of derivationally induced opacity, demonstrating that the syntactic computation, at any given step of the derivation, makes reference only to properties of that particular derivational stage, and thus that the syntactic derivation must contain the phonological information to which the rules of syntax apparently refer. The chapter also introduces basic assumptions about syntax and phonology which will be important in the following chapters: on the syntax side, the basic ideas of current Minimalism, including the EPP, the notion of Probes and Goals, uninterpretable features, and a cyclic derivation with Spell-out at phase levels; on the phonological side, Match Theory and Idsardi’s approach to word-level stress.Less
This chapter introduces the core claim of the book: that the construction of phonological representations begins in the narrow syntax, and that syntactic operations can be driven by phonological requirements. It sketches two kinds of arguments for this conclusion which will recur in what follows: first, that syntactic computation makes reference to some, but not all facts about the final phonological representation, suggesting that it cannot be the final representation that the computation makes reference to; and second, that careful analysis reveals many cases of derivationally induced opacity, demonstrating that the syntactic computation, at any given step of the derivation, makes reference only to properties of that particular derivational stage, and thus that the syntactic derivation must contain the phonological information to which the rules of syntax apparently refer. The chapter also introduces basic assumptions about syntax and phonology which will be important in the following chapters: on the syntax side, the basic ideas of current Minimalism, including the EPP, the notion of Probes and Goals, uninterpretable features, and a cyclic derivation with Spell-out at phase levels; on the phonological side, Match Theory and Idsardi’s approach to word-level stress.
Andrea Moro
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- May 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780262034890
- eISBN:
- 9780262335621
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262034890.003.0001
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Psycholinguistics / Neurolinguistics / Cognitive Linguistics
Understanding the nature and the structure of human language coincides with capturing the constraints which make a conceivable language possible or, equivalently, whether there are impossible ...
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Understanding the nature and the structure of human language coincides with capturing the constraints which make a conceivable language possible or, equivalently, whether there are impossible languages at all. The chapter focuses on syntax, the capacity to generate potentially infinite sentences from a fixed limited set of words: ever since Descartes this has been considered the fingerprint of human mind. Modern syntax has allowed a mathematical approach to this domain.Less
Understanding the nature and the structure of human language coincides with capturing the constraints which make a conceivable language possible or, equivalently, whether there are impossible languages at all. The chapter focuses on syntax, the capacity to generate potentially infinite sentences from a fixed limited set of words: ever since Descartes this has been considered the fingerprint of human mind. Modern syntax has allowed a mathematical approach to this domain.
Andrea Moro
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- May 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780262034890
- eISBN:
- 9780262335621
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262034890.003.0006
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Psycholinguistics / Neurolinguistics / Cognitive Linguistics
It is sometimes assumed that formal representation of language are abstractions and that they contrast with the concreteness of empirical neurobiological measures. It is argued that this is not so ...
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It is sometimes assumed that formal representation of language are abstractions and that they contrast with the concreteness of empirical neurobiological measures. It is argued that this is not so and that, moreover, the formal representations adopted in linguistics are also detectable by providing the right stimulus to the subjects at the neurobiological level; one example is given by the asymmetry of constituent structure.Less
It is sometimes assumed that formal representation of language are abstractions and that they contrast with the concreteness of empirical neurobiological measures. It is argued that this is not so and that, moreover, the formal representations adopted in linguistics are also detectable by providing the right stimulus to the subjects at the neurobiological level; one example is given by the asymmetry of constituent structure.
Andrea Moro
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- May 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780262034890
- eISBN:
- 9780262335621
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262034890.003.0008
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Psycholinguistics / Neurolinguistics / Cognitive Linguistics
From a physical point of view, language is made of waves: acoustic waves (outside us) and electric waves (inside us). How similar are these two types of waves? By exploiting awake surgery procedures ...
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From a physical point of view, language is made of waves: acoustic waves (outside us) and electric waves (inside us). How similar are these two types of waves? By exploiting awake surgery procedures a crucial experiment is described confronting these two types of waves when a patient reads a linguistic expression aloud or silently. The surprising result is that the two electric waves are very similar even in non acoustic areas opening the possibility to read the linguistic thought directly from the brain.Less
From a physical point of view, language is made of waves: acoustic waves (outside us) and electric waves (inside us). How similar are these two types of waves? By exploiting awake surgery procedures a crucial experiment is described confronting these two types of waves when a patient reads a linguistic expression aloud or silently. The surprising result is that the two electric waves are very similar even in non acoustic areas opening the possibility to read the linguistic thought directly from the brain.
Elizabeth Hellmuth Margulis
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- January 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780199990825
- eISBN:
- 9780199357871
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199990825.003.0002
- Subject:
- Music, Psychology of Music
Superficially similar instances of repetition can be perceived dramatically differently. Chapter 2 scrutinizes this transformation from acoustic to perceived repetition. It surveys theoretical work ...
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Superficially similar instances of repetition can be perceived dramatically differently. Chapter 2 scrutinizes this transformation from acoustic to perceived repetition. It surveys theoretical work on musical repetition, ranging from Formenlehre, semiotic, and phenomenological traditions, to work on non-Western and pop musics by writers like Turino and Middleton, to very recent accounts, such as Hanninen’s theory of recontextualization. The juxtaposition of these diverse accounts produces a new perspective about the ways that repeating elements in the acoustic signal can work to engender divergent percepts and experiences.Less
Superficially similar instances of repetition can be perceived dramatically differently. Chapter 2 scrutinizes this transformation from acoustic to perceived repetition. It surveys theoretical work on musical repetition, ranging from Formenlehre, semiotic, and phenomenological traditions, to work on non-Western and pop musics by writers like Turino and Middleton, to very recent accounts, such as Hanninen’s theory of recontextualization. The juxtaposition of these diverse accounts produces a new perspective about the ways that repeating elements in the acoustic signal can work to engender divergent percepts and experiences.
