Minimality Effects in Syntax

Minimality Effects in Syntax
Author: Arthur Stepanov
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter
Total Pages: 455
Release: 2004
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 311017961X

The architecture of the human language faculty has been one of the main foci of the linguistic research of the last half century. This branch of linguistics, broadly known as Generative Grammar, is concerned with the formulation of explanatory formal accounts of linguistic phenomena with the ulterior goal of gaining insight into the properties of the 'language organ'. The series comprises high quality monographs and collected volumes that address such issues. The topics in this series range from phonology to semantics, from syntax to information structure, from mathematical linguistics to studies of the lexicon.

Minimality Effects in Syntax

Minimality Effects in Syntax
Author: Arthur Stepanov
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter
Total Pages: 455
Release: 2008-08-22
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 3110197367

The volume is a collection of 12 papers which focus on empirical and theoretical issues associated with syntactic phenomena falling under the rubric of Relativized Minimality (Rizzi 1990) or, in more recent terms, Minimal Link Condition (MLC, Chomsky 1995). The bulk of the papers are based on the ideas presented at the Workshop "Minimal Link Effects in Minimalist and Optimality Theoretic Syntax" which took place at the University of Potsdam on March 21-22, 2002. All contributors are prominent specialists in the topic of syntactic Minimality. The empirical phenomena brought to bear on Minimality/MLC in the present volume include, but not limited to: Superiority effects in multiple wh-questions, including those with 'D-linked' wh-phrase(s) (Müller, Haida, Haider) Stylistic Fronting in Germanic and Romance (Fisher, Poole) Transitive sentences in Hindi-type ergative languages (Stepanov) Word order 'freezing' effects in double-nominative constructions in Korean (Lee) Double object constructions in Greek (Anagnostoupoulou) Remnant constituent displacement in German and Japanese (Hale and Legendre) Nine of the proposed accounts are couched in the Minimalist framework (Chomsky 1995, 2000, 2001), three in the framework of Optimality Theory (Prince and Smolensky 1993). Thematically, the contributions divide into three groups addressing the following major questions: How can apparent violations of syntactic Minimality/MLC be accounted for? (Haida, Stepanov, Poole, Fisher, Anagnostopoulou) What is the status of MLC? Is it a primitive or a theorem in the grammar? (Müller, Fanselow, Lechner, Vogel, Lee, Haider) Can Minimality phenomena shed decisive evidence in favor of a derivational (Minimalist type) or a representational (Optimality theory like) framework? (Hale and Legendre, Haider)

Relativized Minimality

Relativized Minimality
Author: Luigi Rizzi
Publisher: Mit Press
Total Pages: 147
Release: 1990
Genre: Architecture
ISBN: 9780262680615

This monograph presents an important extension of government-binding theory in syntax. This monograph presents an important extension of government-binding theory in syntax. It offers a new characterization of locality in the theory of government through a relativization of the Minimality Principle, and it explores the consequences of this approach for the Empty Category Principle and the analysis of a variety of empirical domains, including intervention effects, That-trace phenomena, and argument/adjunct asymmetries. The final part of the book is devoted to a new interpretation of the argument/adjunct asymmetries that arise in various extraction processes. Referential indices, a fundamental ingredient of the binding relation, are restricted to occur on referential arguments, as in Chomsky's original proposal. This natural restriction has the surprising effect of capturing the major argument-adjunct asymmetries in a straightforward manner while permitting a radical simplification of the Empty Category Principle.

The Cambridge Handbook of Generative Syntax

The Cambridge Handbook of Generative Syntax
Author: Marcel den Dikken
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 1412
Release: 2013-07-25
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1107354587

Syntax – the study of sentence structure – has been at the centre of generative linguistics from its inception and has developed rapidly and in various directions. The Cambridge Handbook of Generative Syntax provides a historical context for what is happening in the field of generative syntax today, a survey of the various generative approaches to syntactic structure available in the literature and an overview of the state of the art in the principal modules of the theory and the interfaces with semantics, phonology, information structure and sentence processing, as well as linguistic variation and language acquisition. This indispensable resource for advanced students, professional linguists (generative and non-generative alike) and scholars in related fields of inquiry presents a comprehensive survey of the field of generative syntactic research in all its variety, written by leading experts and providing a proper sense of the range of syntactic theories calling themselves generative.

The Final-Over-Final Condition

The Final-Over-Final Condition
Author: Michelle Sheehan
Publisher: MIT Press
Total Pages: 465
Release: 2017-10-27
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 0262342022

An examination of the evidence for and the theoretical implications of a universal word order constraint, with data from a wide range of languages. This book presents evidence for a universal word order constraint, the Final-over-Final Condition (FOFC), and discusses the theoretical implications of this phenomenon. FOFC is a syntactic condition that disallows structures where a head-initial phrase is contained in a head-final phrase in the same extended projection/domain. The authors argue that FOFC is a linguistic universal, not just a strong tendency, and not a constraint on processing. They discuss the effects of the universal in various domains, including the noun phrase, the adjective phrase, the verb phrase, and the clause. The book draws on data from a wide range of languages, including Hindi, Turkish, Basque, Finnish, Afrikaans, German, Hungarian, French, English, Italian, Romanian, Arabic, Hebrew, Mandarin, Pontic Greek, Bagirmi, Dholuo, and Thai. FOFC, the authors argue, is important because it is the only known example of a word order asymmetry pertaining to the order of heads. As such, it has significant repercussions for theories connecting the narrow syntax to linear order.

Experimental Syntax and Island Effects

Experimental Syntax and Island Effects
Author: Jon Sprouse
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 432
Release: 2013-10-17
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1107652707

This volume brings together cutting-edge experimental research from leaders in the fields of linguistics and psycholinguistics to explore the nature of a phenomenon that has long been central to syntactic theory - 'island effects'. The chapters in this volume draw upon recent methodological advances in experimental methods in syntax, also known as 'experimental syntax', to investigate the underlying cognitive mechanisms that give rise to island effects. This volume presents a comprehensive empirical review of a contemporary debate in the field by including contributions from researchers representing a variety of points of view on the nature of island effects. This book is ideal for students and researchers interested in cutting-edge experimental techniques in linguistics, psycholinguistics and psychology.

Mind Design and Minimal Syntax

Mind Design and Minimal Syntax
Author: Wolfram Hinzen
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 314
Release: 2006-02-23
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 019927441X

Wolfram Hinzen introduces generative grammar and asks what it tells us about the human mind. He argues that the mind is the product not of adaptive evolutionary history but of principles and processes that are ahistorical and internalist.

Syntax Processing

Syntax Processing
Author: Vicenç Torrens
Publisher: Cambridge Scholars Publishing
Total Pages: 270
Release: 2021-07-27
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 152757296X

This volume deals with research on the processing of a native language, second language learning, bilingualism, typical and impaired syntax processing. The articles presented here cover a number of linguistic phenomena, including passives, temporal concord, object pronouns, reflexives, embedded sentences, relative clauses, wh-movement, and binding theory. They also apply various experimental methods, such as eye tracking, reaction times, event-related potentials, picture selection tasks, sentence elicitation, pupillometry, and picture matching tasks. As such, this book details a number of the most representative methods used in language processing.

The Handbook of Contemporary Syntactic Theory

The Handbook of Contemporary Syntactic Theory
Author: Mark Baltin
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 880
Release: 2008-04-15
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 0470756357

This volume provides a comprehensive view of the current issues in contemporary syntactic theory. Written by an international assembly of leading specialists in the field, these 2 original articles serve as a useful reference for various areas of grammar. Contains 23 articles written by an international assembly of specialists in the field. The lucidly written articles grant accessibility to crucial areas of syntactic theory. Contrasting theories are represented. Contains an informative introduction and extensive bibliography which serves as a reference tool for both students and professional linguists.

An Introduction to Syntactic Analysis and Theory

An Introduction to Syntactic Analysis and Theory
Author: Dominique Sportiche
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 483
Release: 2013-09-30
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1118470478

An Introduction to Syntactic Analysis and Theory offers beginning students a comprehensive overview of and introduction to our current understanding of the rules and principles that govern the syntax of natural languages. Includes numerous pedagogical features such as 'practice' boxes and sidebars, designed to facilitate understanding of both the 'hows' and the 'whys' of sentence structure Guides readers through syntactic and morphological structures in a progressive manner Takes the mystery out of one of the most crucial aspects of the workings of language – the principles and processes behind the structure of sentences Ideal for students with minimal knowledge of current syntactic research, it progresses in theoretical difficulty from basic ideas and theories to more complex and advanced, up to date concepts in syntactic theory