Textbook
A general understanding of the fundamentals of the transformational-generative approach to syntax is assumed. Under this assumption, during the course of the semester the major concepts of the latest version (the Theory of Government and Binding, also known as Principles and Parameters Theory) will be reviewed in enough detail to make application possible, though there will not be opportunity to cover the various arguments set forth to support the principles assumed by the theory (so it must be assumed that students are willing to accept the theory as set forth, at least for purposes of application in this class). Such arguments were covered in LING 5303 by means of study of the first 400+ pages of the following book, a work which students are likely to find useful as a resource in any case:
Haegeman, Liliane. 1994. Introduction to Government and Binding Theory, 2nd edition. Cambridge, MA: Blackwell.
Students who lack sufficient background in Government and Binding Theory will need to be prepared to do additional reading to compensate for what other students can cover by means of review.
The major focus of this advanced course will be application of the material found in the following:
Burquest, Donald A. Forthcoming. A Field Guide for Principles and Parameters Theory, Second Revised Edition. Pre-publication manuscript.
Course Outline
In this course we will apply Principles and Parameters Theory to language data of your choice. We will do so by considering each module set forth by the theory, with the intent being to add a textlinguistics component and integrate the whole into a tentative syntactic description of the language. Undoubtedly new problems will be faced as we progress through the course, and innovative solutions will be needed; it is hoped that at one and the same time the theory can be tested against language data, and a useful and insightful beginning analysis of the language in question can be set forth.
The course will consist of three major components:
a) review of the several principles proposed as being universally valid--these include principles involved with the following syntactic components:Theta TheoryX-Bar Theory
Case Theory
Binding Theory
Control Theory
It is expected that the materials included in the review and subsequent discussion will be extensive enough to allow students who have not been exposed directly to Principles and Parameters Theory to understand it well enough to make the appropriate application with some guidance. Because the patterns of movement of constituents do not lend themselves neatly to treatment in relation to any one component as listed above, they will be considered separately.
b) application of the proposed principles to language data--students are invited to work on data of their own selection, or I will suggest suitable data for analysis; significant opportunity for individual consultation is expected to be available.
c) textlinguistics--while the theory includes textlinguistics under pragmatics rather than as a part of syntax, issues such as the varied orderings of constituents, the interpretation of some pronominal forms, variations in constituent ordering, and the distribution of the various tense/aspect forms used by the language all require detailed investigation for a full understanding of the structure of the language in question; because typically it is matters of text organization which influence such choices, the course will include a basic orientation to text structure and techniques of analysis, with opportunity for application to facilitate interpretation of such matters as those listed above. Students who have no background in textlinguistics will need to be prepared to do additional reading to compensate for what other students can cover by means of review.
The expected result of this course is a significantly detailed sketch of the language being analyzed, including identification of morpheme classes and subclasses, description of the various hierarchical levels of syntactic structure, classification of the specific types of pronominal forms utilized by the language and principles for interpreting them, variations in ordering of constituents; in each case, investigation will be carried out to provide an introductory understanding of the relevance of differing patterns in terms of text structure. In connection with Linguistics 5304, it is expected that morphology may be analyzed to the extent desired by the student (perhaps in lieu of some portion of the outline above, please consult with me).
For students who have a background and interest in computer science, it could be highly useful to attempt to develop a computational model to carry out such tasks as those performed by the principles and parameters of the modules. Concepts which would seem particularly amenable to such an approach are Binding Theory and Control Theory (extending concepts of the former beyond a single sentence as a possible modification), and possibly patterns of movement. Theta Theory is crucial to parsing within the theory and may have computational value as well. If you wish to pursue a project along these lines, please see me.
Student Responsibility
This is intended to be a seminar class. It is expected that each student will attend class regularly and participate in class discussion. Insights that individual students gain through application of the theory to the data of their concern will undoubtedly be of significant value to the other members of the class. A tentative write-up of the basic structures of the language in question in terms of the modules and principles as discussed will form the basis for the grade in this course; a sketch following the example in Burquest (forthcoming) will be suitable as a beginning point, with specific details provided for each assignment. At the conclusion of work on each module, each student will be expected to make a brief oral presentation of findings for a selection of topics covered.