Research

The two main goals of this dissertation are: 1) to examine and review the nature and patterns of segment weight, including: inventories, processes, and dependencies; and 2) to provide a simple and economical account for the observed descriptive generalizations within the framework of Optimality Theory and Moraic Theory. A thorough inspection of data from a large number of languages leads to the conclusion that a unified theory and mechanism of moraicity across segment types (i.e. both consonants and vowels) is warranted. This work provides such a unified theory. Chapter 1 reviews evidence for different degrees of weight, presents the syllable representations assumed throughout this work, and demonstrates that there are two sources of weight – coerced and distinctive. Coerced weight is a restriction on surface moraicity in some phonological context (e.g. weight by position and foot binarity), and is subject to distributional restrictions based on sonority. In contrast, distinctive weight is an underlying moraicity reflected in a surface contrast (e.g.geminate versus non-geminate intervocalic consonants), and is not bounded by sonority. Chapter 2 is a brief review of Optimality Theory and Correspondence Theory, and discusses the factorial rankings (permutations) of three types of constraints: 1) General moraic markedness constraints against moraic segments of different types – ranked in a universal hierarchy based on sonority; 2) Coercive moraic markedness constraints; and 3) Faithfulness constraints on underlying moraic affiliation with segments of different sonorities. Chapter 3 uses data from a number of languages to show that the descriptive generalizations discussed in chapter 1 emerge naturally as the result of constraint interactions. Chapter 4 expands on chapter 3, and provides in-depth case studies of segment moraicity and other phenomena in Hawaiian, Modern Standard Italian, Kashmiri, two Hungarian dialects, two Icelandic dialects, and Metropolitan New York English. This chapter gives detailed descriptions of different weight patterns; reveals that the constraints proposed in this work can be integrated into more complete grammars; and shows that different dialects can arise from a minimal re-ranking of constraints. Chapter 5 is a repository for discussions of miscellaneous issues, as well as the general conclusions

A dissertation on binding theory.

A unified analysis of connectivity or reconstruction effects in overt and covert movement.

A movement theory of anaphora.

The syntax of the left periphery and its encoding of illocutionary force.

This dissertation explores the way in which English-speaking children acquire the meaning of sentences containing negation and quantified noun phrases (QNPs). This investigation is based on a series of psycholinguistic experiments designed to assess children’s comprehension of sentences like ‘Every horse didn’t jump over the fence’ or ‘Cookie Monster didn’t eat two slices of pizza’ among others. The major finding is that children around the age of 5 do not interpret these sentences the way adult speakers of English do. This finding raises the following questions (a) How and why do children’s interpretations of sentences containing negation and quantified noun phrases differ from those of adults? (b) How do children manage to converge onto the adult system of interpretation? Regarding the first question, it appears that children’s non-adult interpretations are nevertheless systematic, i.e. governed by principle. Specifically, children (unlike adults) are found to map overt syntactic relations between QNPs and negation and their relative semantic interpretation isomorphically. This, however, is just a descriptive generalization. The observation of isomorphism is treated as an epiphenomenon, derived from the interplay between a universally encoded dichotomy splitting the class of QNPs and learnability considerations. Regarding the second question, I show that children can move from their system of interpretation to the adult system solely on the basis of positive evidence and thus, that the observed difference does not create a learnability problem. In summary, this dissertation uncovers a new area where the linguistic behavior of children and adults diverge: the comprehension of sentences containing negation and quantified noun phrases. The rest of the dissertation is a methodological statement, namely that it is not only desirable but also possible to account for the observed difference between children and adults without invoking any differences between the two groups beyond minimal conceptual necessity. To the extent that this goal is achieved, the present investigation emphasizes the role played by the theory of Universal Grammar and language learnability in helping us understand language development and its biological basis.

A small clause analysis of DP structure in languages with classifiers.

Syntactic change in French, from a parametric perspective.

A dissertation on nominal syntax in Chinese.

A dissertation on word order patterns cross-linguistically.