Transformational Grammar and Its Organization
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The Empirical Base of Linguistics: Grammaticality Judgments and Linguistic Methodology
UCLA UCLA Previously Published Works Title The empirical base of linguistics: Grammaticality judgments and linguistic methodology Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/05b2s4wg ISBN 978-3946234043 Author Schütze, Carson T Publication Date 2016-02-01 DOI 10.17169/langsci.b89.101 Data Availability The data associated with this publication are managed by: Language Science Press, Berlin Peer reviewed eScholarship.org Powered by the California Digital Library University of California The empirical base of linguistics Grammaticality judgments and linguistic methodology Carson T. Schütze language Classics in Linguistics 2 science press Classics in Linguistics Chief Editors: Martin Haspelmath, Stefan Müller In this series: 1. Lehmann, Christian. Thoughts on grammaticalization 2. Schütze, Carson T. The empirical base of linguistics: Grammaticality judgments and linguistic methodology 3. Bickerton, Derek. Roots of language ISSN: 2366-374X The empirical base of linguistics Grammaticality judgments and linguistic methodology Carson T. Schütze language science press Carson T. Schütze. 2019. The empirical base of linguistics: Grammaticality judgments and linguistic methodology (Classics in Linguistics 2). Berlin: Language Science Press. This title can be downloaded at: http://langsci-press.org/catalog/book/89 © 2019, Carson T. Schütze Published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 Licence (CC BY 4.0): http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ ISBN: 978-3-946234-02-9 (Digital) 978-3-946234-03-6 (Hardcover) 978-3-946234-04-3 (Softcover) 978-1-523743-32-2 -
Linguistic Competence
University of Nebraska - Lincoln DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln Transactions of the Nebraska Academy of Sciences and Affiliated Societies Nebraska Academy of Sciences 1983 Linguistic Competence John Tienson University of Nebraska-Lincoln Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/tnas Part of the Life Sciences Commons Tienson, John, "Linguistic Competence" (1983). Transactions of the Nebraska Academy of Sciences and Affiliated Societies. 259. https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/tnas/259 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Nebraska Academy of Sciences at DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. It has been accepted for inclusion in Transactions of the Nebraska Academy of Sciences and Affiliated Societiesy b an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. 1983. Transactions of the Nebraska Academy of Sciences, XI:99-104. LINGUISTIC COMPETENCE John Tienson Department of Philosophy University of Nebraska-Lincoln Lincoln, Nebraska 68588-0321 The notion of linguistic competence as a cognitive system that essential to the notion. This will make clear that Chomsky produces knowledge not antecedently present in the mind of the sub should not have said that a theory of competence is an ideali ject, e.g., knowledge of grammatical relations in response to certain zation, and that there is no reason to say that a speaker knows stimuli is an important contribution to philosophical understanding of linguistics, and of cognitive psychology in general. This notion has not the rules of the grammar. been as well received as it should have been, in part because of certain false things that have been said about it. -
On the Irrelevance of Transformational Grammar to Second Language Pedagogy
ON THE IRRELEVANCE OF TRANSFORMATIONAL GRAMMAR TO SECOND LANGUAGE PEDAGOGY John T. Lamendella The University of Michigan Many scholars view transformational grammar as an attempt to represent the structure of linguistic knowledge in the mind and seek to apply transformational descriptions of languages to the de- velopment of second language teaching materials. It will be claimed in this paper that it is a mistake to look to transformational gram- mar or any other theory of linguistic description to provide the theoretical basis for either second language pedagogy or a theory of language acquisition. One may well wish to describe the ab- stract or logical structure of a language by constructing a trans- formational grammar which generates the set of sentences identi- fied with that language. However, this attempt should not be con- fused with an attempt to understand the cognitive structures and processes involved in knowing or using a language. It is a cogni- tive theory of language within the field of psycholinguistics rather than a theory of linguistic description which should underlie lan- guage teaching materials. A great deal of effort has been expended in the attempt to demonstrate the potential contributions of the field of descriptive linguistics to the teaching of second languages and, since the theory of transformational grammar has become the dominant theory in the field of linguistics, it is not surprising that applied linguists have sought to apply transformational grammar to gain new in- sights into the teaching of second languages. It will be claimed in this paper that it is a mistake to look to transformational grammar or any other theory of linguistic description to provide the theoretical basis for either second language pedagogy or a theory of language acquisition. -
1 Descriptive Versus Prescriptive Grammar Eli Hinkel Seattle Pacific University [email protected] Word Count 2,453 Abstract A
Page 1 of 5 TESOL Encyclopedia of English Language Teaching Descriptive versus Prescriptive Grammar Eli Hinkel Seattle Pacific University [email protected] Word Count 2,453 Abstract A descriptive grammar is a study of a language, its structure, and its rules as they are used in daily life by its speakers from all walks of life, including standard and nonstandard varieties. A prescriptive grammar, on the other hand, specifies how a language and its grammar rules should be used. A prescriptivist view of language implies a distinction between "good grammar" and "bad grammar," and its primary focus is on standard forms of grammar and syntactic constructions. Main Text Section 1: Framing the Issue A definition of a descriptive grammar: A descriptive grammar is a study of a language, its structure, and its rules as they are used in daily life by its speakers from all walks of life, including standard and nonstandard varieties. That is, descriptive grammar describes the language, its structure, and the syntactic rules that govern sentence and phrase constructions (Greenbaum & Quirk, 1990). A descriptive study of grammar is non-judgmental, and it does not have the goal of determining what represents good or bad language, correct or incorrect structures, or grammatical or ungrammatical forms (Leech, Deuchar, & Hoogenraad, 2006). A descriptive grammar is typically studied by linguists, anthropologists, ethnographers, psychologists, or other researchers who seek to identify how the grammar of a language is actually used in various contexts and for various purposes. (Books that describe and present the grammar of any language are called reference grammars, or sometimes "a grammar" by non-specialists.) In this light, sentences such as Him and me, we are neighbors or I don't know nothing simply reflect how the language is used by its speakers. -
1A Realistic Transformational Grammar
1 A Realistic Transformational Grammar JOAN BRESNAN The Realization Problem More than ten years ago Noam Chomsky expressed a fundamental assumption of transformational grammar : . A reasonable model of language use will incorporate , as a basic component , the generative grammar that express es the speaker - hearer ' s knowledge of the language . " This assumption is fundamental in that it defines basic research objectives for transformational grammar : to characterize the grammar that is to represent the language user ' s knowledge of language , and to specify the relation between the grammar and the model of language use into which the grammar is to be incorporated as a basic component . We may call these two research objectives the grammatical characterization problem and the grammatical realization problem . In the past ten years linguistic research has been devoted almost exclusively to the characterization problem ; the crucial question posed by the realization problem has been neglected - How } \ ' ould a reasonable model of language use incorporate a transformational grammar ? If we go back to the context in which Chomsky expressed this assumption about the relation of grammar to language use , we find that it is couched within an admonition : . A generative grammar is not a model for a speaker or a hearer . No doubt , a reasonable model of language use will incorporate , as a basic component , the generative grammar that express es speaker - hearer ' s knowledge of the language ; but this generative grammar does not , in itself , prescribe the character or functioning of a perceptual model or a model of speech - production " ( 1965 , p . 9 ) . In retrospect , this caution appears to have been justified by the rather pessimistic conclusions that have since been drawn in This chapter discuss es research in progress by the author , which is likely to be modified and refined. -
Chapter 1 Basic Categorial Syntax
Hardegree, Compositional Semantics, Chapter 1 : Basic Categorial Syntax 1 of 27 Chapter 1 Basic Categorial Syntax 1. The Task of Grammar ............................................................................................................ 2 2. Artificial versus Natural Languages ....................................................................................... 2 3. Recursion ............................................................................................................................... 3 4. Category-Governed Grammars .............................................................................................. 3 5. Example Grammar – A Tiny Fragment of English ................................................................. 4 6. Type-Governed (Categorial) Grammars ................................................................................. 5 7. Recursive Definition of Types ............................................................................................... 7 8. Examples of Types................................................................................................................. 7 9. First Rule of Composition ...................................................................................................... 8 10. Examples of Type-Categorial Analysis .................................................................................. 8 11. Quantifiers and Quantifier-Phrases ...................................................................................... 10 12. Compound Nouns -
TRADITIONAL GRAMMAR REVIEW I. Parts of Speech Traditional
Traditional Grammar Review Page 1 of 15 TRADITIONAL GRAMMAR REVIEW I. Parts of Speech Traditional grammar recognizes eight parts of speech: Part of Definition Example Speech noun A noun is the name of a person, place, or thing. John bought the book. verb A verb is a word which expresses action or state of being. Ralph hit the ball hard. Janice is pretty. adjective An adjective describes or modifies a noun. The big, red barn burned down yesterday. adverb An adverb describes or modifies a verb, adjective, or He quickly left the another adverb. room. She fell down hard. pronoun A pronoun takes the place of a noun. She picked someone up today conjunction A conjunction connects words or groups of words. Bob and Jerry are going. Either Sam or I will win. preposition A preposition is a word that introduces a phrase showing a The dog with the relation between the noun or pronoun in the phrase and shaggy coat some other word in the sentence. He went past the gate. He gave the book to her. interjection An interjection is a word that expresses strong feeling. Wow! Gee! Whew! (and other four letter words.) Traditional Grammar Review Page 2 of 15 II. Phrases A phrase is a group of related words that does not contain a subject and a verb in combination. Generally, a phrase is used in the sentence as a single part of speech. In this section we will be concerned with prepositional phrases, gerund phrases, participial phrases, and infinitive phrases. Prepositional Phrases The preposition is a single (usually small) word or a cluster of words that show relationship between the object of the preposition and some other word in the sentence. -
Grammar for Academic Writing
GRAMMAR FOR ACADEMIC WRITING Tony Lynch and Kenneth Anderson (revised & updated by Anthony Elloway) © 2013 English Language Teaching Centre University of Edinburgh GRAMMAR FOR ACADEMIC WRITING Contents Unit 1 PACKAGING INFORMATION 1 Punctuation 1 Grammatical construction of the sentence 2 Types of clause 3 Grammar: rules and resources 4 Ways of packaging information in sentences 5 Linking markers 6 Relative clauses 8 Paragraphing 9 Extended Writing Task (Task 1.13 or 1.14) 11 Study Notes on Unit 12 Unit 2 INFORMATION SEQUENCE: Describing 16 Ordering the information 16 Describing a system 20 Describing procedures 21 A general procedure 22 Describing causal relationships 22 Extended Writing Task (Task 2.7 or 2.8 or 2.9 or 2.11) 24 Study Notes on Unit 25 Unit 3 INDIRECTNESS: Making requests 27 Written requests 28 Would 30 The language of requests 33 Expressing a problem 34 Extended Writing Task (Task 3.11 or 3.12) 35 Study Notes on Unit 36 Unit 4 THE FUTURE: Predicting and proposing 40 Verb forms 40 Will and Going to in speech and writing 43 Verbs of intention 44 Non-verb forms 45 Extended Writing Task (Task 4.10 or 4.11) 46 Study Notes on Unit 47 ii GRAMMAR FOR ACADEMIC WRITING Unit 5 THE PAST: Reporting 49 Past versus Present 50 Past versus Present Perfect 51 Past versus Past Perfect 54 Reported speech 56 Extended Writing Task (Task 5.11 or 5.12) 59 Study Notes on Unit 60 Unit 6 BEING CONCISE: Using nouns and adverbs 64 Packaging ideas: clauses and noun phrases 65 Compressing noun phrases 68 ‘Summarising’ nouns 71 Extended Writing Task (Task 6.13) 73 Study Notes on Unit 74 Unit 7 SPECULATING: Conditionals and modals 77 Drawing conclusions 77 Modal verbs 78 Would 79 Alternative conditionals 80 Speculating about the past 81 Would have 83 Making recommendations 84 Extended Writing Task (Task 7.13) 86 Study Notes on Unit 87 iii GRAMMAR FOR ACADEMIC WRITING Introduction Grammar for Academic Writing provides a selective overview of the key areas of English grammar that you need to master, in order to express yourself correctly and appropriately in academic writing. -
2 Conceptions of Language and Grammar
2 Conceptions of Language and Grammar KEY CONCEPTS The study of language The roles of the English teacher What is a language? Competence and performance Approaches to the study of language THE STUDY OF LANGUAGE The study of spoken and writtenlanguage occupies a significant part of contemporary primary and secondary school and university curricula. The grammars, handbooks of style, and composition texts used in these cur- ricula are based on various assumptions about language and about why it should be studied. It is important that teachers have a critical understanding of these assumptions, which in many instances are either indirectly stated or omitted entirely. These books are designed to help you to: • develop the critical resources you need as a teacher to respond to many language-related issues; • understand the many concepts needed to talk appropriately and accurately about language; • develop skills that you will use in everyday teaching of language, literature, reading, and writing. In the pages to follow you will encounter ideas about language that may be new to you and which may contradict ideas you’ve been taught. We cannot guarantee that these new concepts will be easy to master, but we do believe that they are worth your best efforts. We will, as we said earlier, try to begin with what you know about language. For example, you have probably been taught to avoid non-standard expressions such as seen or seed instead of saw, to avoid multiple nouns as modifiers, to make sure that your subjects and verbs agree, to use parallel structures where possible, and the like. -
Introduction to Transformational Grammar
Introduction to Transformational Grammar Kyle Johnson University of Massachusetts at Amherst Fall 2004 Contents Preface iii 1 The Subject Matter 1 1.1 Linguisticsaslearningtheory . 1 1.2 The evidential basis of syntactic theory . 7 2 Phrase Structure 15 2.1 SubstitutionClasses............................. 16 2.2 Phrases .................................... 20 2.3 Xphrases................................... 29 2.4 ArgumentsandModifiers ......................... 41 3 Positioning Arguments 57 3.1 Expletives and the Extended Projection Principle . ..... 58 3.2 Case Theory and ordering complements . 61 3.3 Small Clauses and the Derived Subjects Hypothesis . ... 68 3.4 PROandControlInfinitives . .. .. .. .. .. .. 79 3.5 Evidence for Argument Movement from Quantifier Float . 83 3.6 Towards a typology of infinitive types . 92 3.7 Constraints on Argument Movement and the typology of verbs . 97 4 Verb Movement 105 4.1 The “Classic” Verb Movement account . 106 4.2 Head Movement’s role in “Verb Second” word order . 115 4.3 The Pollockian revolution: exploded IPs . 123 4.4 Features and covert movement . 136 5 Determiner Phrases and Noun Movement 149 5.1 TheDPHypothesis ............................. 151 5.2 NounMovement............................... 155 Contents 6 Complement Structure 179 6.1 Nouns and the θ-rolestheyassign .................... 180 6.2 Double Object constructions and Larsonian shells . 195 6.3 Complement structure and Object Shift . 207 7 Subjects and Complex Predicates 229 7.1 Gettingintotherightposition . 229 7.2 SubjectArguments ............................. 233 7.2.1 ArgumentStructure ........................ 235 7.2.2 The syntactic benefits of ν .................... 245 7.3 The relative positions of µP and νP: Evidence from ‘again’ . 246 7.4 The Minimal Link Condition and Romance causatives . 254 7.5 RemainingProblems ............................ 271 7.5.1 The main verb in English is too high . -
• an Adjective Is a Word That Describes a Noun. an Adjective Usually Comes Before the Noun It Describes
Grammar: Adjectives Name • An adjective is a word that describes a noun. An adjective usually comes before the noun it describes. • Some adjectives are descriptive. They tell what kind of person, place, or thing the noun is. • Some adjectives tell how many. • Some adjectives are limiting, such as this, that, these, and those. Draw one line under each adjective. Circle the noun that the adjective describes. 1. Gramps has a brown horse. 2. Rex is the name of this big animal. 3. I am a good helper when I visit Gramps. 4. I take Rex out for long rides. 5. I feed Rex juicy apples. Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. 6. Gramps lets me polish the heavy saddle. 7. In June I will help him paint the old barn. 8. Gramps let me pick out the new color. 9. I chose a bright red. 10. I think Rex will like that color. 126 Grammar • Grade 3 • Unit 6 • Week 1 Grammar: Articles Name • The articles a, an, and the are special adjectives. • Use an before an adjective or a nonspecifi c singular noun that begins with a vowel. • Use the before singular and plural nouns when referring to something specifi c. • Some adjectives are limiting, such as this, that, these, and those. Write a, an, or the to fi nish each sentence. 1. I went to see first game of the World Series. 2. I wrote essay about my exciting day. 3. I took baseball with me in hopes of getting it signed. 4. After game, I looked around for my favorite pitcher. -
Language and Psychology. New York: Wiley, 1970
Some psychological aspects of linguistic data W. J. M. Levelt, Nijmegen In this article some aspects of the relation between linguistics and psychology are considered. It will be shown that some present day linguistic practices are dubious from the psychological point of view (section 4), whereas at the same time the psy chological relevance of linguistic theory is central to the transformationalists con ception of linguistics (section 2). But even if linguistics is given a more moderate place in the psychology of language (section 3), certain types of linguistic data, na mely different sorts of linguistic intuitions, deserve very careful attention in view of their psychological unreliability. Uncontrolable introspectionism should be avoi ded and some recommendations to this effect are made (section 5). It is especially stressed that the linguist should not rely on absolute judgment of grammaticality, but only on relative (rank order) judgments; that he should order his rules with respect to their grammatical importance; and that he should study intuitions which have a high degree of reliability, such as intuitions on cohesion. The paper is introduced by a short historical note (section 1), which out lines the main conceptions of the relation between psychology and linguistics during the past century and a half. 1. An historical note The views on the relations between psychology and linguistics are as diverse as-the opinions about the relation between human mind and human language. The nine teenth and twentieth century literature on this subject is so extensive, that any short review necessarily oversimplifies the intricate matters involved. This is especially true for the present introduction, which will confine itself to a summary indication of the three most outstanding conceptions that have been proposed during this period.