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Syntax

I. Definition of SyntaxII. Types of GrammarIII. Hierarchical Structure

A. Tree diagramB. Phrase structure rulesC. RecursivenessD. Deep/surface structure

IV. Universal GrammarA. PrinciplesB. Parameters

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Definition of Syntax (1) “syntaxis” (Greek) = “arrangement” The rules of sentence formation; the study of

the structure of sentences. Language Structure

Phonology Grammar Semantics

morphology syntax

(the specific sense; more traditional)

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Definition of Syntax (2)

Popularized by Chomsky (the general sense)

Grammar

Phonology (Morphology) Syntax Semantics

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II.    Types of Grammar

A. Mental Grammar: Internal linguistic knowledge

B. Developmental Grammar: a learner’s grammar

C. Prescriptive Grammar: a set of prescribed rules which tells people how to speak/write

D. Descriptive Grammar: how people do speak in actual utterances.

E. Pedagogical Grammar: teaching grammar widely used in schools

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A. Mental Grammar: Internal linguistic knowledge

Grammar

Phonology (Morphology) Syntax Semantics

Linguistic knowledge in the mind Here, we’ll just consider grammatical knowledge as structural knowledge; but NOTE you also must know how to USE the structural knowledge.

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Grammar

mental grammar ling. etiquette the nature of lang.(psycholing. view) (socioling. view) (ling. view in general)

Internal ling. knowledge social attitudes a description of the grammar

(what goes on in lang. and values (study and analysis of the

user’s mind; sub- (proper or best structures found in a lang.)

conscious, not result structures to be

of any teaching) used in a lang.)

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B. Developmental Grammar: a learner’s grammar

The mental grammar in the developmental stage Type of lang. produced by learners who are in

the process of learning a language. In the language use of a L1 or L2 learner; which

is the result of a normal pattern of development, and is common among language learners.

e.g. “comed,” “goed,” “breaked”

Because of overgeneralizations; a natural or developmental stage in lang. learning.

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C. Prescriptive Grammar: a set of prescribed rules which tells people how to speak/writeA set of “rules” about how you SHOULD

speak or write; gives judgments on which structures are CORRECT and which are INCORRECT

Their influence lives on in the handbook of usage widely found today.

e.g. double negative(=affirmative), *ain’t

*it’s me, ending sentences with preposition (*Who are you talking to?)

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D. Descriptive Grammar: how people do speak in actual utterances

Linguistic description of the structures of a language as they are observed to be used, with no evaluation (non-judgmental) of social correctness.

Collins Cobuild dictionary example—huge corpus analyzed and described

e.g. Either of the dictionaries are/is good.(but should be “is” according to prescriptive view)e.g. Neither of the books were/was a good buy.

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E. Pedagogical Grammar: teaching grammars widely used in schools

A “teaching grammar”—designed for developing NS students’ awareness of their mother tongue, or for teaching a language as a foreign language.

Often a combination of descriptive & prescriptive grammars; more contemporary pedagogical grammars moving away from prescriptive.

e.g. M. Swam. Practical English Usage or a textbook ; a grammar book.

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III. Hierarchical Structure (1)A. Concepts of hierarchy

e.g.1: John is easy to please

John is eager to please

Q: Do the two sentences have the same sentence structure (the same syntax)?

Paraphrase:

It’s easy for somebody to please John.

John is eager to please somebody.

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III. Hierarchical Structure (2)

Analogy:

A. “university” school board, principle, vice presidents, dean of academic affairs, dean of student affairs, dean of general affairs, dean of research and development, dean of each college, dept. chairs….

B. “country” president, vice- president, legistrative yuan ( 立法院 ), executive yuan ( 行政院 ), control yuan ( 監察院 ), judicial yuan ( 司法院 ).

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University

School board

President, Vice presidents

教務長 學務長 總務長 研發長

外語 理工 文 法 民生 醫 管理 藝 社科 院長 院長 院長 院長 院長 院長 院長 院長 院長

: : : : : : : : :

系主任 系主任 系主任 系主任 系主任 系主任 系主任 系主任 系主任

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country

president vice- president

legistrative yuan executive yuan control yuan judicial yuan

( 立法院 ) ( 行政院 ) ( 監察院 ) ( 司法院 )

: : : :

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Hierarchy

Hilary couldn’t open the windows. VP NP

sentence phrases words morphemes

Constituent: part that makes up something; a linguistic unit which is part of a larger construction.

e.g. Can you identify the construction and constituents in the sentence, “the boy jumped”?

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III. Hierarchical Structure (3)

Modal of syntactic investigation: Five-rank hierarchy (Crystal 95)

Sentences Sentencesare analyzed into are used to build

Clauses Clauses are analyzed into are used to build

Phrases Phrasesare analyzed into are used to build

Words Wordsare analyzed into are used to build

Morphemes Morphemes

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Upward Expansion

Phrases e.g. cars the cars the big cars all

the big cars all the big cars in the garage (premodification) (head) (postmodification)

Upward expansion:Tom couldn’t find his notes, and Davie couldn’t find his textbook, and (repeat the structure) . . . but he still lectured for three hours.

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Hierarchy

Another way to look at “hierarchies”: construction and constituents

The young must respect the old people.

(A) the young (B) must respect the old people

(C) the (D) young (E) must respect (F) the old people

(G) must (H) respect (I) the (J) old

people

(K) old (L) people

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Clauses

Clause Types: S+V (The dog + is running) S+V+O (The dog + bites + him) S+V+C (The car + is + ready) S+V+A (The picture + lays +on the ground) S+V+O+O (I + give + him + a pen) S+V+O+C (He + calls + John a fool) S+V+O+A (Mary + saw + John +yesterday) Note: subject (S), verb (V), complement (C), object (O), adverbial (A).

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Formats of the HierarchyTree Diagrams: different levels in analysisPhrase Structure (in tree diagrams)Recursiveness (Recursion)Deep and Surface StructureTransformational Generative Grammar: e.g.1. Imperative Transformation e.g.2. Reflexive Transformation andImperative Transformation e.g.3. Passive Transformation e.g.4. Particle Movement

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1.Tree Diagrams (1)“The girl chased the dog.” (Crystal 96)

The girl chased the doga. Identify the 2 major constituents (The girl + chased

the dog)b. Divide the next-biggest constituent into 2: chased

+ the dogc. Continue dividing constituents into 2 units until we

can go no further. e.g. the + girl, the + dog, chase + -ed

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1.Tree Diagrams (2)

Tree Diagrams: Different levels in analysis

The tree diagram format may be viewed as:

a. A static representation of the structure of the sentence at the bottom of the diagram.

b. A dynamic format, representing a way of “generating” a very large number of sentences with similar structures (by the use of phrase structure rules).

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2. Phrase Structure

S

NP VP

ART N V NP

(DET)

ART N

the girl chased the dog

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Phrase Structure Rules

Phrase structure rules (Nash 75-77): present the information of the tree diagram in an alternative format

S NP + VP

VP V + (NP) + (PP) + (ADV)

(ART) + (ADJ)* N

NP PRO

PP P + NP Note: see Yule 105 for symbols and abbreviation definition.

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3. Recursiveness (Recursion)

Recursive rule: VP VS (Yule 107)

e.g.: John said [ Cathy thought (Mary helped George)].

Another e.g. of recursiveness

The Rose in My Garden

This is the rose in my garden.

This is the bee that sleeps on the rose in my garden.

These are the holly hocks high above ground, that give shade to the bee that sleeps on the rose in my garden.

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4. Deep and Surface Structure

Deep and surface structure: “the form of a sentence we produce and understand is very often not the same as the basic form which shows its meaning” (Nash 79)

A. Deep Structure: the abstract, underlying level, but basic form of the sentence

B. Surface Structure: the superficial, syntactic form that we produce in reality

e.g. old men and womene.g. Annie whacked a man with an umbrella. (Yule 103)

same surface structure form, two underlying interpretations (deep structures)

Other examples: 1. Look! 2. *Help herself. 3. The runner broke the world

record.

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Transformational-generative grammarTransformations: processes that change the deep

structure into surface structure.Generative: using phrase structure rules, se can

produce (generate) infinite sentences. Surface Structure:

S

NP VP

V NP

eat ART N

the chou tofu

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Deep Structure:S

imperativeNP VP

transformation

pro V NP

ART N

you eat the chou tofu

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Surface structure: Help yourself!Deep Structure:

S S

NP VP reflexive NP VP

pro V NP transformation pro V NPpro (reflexive

pro)

you help you you help yourself

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SNP VP imperative

Pro V NP transformation

(reflexive pro) Help yourself

You help yourself

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Transformation: important criteria

A. Some transformations are required; some are optional.

B. Transformation is in a certain order.

e.g. “Help yourself!”

reflexive transformation is required.

imperative transformation is optional.

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Passive transformation

NP1 V NP2 and changes it into

NP2 BE V-EN BY NP1

e.g. The runner broke the world record.

The world record was broken by the runner.

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Transformational Process

In this process: won’t change the relationship

and the meaning of the sentence

1. Combination e.g.: You have You’ve

2. Substitution e.g.: You Yourself

3. Deletion e.g.: You X

4. Movement e.g.: Put…on Put on…

5. Addition e.g.: relative clause

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Important Contribution of TGG

Not everything we know about a sentence is revealed in the actual form we produce—the surface structure. We must look for deeper structural information.

The deep—surface structure idea=a very important contribution.

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Relative clause (1)

S

NP VP

NA S V NP (+N) NP VP confused ART N

(+definite) N V NPx (-human) (+N) gave N the students

lecture (-common) (+N)

Nash (+definite)

(-human)

lecture

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Relative clause (2)

1st TRNAS: relative clause transformation

S

NP VP

NP S+ART N1 NP N NP VP

(+DEF) lecture(+ART) lecture

(-Human) (+N) (+DEF) (+N) NV

(+DEF) (-Human) (+DEF)

(-Human) (+WH) (-Human) Nash gave

(+PRO) (+WH)

(+PRO)

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Problems of TGG

1. Theory is unwieldy. (too cumbersome, too clumsy—too many transformations)

2. Not universal (It’s language specific, not conform to all languages).

3. Psychological unreal (Semantics should be applied first, then comes the syntax)

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Ambiguity

Children are nice to understand. 1. It’s nice for someone to understand children. 2. It’s nice for children to understand something. S-structure: Children are nice [ Ø to understand Ø ]

D-structure: Children are nice [ Ø to understand Ø ]

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D-Structure and S-Structure Definition:

D-structure—in which the basic order of phrases is represented.

S-structure—in which the actual linear order of phrases is observed; deep structure positions of phrases are represented by empty categories.

What will Frances drink [Ø] ?

Drano, he drank [Ø] !

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D-structureS

SNP VP

N V NP N

he drankDrano

S-structureS

NPi SNP VP

N N VNP

Drano he drank tiT=trace “an inaudible copy of the

moved NP is left in the D-structure position of the moved phrase”

i=identical index

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D-structure

S

S

NP I VP

N V VP

NFrances will drink what

S-structureS

NPj S

Willi S

N

NP IVP

V NP

What Frances ti drink tj

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Language Ambiguity

1. Sentence Ambiguity:

e.g.: Visiting relatives can be a nuisance.

2. Word Ambiguity:

e.g.: The man put his straw on the floor.

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IV. Universal Grammar

Definition: “a set of limits” on the form of mental grammar.

Two kinds of limits:1. Principles: invariable principles which dictate

the form that grammar can take.

2. Parameters: strictly defined possibilities of variation across languages.

(There is limited number in choices)

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Principles (1)

An example of “principles”: SubjacencyA. “No constituent can be moved over more than one bounding category.”

B. “A set of universal constraints on movement”

C. It can move only from a layer that is subordinate and adjacent.

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Principles (2)

Bounding category:

S (sentence) and NP (noun phrase) in English

e.g.1: What did Sue destroy? (a correct sentence?)S Ø

What [did Sue destroy t] ?

e.g. 2: What did Sue destroy a book about? (correct?) S NP Ø

What [did Sue destroy (a book about t)] ?

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Principles (3)

S

[(That all of us but you were upset) is obvious.]S

[(That all of us were upset) but you is obvious.]S S

*[(That all of us were upset) is obvious] but you.

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Principles (4)

S S

[(John saw a horse) that kicked a box.]S S

*[(What did John see a horse) that kicked Ø]?

S

[What did John see a horse kick Ø?]

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Parameters (1)

Definition: Any of the established limits within which

something must operate. [dictionary definition]

Strictly defined possibilities of variation across languages.

A range of possibilities and languages choose within that range: every language must set its parameters.

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Parameters (2)An example:Pro-drop (an overt pronominal subject is

dropped/optional): subjectless sentencesEnglish: I am going to the cinema.

*Am going to the cinema. Spanish: “Yo voy al cine.”

“voy al cine.”Italian: Io vado al cinema. (I go to the movies.)

Vado al cinema. Spanish + Italian= pro-drop languages.

(but English is not)

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Parameters (3)More Spanish examples:

A. Salieron a las ocho. *“Left at eight.” (They left at eight.)B. LloviÓ mucho ayer.

*“Rained a lot yesterday.” (It rained a lot yesterday.)

Free subject-verb inversion:Han llegado mis estudiantes.

*“Have arrived my students.” (My students have arrived.)

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Conclusion

UG: the ling. System involved rules too abstract and complex to be learned without the aid of innate knowledge about the nature of the system . . . The child is equipped with a set of blueprints that define and limit what a human language can be like.

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The child is assumed to be biologically equipped with knowledge of universal grammar—the basics of lang. structure. The child has blueprints for all the possible types of lang. in her head. In the course of lang. development she settles on the particular grammar of the lang. surrounding her.

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The primary role of UG in lang. development is to limit the hypotheses that a child can form concerning the rules of speech and ease with which lang. is learned.