Generative linguistics and acquisition : studies in honor of Nina M. Hyams / Edited by Misha Becker, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill ; John Grinstead The Ohio State University, Columbus ; Jason Rothman ; University of Florida, Gainesville.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Hyams, Nina, 1952- honouree.

Becker, Misha, 1973- editor of compilation.

Grinstead, John, editor of compilation.

Rothman, Jason, editor of compilation.

Series:

Language Acquisition and Language Disorders

Language acquisition and language disorders, 0925-0123 ; v. 54

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Generative grammar.

Language acquisition.

English language--Acquisition.

English language.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (364 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Amsterdam ; Philadelphia : John Benjamins Publishing Company, 2013.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

This paper proposes a new theory of why null-subjects of finite verbs are produced by young children developing a non-null-subject language. We first show that one of the extant theories, Topic-Drop, isn't supported. Modifying ideas proposed in Rizzi (2006), we assume that finite null-subjects arise in the specifier of a root TP, and may be null as the result of phasal computation. But we reject the idea that the selection of a root is an arbitrary, parametric process. Using new work in syntactic theory that relates information structure (namely undistinguished subjects) to root Tense Phrases

Contents:

Generative Linguistics and Acquisition; Editorial page; Title page; LCC data; Table of contents; Introduction; Acknowledgments; References; Animacy, argument structure and unaccusatives in child English; 1. Introduction; 2. Theoretical background: The unaccusative-unergative distinction; 3. Previous studies: Arguments for and against A-movement in children's unaccusatives; 4. English unaccusatives: Diagnostics and predictions for child language; 5. Method; 6. Results; 6.1 Subject animacy; 6.2 Null subjects; 6.3 Resultatives; 6.4 Postverbal subjects; 7. Conclusions; References

Remarks on theoretical accounts of Japanese children's passive acquisition1. Introduction; 2. A-chains in Japanese passives; 2.1 An empty category in Japanese ni direct passive; 2.2 A-chain or anaphora with pro?; 2.3 The A-chain analysis of Japanese ni direct passives; 3. The ACDH account of children's passive acquisition; 3.1. English passive acquisition and the ACDH; 3.2 Japanese passive acquisition and the ACDH; 4. Comparing the long passive and the long passive-unaccusative amalgam; 4.1 Establishing a minimal pair; 4.2 Experimental data; 5. Comparing the long passive and the short passive

6. Discussion6.1 A θ-transmission Difficulty Hypothesis account; 6.2 On raising acquisition; References; Early or late acquisition of inflected infinitives in European Portuguese?; 1. Introduction; 2. Syntax and semantics of (canonical) inflected infinitives; 3. Acquisition of inflected infinitives in EP; 3.1 Methodology; 3.2 First spontaneous inflected infinitives in European Portuguese; 3.3 Discussion; 4. Conclusions; Acknowledgments; References; The relationship between determiner omission and root infinitives in child English; 1. Introduction; 2. Previous work: Hoekstra, Hyams, and Becker

2.1 Theoretical proposal2.2 English data; 2.3 German data; 2.4 Dutch data; 3. New English counts; 3.1 Transcripts and counting procedures; 3.2 Results; 4. Implications; Acknowledgments; References; The semantics of the tense deficit in child Spanish SLI; 1. Introduction; 2. Tense and aspect; 2.1 Aspect before tense; 3. Tense and root infinitives in child Spanish; 3.1 Tense and root infinitives in Spanish-speaking children with SLI; 3.2 SLI as a tense deficit at the semantic level; 4. Research questions; 5. Methods; 5.1 Participants; 5.2 Procedures; 6. Results; 7. Conclusions; References

The acquisition of reflexives and pronounsby Faroese children1. Introduction; 2. Basic binding facts of Faroese; 3. Experimental setup; 4. Results; 4.1 The developmental delay of pronouns; 4.2 How do Faroese adults judge sentences with seg?; 4.3 How do Faroese children acquire the binding properties of seg?; 5. Conclusion; References; Pronouns vs. definite descriptions; 1. Introduction; 2. Schlenker's Principle C; 3. The restrictors of pronouns; 3.1 Minimal pronouns; 3.2 Minimize Restrictor! + minimal pronouns = Principle C; 4. Evidence from Vehicle Change; 5. Consequences for acquisition

References

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781299396432

1299396437

9789027272263

9027272263

OCLC:

833766446