Optimality Theory Constraint Interaction in Generative Grammar
Produktdetaljer
Biografisk notat
Alan Prince is Professor of Linguistics and a member of the Cognitive Science Center at Rutgers University and is, along with Paul Smolensky, one of the founders of Optimality Theory. He has published in journals such as Linguistic Inquiry, Science, Cognition, and Critical Inquiry.
Paul Smolensky is Professor of Cognitive Science at Johns Hopkins University. His publications include Learnability in Optimality Theory (with Bruce Tesar, 2000) and Mathematical Perspectives on Neural Networks (edited with Michael Mozer and David Rumelhart, 1996).
“This is a very important book. <i>Optimality Theory</i> has transformed the field of linguistics more than almost any other development of the past half-century, and Prince and Smolensky started it all.” <i>John J. McCarthy, University of Massachusetts, Amherst</i> <br /> <p><br /> </p> <p>"OT does not need to permanently influence linguistic theory: it has already done so. Between 1993 and 2004, Prince and Smolensky’s <i>Optimality Theory</i> was by far the most widely circulated manuscript among phonologists. Fortunately, it is now available for a larger audience in this text edition." <i>René Kager, Utrecht University</i></p>
- Final version of the widely circulated 1993 Technical Report that was the seminal work in Optimality Theory, never before available in book format.
- Serves as an excellent introduction to the principles and practice of Optimality Theory.
- Offers proposals and analytic commentary that suggest many directions for further development for the professional.
Prefatory Note ix
Acknowledgments x
Part I Optimality and Constraint Interaction 11
Part II Syllable Theory 101
Part III Issues and Answers in Optimality Theory 203
Appendix 258
References 266
Index of Constraints 281
Index of Languages 283
General Index 284
• Defines grammatical well-formedness as optimality with respect to a ranked set of universal constraints
• Presents the theory both through examples and formally, emphasizing its core commitments: strict domination, the Markedness/Faithfulness distinction, strong universality of the constraint set, interlinguistic variation as variation in ranking
• Illuminates generalization patterns shared across empirically diverse phenomena ranging from epenthesis to infixation to complex dependencies among prominence, syllabification, stress and word-form
• Derives universals of basic syllable structure and constructs a prosodic theory based on multipolar scales, laying the groundwork for a domain-general approach to gradient interactions
• Shows how to obtain universal and language-particular inventories, identifies the role of optimality in structuring the lexicon, and deals with key foundational issues.
For the newcomer, this pivotal work serves as an excellent introduction to the principles and practice of Optimality Theory. For the professional audience, it will suggest many directions for further exploration and development.
Produktdetaljer
Biografisk notat
Alan Prince is Professor of Linguistics and a member of the Cognitive Science Center at Rutgers University and is, along with Paul Smolensky, one of the founders of Optimality Theory. He has published in journals such as Linguistic Inquiry, Science, Cognition, and Critical Inquiry.
Paul Smolensky is Professor of Cognitive Science at Johns Hopkins University. His publications include Learnability in Optimality Theory (with Bruce Tesar, 2000) and Mathematical Perspectives on Neural Networks (edited with Michael Mozer and David Rumelhart, 1996).