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Samenvatting - From language to linguistics

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A summary of the key material for the course "From Language to Linguistics". The summary is in English and focuses on the end-term content.

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  • October 29, 2024
  • 17
  • 2024/2025
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‭Handout 7‬
‭ -bar theory is a framework in syntax that proposes a universal structure for all syntactic‬
X
‭categories (like nouns, verbs, adjectives, etc.). It breaks down phrases into hierarchical‬
‭levels, with each phrase consisting of three main parts:‬
‭1)‬ ‭Head =‬‭The main category of the phrase, such as a‬‭verb for a verb phrase.‬
‭2)‬ ‭Specifier =‬‭A dependent part of the phrase that adds‬‭specific details.‬
‭3)‬ ‭Complement =‬‭Additional information that completes‬‭the phrase.‬

‭ very phrase in a sentence, regardless of its type, follows the same basic structural template‬
E
‭in X-bar theory. This template can be applied to noun phrases (NP), verb phrases (VP),‬
‭adjective phrases (AP), prepositional phrases (PP), and more.‬
‭The phrase is called XP, where "X" stands for the head of the phrase (e.g., N for noun, V for‬
‭verb, A for adjective). The rules are:‬
‭●‬ ‭𝑋𝑃‬‭‬‭→‬‭‭𝑆 ‬ 𝑝𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑓𝑖𝑒𝑟‬‭‬‭𝑋‭’‬‭:‬ This rule indicates that an XP‬‭(Phrase) consists of two main‬
‭components‬
‭○‬ ‭Specifier:‬‭The optional part of the phrase that modifies‬‭or adds information to‬
‭the phrase.‬
‭○‬ ‭X' (X-bar):‬‭An intermediate projection that connects‬‭the specifier to‬
‭the rest of the phrase. It’s the middle layer in the hierarchical‬
‭structure.‬
‭●‬ ‭𝑋‬‭’‬‭‬‭→‭‬‬‭𝑋‭‬‬‭𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡‬‭: This rule states that the X'‬‭(X-bar) is composed of‬
‭○‬ ‭X (Head):‬‭The core part of the phrase, such as a noun‬‭(N), verb (V), or‬
‭adjective (A).‬
‭○‬ ‭Complement:‬‭The part of the phrase that completes‬‭the meaning of the head.‬

I‭n syntax, complements and adjuncts are two different types of elements in a sentence that‬
‭modify or add information to the main verb or head of a phrase, but they serve different‬
‭functions and follow different rules.‬

‭ omplements =‬‭Essential parts of a phrase that typically‬‭receive a semantic role (or theta‬
C
‭role) from the main verb. Complements are often necessary (obligatory) to complete the‬
‭meaning of the verb or head of a phrase. Without a complement, the sentence or phrase‬
‭may feel incomplete or ungrammatical.‬
‭For example: "She broke a door." Here, "a door" is the complement of "broke,"‬
‭because it completes the meaning of the action. Without it, "She broke" is incomplete‬
‭in English because "broke" requires an object.‬

‭ heta roles =‬‭The semantic relationships that elements‬‭in a sentence have with the verb,‬
T
‭like "agent" (the doer), "theme" (the thing affected), etc.‬

‭ djuncts =‬‭Optional modifiers that add extra information‬‭but are not‬
A
‭essential to the core meaning of the sentence. They do not carry a‬
‭theta role. Adjuncts can usually be left out without affecting the‬
‭grammaticality of the sentence. Adjuncts provide information extra information about time,‬
‭place, and manner of the action/event‬
‭"She broke the door carefully." Here, "carefully" is an adjunct because it adds detail‬
‭about how she broke the door but is not essential to the meaning.‬

,‭There are some exceptions:‬
‭●‬ ‭Optional arguments =‬‭Sometimes, a verb can be used‬‭with or without a‬
‭complement, depending on context.‬
‭○‬ ‭For example: "He is eating" vs. "He is eating an apple."‬
‭"An apple" is an optional complement because the sentence remains‬
‭grammatical without it, even though it clarifies what he is eating.‬
‭●‬ ‭Obligatory adjuncts =‬‭In rare cases, adjuncts are‬‭required to complete the‬
‭sentence.‬
‭○‬ ‭For example: "‬‭He behaves stupidly.‬‭" vs. "‬‭He behaves‬‭"‬
‭In English, the verb "behaves" often feels incomplete without an adjunct like‬
‭"stupidly" or "well," since it normally requires additional information to specify‬
‭how he behaves.‬

‭ P Ellipsis =‬‭A phenomenon in syntax where a verb‬‭phrase (VP) is omitted because it can‬
V
‭be inferred from context. This allows for more concise sentences without repeating‬
‭information unnecessarily.‬
‭For example: “‬‭Mary [VP broke the window] in the evening and Joost [did it] in the‬
‭afternoon.‬‭" In this case, "did it" substitutes for the previously mentioned action‬
‭(breaking the window), maintaining grammaticality.‬
‭Another example: "‬‭Mary [VP broke the window] in the‬‭evening and Joost did it the‬
‭glass.‬‭" This sentence is ungrammatical because "the‬‭glass" fails to substitute for the‬
‭VP. The ellipsis cannot simply replace the direct object or a part of the VP that is not‬
‭fully encapsulated in the initial clause.‬

‭ P-ellipsis test =‬‭Involves omitting part of a verb‬‭phrase in the second clause, usually by‬
V
‭using expressions like‬‭"‭d ‬ id‬‭that‬‭too"‬‭or‬‭"‬‭does‬‭that‬‭also."‬‭If the omitted information is a‬
‭complement, it’s essential to the meaning of the sentence and must be specified. If it’s an‬
‭adjunct, it is optional and provides extra information that isn’t necessary to complete the‬
‭verb’s meaning.‬

‭Complement Example: "She‬‭broke‬‭the window‬‭with the‬‭hammer‬‭, and he [‬‭did‬‭that‬‭] [‬‭with a‬
‭stone‬‭]."‬
‭●‬ ‭Here, "the window" is a complement to "broke" because it is required to complete the‬
‭meaning of the verb. The VP-ellipsis test shows that "the window" cannot be omitted‬
‭and that "with a hammer" can be replaced with "with a stone."‬
‭●‬ ‭This maintains the meaning of both sentences because the main action (breaking a‬
‭window) requires an object, while the manner (using a hammer or stone) is‬
‭additional.‬

‭Adjunct Example: "She‬‭broke‬‭the window‬‭with the hammer‬‭,‬‭and he [‬‭did‬‭that‬‭] [‬‭the vase‬‭]."‬
‭●‬ ‭This version is ungrammatical because it tries to replace the adjunct "with the‬
‭hammer" with "the vase," which doesn’t work as a substitute in the same position.‬
‭●‬ ‭The adjunct here (the tool used) doesn’t play a fundamental role in completing the‬
‭verb’s meaning, so changing it while keeping the VP ellipsis (omitting part of the‬
‭phrase) fails in this way.‬

, ‭ hen we adjunction takes place, a "copy" or "clone" of the root node (highest node in the‬
W
‭structure, such as VP or NP) is created, which allows for additional elements to attach to it.‬
‭These added elements do not change the fundamental sentence structure but instead‬
‭expand it, providing optional, descriptive details about the action or event. It does not alter‬
‭the phrase's core structure (or syntax tree’s core nodes) needed for the sentence's basic‬
‭meaning. Instead, it simply adds space for extra, non-essential information. The elements‬
‭added via adjunction do not receive thematic roles (they are not central to the meaning of‬
‭the predicate/verb), meaning they are not required by the verb to complete the sentence.‬
‭For instance, the verb "make" requires an object (like "a cake") to make sense, but‬
‭adjuncts like "in the kitchen" or "happily" are not required, even though they add‬
‭more details about the action.‬

“‭ She is making a cake."‬
‭Here, "a cake" is a complement (required by the verb‬
‭"making") and gives the verb its complete meaning. Without‬
‭it, the sentence would be incomplete ("She is making" is‬
‭ungrammatical).‬

‭“She is making a cake (in the kitchen) (with the food mixer)‬
‭(happily)."‬
‭These added elements "(in the kitchen)", "(with the food‬
‭mixer)", are adjuncts. They provide extra information but are‬
‭not required for the sentence to be grammatical. They do not‬
‭change the basic syntactic structure, just add space for‬
‭additional, non-obligatory information.‬

‭ other node =‬‭A node that directly dominates another‬‭node or set of‬
M
‭nodes. A mother node can be thought of as a “parent” node, with the‬
‭nodes directly beneath it being its daughters.‬
‭Sisters‬‭=‬‭Nodes that share the same mother are considered‬‭sisters. Sisters do not dominate‬
‭each other; rather, they exist at the same level in the tree.‬
‭Sisterhood =‬‭If two nodes are immediately dominated‬‭by the samen node, they are sisters.‬

‭𝑊ℎ𝑎‬‭𝑡‭𝑡‬ ‬‭‬‭𝑑𝑜‬‭‬‭𝑦𝑜‬‭𝑢‬‭𝑡‬‭‬‭‬‭𝑤𝑎𝑛𝑡‬‭[‬ ‭𝑡𝑜‬‭‬‭𝑒𝑎‬‭𝑡‭𝑡‬ ‬]
‭𝑗‬ ‭𝑖‬ ‭𝑗‬

"‭ What"‬‭starts in its base position as the object of‬‭"eat"‬‭, but due to wh-movement, it moves to‬
‭the front of the sentence. Traces (tj and ti) mark the original positions of moved elements.‬

‭ -command =‬‭Iff Node A and Node B are sisters (both‬‭dominated by a common parent‬
C
‭node), Node A c-commands Node B and any nodes that fall below B in the tree. This‬
‭relationship is fundamental in syntactic theory for describing certain dependencies and‬
‭hierarchical structures in language.‬

‭ -command (Reinhart 1976):‬‭Just as Fibonacci numbers‬‭appear in various natural patterns,‬
C
‭c-command consistently appears in syntactic structures across languages, underpinning‬
‭phenomena such as binding and scope.‬

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