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Where is grammar?
When we speak, how do we compose sentences?
Does form structure langauge
or
Does meaning structure langauge?
When you speak, do you start with the form or do you start with the meaning?
Two models of language
Structuralism - Generativism Formal (rule-based) Linguistics
Post-Structuralism - Functionalism Functional (usage-based) Linguistics
Two great theories – Only one can be right!
We still don’t know which...
Humboldt – energeia and ergon Berlin 1821
you begin with activity (energeia) and end up with product (ergon)
- structure is a result of building
- grammar is a result of use
De Saussure – Langue and Parole Paris 1916 (yup, and the Swiss guy again)
Like Humboldt, he argued that Langage is divides into 2 parts
- Langue and Parole
Just like the sign is a whole, made of two parts – signifié and signifiant
Language is a whole, made of two parts – langue and parole
Langue is the structure, Parole is the usage
Parole is the result of Langue
Use is the result of grammar!
Chomsky – competence and performance MIT, Boston 1967
Chomsky agreed with de Saussure in that the structure is the basis of the production
but disagreed with what the structure was
Where de Saussure had not really said where this mysterious structure existed,
Chomsky said that the disticntion is between
competence and performance
the competence is in the mind, the performance is the use of that competence
but
Chomsky insisted that competence was
fundamentally innate !!!
That there exists an innate univerisal grammar
that is shared by all humans
each individual grammar is based upon it
Questions
Can you learn something without being told you’re wrong?
Is immitation enough to learn by?
Universal Grammar and the “Poverty of Stimulus” Formalists argue that a child does not have enough input to learn a langauge perfectly
They point out that a yoing child can produce perfect sentences that he or she has never heard before?
Chomsky’s theory of Universal Grammar
is an answer to that.
However, despite 60 years of looking
we have not found an evidence of Universal Grammar
Functionalists argue that we are just very clever monkeys...
Langacker – Usage and Pattern Los Angeles (1987)
In the 1980s, a diverse group of “Functional Linguists” in California and London
but also in Amsterdam and St Petersburg
In some ways they echoed Humboldt and said that usage comes first
but they also said that Langue does not exist!
Individual competences exist,
but they change over time
and
they change from one person to the next
Usage-based model
according to this usage-based model
grammar is a generalisation of usage events
grammar is “emergent”, never fixed
It is like a garden path
Essentially, a pattern, a set of re-occuring form-meaning pairs
Neuroscience
Just like there are two models / theories of language,
there are two theories / models of the mind
Modular Model and Connectionist Model
Grammaticality and the and Native Intuition
Let’s go back to the orginal question:
What is Grammaticality?
The feeling that an utterance “sounds natural” to a native speaker....
Where does that come from? How do you have it?
Grammaticality and Grammar
1. Formal Linguistics - Competence of the Ideal Speaker
2. Functional Linguistics – Varied grammars across individual competences
Language as a fixed formal structure vs. langauge as a varied dynamic system
Formalists aregu that form structures langauge.... Green colourless ideas sleep furiously
Is this sentence grammatical?
Syntax Syntax literally means the order of words however, metonymically it is often used to refer to theories of language that believe that form (like the order of words) is the grammar of a langauge
Formal Linguistics and Syntax Form-driven langauge theory argues that
1. Formal rules ‘drive’ langauge
2. Modules are the building blocks of language
Phonology
Syntax
Lexis
How to parse syntax –
Trees and Brackets
once in generating a structure. For example, we can have one prepositional phrase
describing location (on the table) in the sentence The gun was on the table. We can also
repeat this type of phrase, using different words (near the window), for as long as the
sentence still makes sense (in the bedroom). So, in order to generate a sentence such as
The gunwas on the table near the window in the bedroom, wemust be able to repeat the
rule that creates a prepositional phrase over and over again.
Wemust also be able to put sentences inside other sentences. For example, whenwe
produce a sentence such as Cathy knew that Mary helped George, we do so with the
sentence Mary helped George inside it. And those two sentences can be generated
inside another sentence such as John believed that Cathy knew that Mary helped
George. In principle, there is no end to the recursion that would produce ever longer
versions of complex sentences with this structure.
Basically, the grammar will have to capture the fact that a sentence can have another
sentence inside it or that a phrase can be repeated as often as required.We should note
that recursion of this type is not only a feature of grammar, but can also be an essential
part of a theory of cosmic structure, as in the role of turtles in one little old lady’s view
of the universe (in the introductory quotation).
Tree diagrams
One of themost commonways to create a visual representation of syntactic structure is
through tree diagrams.We can use the symbols introduced in Chapter 7 (Art= article,
N = noun, NP = noun phrase) to label parts of the tree as we try to capture the
hierarchical organization of those parts in the underlying structure of phrases and
sentences. So, we can take the information in a labeled and bracketed format, shown
on the left, and present it in a tree diagram, shown on the right.
Although this kind of “tree,” with its “branches,” shown on the right, seems to grow
down rather than up, it functions rather well as a diagram representing all the
grammatical information found in the other analysis on the left. It also shows very
explicitly that there are different levels in the analysis. That is, there is a level of
analysis at which a constituent such as NP is represented and a different, lower, level at
NP NP
Art N Art N[The] [girl]
The girl
Figure 8.1
Syntax 99
A full clause....
which a constituent such as N is represented. This type of hierarchical organization can
be illustrated in a tree diagram for a whole sentence, beginning at the top with S.
If we start at the top of the tree diagram, we begin with a sentence (S) and divide it
into two constituents (NP and VP). In turn, the NP constituent is divided into two
other constituents (Art and N). Finally, one word is selected that fits the label Art
(the) and another that fits N (girl). You can go through the same procedure with the
VP branches.
Symbols used in syntactic analysis
We have already encountered some symbols that are used as abbreviations for syn-
tactic categories. Examples are “S” (= sentence), “NP” (= noun phrase), “N” (=
noun), “Art” (= article), “V” (= verb) and “VP” (= verb phrase). Others, such as
“PP” (= prepositional phrase), seem fairly transparent. There are three more symbols
that are commonly used in syntactic description.
The first is in the form of an arrow !. It can be interpreted as “consists of” or
“rewrites as.” It is typically used in the following type of rule:
NP ! Art N
This is simply a shorthand way of saying that a noun phrase (NP) such as the dog
consists of or rewrites as (!) an article (Art) the and a noun (N) dog.
The second symbol is a pair of round brackets ( ). Whatever occurs inside these
round brackets will be treated as an optional constituent. For example, we can describe
something as the dog or the small dog. We can say that both the dog and the small dog
are examples of the category noun phrase (NP).Whenwewant to use a noun phrase in
S
NP VP
Art N V NP
Art N
The girl saw a dog
Figure 8.2
100 The Study of Language
But
Aarts and Haegeman (2006: 130) argue for this analysis on the groundsthat called my mother is a single unit rather than separate constituents inthe sentence. As support for this claim, they note that if the pro-verb dowere used to substitute for a part of the above sentence, do would substi-tute for both the verb and noun phrase, not just the verb. Therefore, ifsomeone inquired “Did you call your mother,” a possible reply would be“Yes, I did” with did substituting for called my mother. Substitution, asnoted earlier, is one test for constituency.
Aarts and Haegeman (2006) provide additional evidence for includingother elements in the verb phrase, such as adverb phrases. In an earlierdiscussion of the adjective phrase, it was noted that certain kinds ofadverb phrases can occur within the adjective phrase and be used to inten-sify adjectives, as very does in the adjective phrase very nice. However, thereis a second kind of adverb phrase that is quite moveable in a clause and as
According to the tree diagram in Figure 5.1, the two noun phrases andthe verb phrase are separate constituents in the sentence (labeled as S): thefinal noun phrase, for instance, is not embedded in the verb phrase.Others, however, have claimed that post-verbal noun phrases such as mymother are not separate constituents in the sentence but embedded in theverb phrase, as diagrammed in Figure 5.2.
English syntax 127
S
NP VP NP
Pro V det N
I called my mother
FIGURE 5.1The verb phrase in Quirket al. (1985).
S
NP VP
N V NP
I called det N
my mother
FIGURE 5.2Alternative view of theverb phrase (Aarts andHaegeman 2006).
Aarts and Haegeman (2006: 130) argue for this analysis on the groundsthat called my mother is a single unit rather than separate constituents inthe sentence. As support for this claim, they note that if the pro-verb dowere used to substitute for a part of the above sentence, do would substi-tute for both the verb and noun phrase, not just the verb. Therefore, ifsomeone inquired “Did you call your mother,” a possible reply would be“Yes, I did” with did substituting for called my mother. Substitution, asnoted earlier, is one test for constituency.
Aarts and Haegeman (2006) provide additional evidence for includingother elements in the verb phrase, such as adverb phrases. In an earlierdiscussion of the adjective phrase, it was noted that certain kinds ofadverb phrases can occur within the adjective phrase and be used to inten-sify adjectives, as very does in the adjective phrase very nice. However, thereis a second kind of adverb phrase that is quite moveable in a clause and as
According to the tree diagram in Figure 5.1, the two noun phrases andthe verb phrase are separate constituents in the sentence (labeled as S): thefinal noun phrase, for instance, is not embedded in the verb phrase.Others, however, have claimed that post-verbal noun phrases such as mymother are not separate constituents in the sentence but embedded in theverb phrase, as diagrammed in Figure 5.2.
English syntax 127
S
NP VP NP
Pro V det N
I called my mother
FIGURE 5.1The verb phrase in Quirket al. (1985).
S
NP VP
N V NP
I called det N
my mother
FIGURE 5.2Alternative view of theverb phrase (Aarts andHaegeman 2006).
Syntactic Rules
English, we can include an adjective (Adj) such as small, but we don’t have to. It’s an
optional constituent in a grammatically well-formed noun phrase. We can represent
this observation in the following type of rule:
NP ! Art (Adj) N
This shorthand notation expresses the idea that a noun phrase rewrites as (!) an
article (Art) and a noun (N), with the option of including an adjective (Adj) in a
specific position between them. We use the round brackets to indicate that the
adjective is optional. So, we can use this notation to generate the dog, the small
dog, a cat, a big cat, the book, a boring book and an endless number of other similar
noun phrases.
The third symbol is in the form of curly brackets { }.These indicate that only
one of the elements enclosed within the curly brackets must be selected. We use
these types of brackets when we want to indicate that there is a choice from two or
more constituents. For example, we have seen already that a noun phrase can
consist of an expression such as the dog (article plus noun), or it (pronoun), or
Cathy (proper noun). Using the abbreviations “Pro” (for pronoun) and “PN” (for
proper noun), we can try to capture this observation about English with three
separate rules, as shown on the left. However, it is more succinct to write one rule,
as shown in the middle or on the right, using curly brackets and including exactly
the same information.
NP ! Art N fArt NgNP ! Pro NP ! Pro NP ! {Art N, Pro, PN}
NP ! PN PN
It is important to remember that, although there are three constituents inside these
curly brackets, only one of them can be selected on any occasion.
The list of common symbols and abbreviations is summarized here.
S sentence NP noun phrase PN proper noun
N noun VP verb phrase Adv adverb
V verb Adj adjective Prep preposition
Art article Pro pronoun PP prepositional phrase
* ungrammatical sentence
! consists of / rewrites as
( ) optional constituent
{ } one and only one of these constituents must be selected
Syntax 101
Phrase structure rules
When we use a tree diagram format, we can think of it in two different ways. In one
way, we can simply treat it as a static representation of the structure of the sentence
shown at the bottom of the diagram. We could then propose that, for every single
sentence in English, a tree diagram of this type could be drawn. An alternative view is
to treat the tree diagram as a dynamic format, in the sense that it represents a way of
generating not only that one sentence, but a very large number of other sentences with
similar structures.
This second approach is very appealing because it would enable us to generate a
very large number of sentences withwhat look like a very small number of rules. These
rules are called phrase structure rules. As the name suggests, these rules state that the
structure of a phrase of a specific type will consist of one or more constituents in a
particular order. We can use phrase structure rules to present the information of the
tree diagram in another format. That is, the information shown in the tree diagram on
the left can be expressed in the phrase structure rule on the right.
According to this rule, “a noun phrase rewrites as an article followed by a noun.”
The first rule in the following set of simple (and necessarily incomplete) phrase
structure rules states that “a sentence rewrites as a noun phrase and a verb phrase.”
The second rule states that “a noun phrase rewrites as either an article plus an optional
adjective plus a noun, or a pronoun, or a proper noun.” The other rules follow a similar
pattern.
S ! NP VP
NP ! {Art (Adj) N, Pro, PN}
VP ! V NP (PP) (Adv)
PP ! Prep NP
Lexical rules
Phrase structure rules generate structures. In order to turn those structures into
recognizable English, we also need lexical rules that specify which words can be
NP
Art N NP Art N
Figure 8.3
102 The Study of Language
Generating Language with formal rules
(1) A dog followed the boy. (7) *Dog followed boy.
(2) Mary helped George. (8) *The helped you boy.
(3) George saw the dog. (9) *George Mary dog.
(4) The boy helped you. (10) *Helped George the dog.
(5) It followed Mary. (11) *You it saw.
(6) You saw it. (12) *Mary George helped.
Phrase structure rules
When we use a tree diagram format, we can think of it in two different ways. In one
way, we can simply treat it as a static representation of the structure of the sentence
shown at the bottom of the diagram. We could then propose that, for every single
sentence in English, a tree diagram of this type could be drawn. An alternative view is
to treat the tree diagram as a dynamic format, in the sense that it represents a way of
generating not only that one sentence, but a very large number of other sentences with
similar structures.
This second approach is very appealing because it would enable us to generate a
very large number of sentences withwhat look like a very small number of rules. These
rules are called phrase structure rules. As the name suggests, these rules state that the
structure of a phrase of a specific type will consist of one or more constituents in a
particular order. We can use phrase structure rules to present the information of the
tree diagram in another format. That is, the information shown in the tree diagram on
the left can be expressed in the phrase structure rule on the right.
According to this rule, “a noun phrase rewrites as an article followed by a noun.”
The first rule in the following set of simple (and necessarily incomplete) phrase
structure rules states that “a sentence rewrites as a noun phrase and a verb phrase.”
The second rule states that “a noun phrase rewrites as either an article plus an optional
adjective plus a noun, or a pronoun, or a proper noun.” The other rules follow a similar
pattern.
S ! NP VP
NP ! {Art (Adj) N, Pro, PN}
VP ! V NP (PP) (Adv)
PP ! Prep NP
Lexical rules
Phrase structure rules generate structures. In order to turn those structures into
recognizable English, we also need lexical rules that specify which words can be
NP
Art N NP Art N
Figure 8.3
102 The Study of Language
Exercise draw tree diagrams for the following sentences Using the rules (1) A dog followed the boy.
(2) Mary helped George.
(3) George saw the dog in the park.
(4) The boy helped you in the morning
(5) It followed Mary .
(6) You saw the big plane.
Phrase structure rules
When we use a tree diagram format, we can think of it in two different ways. In one
way, we can simply treat it as a static representation of the structure of the sentence
shown at the bottom of the diagram. We could then propose that, for every single
sentence in English, a tree diagram of this type could be drawn. An alternative view is
to treat the tree diagram as a dynamic format, in the sense that it represents a way of
generating not only that one sentence, but a very large number of other sentences with
similar structures.
This second approach is very appealing because it would enable us to generate a
very large number of sentences withwhat look like a very small number of rules. These
rules are called phrase structure rules. As the name suggests, these rules state that the
structure of a phrase of a specific type will consist of one or more constituents in a
particular order. We can use phrase structure rules to present the information of the
tree diagram in another format. That is, the information shown in the tree diagram on
the left can be expressed in the phrase structure rule on the right.
According to this rule, “a noun phrase rewrites as an article followed by a noun.”
The first rule in the following set of simple (and necessarily incomplete) phrase
structure rules states that “a sentence rewrites as a noun phrase and a verb phrase.”
The second rule states that “a noun phrase rewrites as either an article plus an optional
adjective plus a noun, or a pronoun, or a proper noun.” The other rules follow a similar
pattern.
S ! NP VP
NP ! {Art (Adj) N, Pro, PN}
VP ! V NP (PP) (Adv)
PP ! Prep NP
Lexical rules
Phrase structure rules generate structures. In order to turn those structures into
recognizable English, we also need lexical rules that specify which words can be
NP
Art N NP Art N
Figure 8.3
102 The Study of Language
Dependency
I shot an elephant in my pyjamas.
This is ambiguous...
what are the two meanings?
Let’s draw the two trees...
Something a bit more complex...
Let’s try...
The boy saw the man with the telescope
Structural ambiguity
V PP
with
NPP
the
Art N
telescopeThe
N
saw
S
NP VP
Art
boy
NP
the
Art N
man
Meaning: Using the telescope, the boy saw the man
V
PP
with
NPP
the
Art N
telescopeThe
N
saw
S
NP VP
Art
boy
NP
the
Art N
man
Meaning: The boy saw the man. The man had a telescope.
Structural ambiguity
Functional Linguistics and Syntax
Remember, functionalists argue that
rules are merely patterns
like a garden path, they are a set of norms
not discrete!
For this to work, language must start with function
not form
Example:
Form = Subject, Object, Indirect Object
Fucntion = Agent, Patient, Cause, Instrument etc...
Functional Syntax
Instead of formal rules
Functionalists have Argument Structures
instead of NP VP NP
they have Agent Predicate Patient
etc
Form and Function
(1) Active Construction
Form NP1 VP NP2
Sarah hit Jamie
Function Agent Predicate Patient
(2) Passive Construction
Form NP1 VP Past by NP2
Sarah was hit by
Function Patient Predicate Past by Agent
Form and Function Although there are many different versions, there are two basic theories of functional syntax
Construction Grammar – Syntax as abstract chunks
We learn syntactic structures (constructions)
just like we learn words
and put them together like a puzzle when we speak (compositionality)
Lexical Grammar – Syntax as lexical projections
Each verb has an argument structure which we learn with the verb
then we generate our sentences
based on those arguemnt structures (licencing)
Functional Syntax - Stealing STEAL - there are (at least) 3 arguments
Thief + Possessions + Plaintiff
So there are 3 roles !
In formal syntax, you have Phrases (noun phrase, verb phrase etc)
In functional syntax, you have roles (agent, patient, etc)
Functional Syntax - Stealing AGENT + POSSESSION + PATIENT
There are two basic constructions:
Cx 1: [Agent STEAL Possession (from Patient)]
Cx 2: [Agent STEAL Patient (of Possession)]
(1a) Sarah stole the ball (from Jamie)
(1b) Sarah nicked the ball (from Jamie
(1c) Sarah swiped the ball (from Jamie)
(2a) Sarah robbed Jamie (of his ball)
(2b) Sarah reaved Jamie (of the ball)
(2c) Sarah mugged Jamie (?of the ball)
Functional Syntax - Exercise Square brackets indicate the boundaries of the construction [ ]
Round brackets indicate optional arguments ( )
Italics indicate fixed words word
Work in groups, for BUYING and SELLING, what are the constructions that would explain the syntax
First identify the arguments
Secord work out the different order they take and any fixed words that are needed
Last try to make a fucntional “rule”, a construction like above
