Spring 2008 -- LIN 381L -- Syntax II

Syllabus

updated 3/30/08

Unique # 41690

LIN 381L

SYNTAX II

MWF

11:00am - 12:00pm

GAR 2.104

Prof. Stephen Wechsler
wechsler@mail.utexas.edu
CAL 401; ph: 471-9026
office hrs:  Mon 1:30-2:30, Thurs 1:30-3:30

Course Description.  This course will provide you with the formal tools to describe and analyze the syntax of any natural language.  We will learn and use the framework of Lexical-Functional Grammar (LFG), a lexicalist theory of syntax with no transformations. The framework is based on the factoring of grammatical description into categorial structure (phrase structure and morphology) and functional structure (subject, object, etc.), based on the observation that grammars vary widely in the former but are similar in the latter. This makes LFG a good framework for field description, as well as for studying typology and universals.  There will be a computer lab component using the XLE Grammar Writing Workbench. 

Required Texts.

• Joan Bresnan 2001. Lexical Functional Syntax. Blackwell Press.
•  Mary Dalrymple 2001.  Lexical Functional Grammar (Syntax & Semantics 34). Academic Press.  

             Note:  The UT library has the electronic version of Dalrymple 2001.

Prerequisites: Graduate standing required. LIN 380L and LIN 380M or consent of instructor.

Requirements: (i) Readings; (ii) class attendance and participation; (iii) problem sets; (iv) two short papers; (v) final exam; and (vi) computer lab.

Grading: Problem sets 50%; computer lab 15%;  first short paper 5%; second short paper 15%; final exam (Thursday, May 8, 2:00-5:00 pm) 10%; class participation 5%.

Homework schedule: Longer assignments will generally be due on Mondays.  Shorter exercises and XLE assignments are generally due on Fridays.

Short Papers:  You will write two short papers.  The first paper (3 to 6 double-spaced pages) will consist of your answer to Problem Set P5.1.3 Empty "there" in English, on pp. 387-9 of the Bresnan textbook.  It is due Friday, March 7 (last class before Spring Break).  The second paper (5 to 10 double-spaced pages) will be of roughly the same type as the first paper, namely a description and analysis of a syntactic construction or phenomenon in some language.  You will pick the topic, in consultation with me if you like, and subject to my approval.  The paper must include data you gather yourself from native speakers.   It is due Tuesday, May 6.

Book feedback:  I would appreciate any specific comments, positive or negative, regarding the Bresnan textbook.  For example, let me know of anything in the book that you don't understand even after several readings! 

Computer lab: You will need an account on the Computational Lab (CAL 514) computers. The lab consultant for this class is Elias Ponvert.  Send a message to Elias (ponvert@gmail.com ) indicating (i) your name; (ii) whether you already have a lab account or not, and your username if you do have one already; and (iii) your email address. If yours is a new account then you will receive an email with your username, password, and instructions on how to change your password. 

Policy on academic honesty: You are encouraged to work together on the problem sets.  However, the homework you hand in must represent your own thinking and your own understanding of the problem.  On your homework you must list the names of the students you worked with.  If you get help from someone who already took this course or audited it in a previous year then don't just copy their answers. 

Course website:

• Syllabus and Schedule
  

• List of lecture slides

• List of homework assignments

Schedule (updated 1/18/08)

Week	Date	Topic / Required readings due	Assignments due
1	Jan. M 14	Introduction. Theoretical and empirical motivations.  (Includes some material from Bresnan Ch. 1) lecture slides 1
	W 16	Nonconfigurationality; Movement paradoxes Bresnan Part I, Chs. 1 and 2 (pp. 3-24)	Questions on Bresnan Chs. 1 and 2.
	F 18	Lexicality and argument structure. Bresnan Ch. 3 lecture slides 2
2	W 23	The formal model (i) c-structure/f-structure correspondence Bresnan Sec. 4.1-4.5 Dalrymple Ch. 2, Sec. 3 (through 3.3 only). Dalrymple Ch. 5, Sec. 2.1, Sec. 3 (Optional: Dalrymple Ch. 5, Sec. 1.1 'Phrase structure rule expansions') lecture slides 3
	F 25	(ii) Constraining equations; Coherence, Completeness; uniqueness of PRED values Bresnan Sec. 4.6-4.7 Dalrymple Ch. 2, Sec. 3.6   'Well-formedness conditions on f-structures' Dalrymple Ch. 5, Sec. 2.2-2.8 lecture slides 4 lecture slides 5	English exercise
3	M 28	Constituent structure / XLE Dalrymple Ch. 3 'Constituent structure'	Wambaya, Monster grammars
	W 30	Grammatical functions Dalrymple Ch. 2 , Secs. 1 & 4 Bresnan Ch. 6, through 6.1 only
	Feb. F 1	Lexical integrity Dalrymple Ch. 4, Sec. 4 'The lexical integrity principle' How to Run XLE in the Computational Linguistics Lab XLE Documentation lecture slides 6
4	M 4	XLE clinic led by Elias Ponvert. Bring a laptop if possible.
	W 6	Pronoun incorporation and agreement (guest lecture by Hyun-Jong Hahm) Bresnan ch. 8 through 8.1 (Chichewa) (Optional: Dalrymple ch. 5, Sec. 4 (pp 125-138); ch. 11, Sec. 1 (pp 275-8). lecture slides 9	XLE hw1:  Edit my-first-grammar.lfg . Add a new lexical entry for the verb form work .  Your new grammar should parse {these examples work} , but it should fail to parse {it work} , since this is ungrammatical.   Rename your new grammar according to our naming convention and hand it in.
	F 8	Navajo, Plains Cree, conclusion. (guest lecture by Hyun-Jong Hahm) The rest of Bresnan ch. 8.
5	M 11	Theory of structure-function mappings (i) Endocentricity Bresnan Ch. 6, Sec. 6.2.1 Dalrymple Ch. 4 'Syntactic correspondences', Secs. 1 & 2. lecture slides 7	Spanish, Chinantec
	W 13	(ii) Lexocentricity Bresnan, the rest of Ch. 6 Dalrymple Ch. 5, Sec. 4 'Variation in grammatical function encoding'
	F 15
6	M 18	Head mobility & distributed exponence Bresnan Ch. 7 'Endocentricity and heads', Secs. 1 & 2. Bresnan Ch. 4, 4.8-4.9. Dalrymple Ch. 6, Sec. 1.1 'Functional Uncertainty' and 1.2 'Inside-out functional uncertainty.'  (139-146) lecture slides 8
	W 20	Bresnan Ch. 7, Sec. 3. Inside-out functional uncertainty	Kichee
	F 22	(Class starts at 11:15)  Functional Control introduction Dalrymple §12.1, pp. 313-318 ‘Open Complements and Functional Control.’ Functional Control Slide (1 page)
7	M 25	Long-distance dependencies ('wh-movement') (i) LDDs in LFG.  Topicalization. Dalrymple Ch. 14, through Sec. 1.1.3 (pp. 389-398)
	W 27	Relative clauses Dalrymple Ch. 14, Sec. 1.2 ( pp. 400-405)	When Verbs Move— a Problem Set On Swedish Verb Position
	F 29	Wh-questions Dalrymple Ch. 14, Sec. 1.3 ( pp. 405-408)	XLE hw 2: Functional control.
8	Mar. M 3
	W 5
	F 7	(ii) Islands lecture slides 12
		Spring Break!

Week	Date	Topic / Required readings due	Assignments due
9	M 17	Finish relative clauses
	W 19	(iii) Topicalization versus scrambling Bresnan Ch. 9, through 9.4 lecture slides 11	First short paper due.  Problem Set P5.1.3 Empty "there" in English, on pp. 387-9 of the Bresnan textbook.
	F 21	Catch-up day.	Short relative clause exercise
10	M 24	Syntax of anaphoric binding  (Part I) (i) Basic binding (nuclearity) Bresnan Ch. 10,  Secs. 10.1-10.2 lecture slides 10
	W 26		Short binding exercise (i)
	F 28		Short binding exercise (ii)
11	M 31	(ii) Principle C Bresnan 10.3	More English Subordinate clauses due
	Apr. W 2	Syntax of control and raising (i) Functional control (predication relations): XCOMP and XADJ Bresnan Ch. 12 Dalrymple Ch. 12, Sec. 1 (n.b. you already read this for XLE hw2)
	F 4	Discuss existential construction (bring your paper)	Second short paper proposal due.
12	M 7	raising and binding The big picture:  locality and syntactic dualism (syntax vs. lexicon) lecture slides 13
	W 9	(ii) Anaphoric control Bresnan Ch. 13 Dalrymple Ch. 12, Secs. 3; 5.1; 6; 7; 8.1
	F 11	Syntax of anaphoric binding  (Part II) (i) subject-oriented pronouns Bresnan Ch. 11, Sec. 1-3 (pp. 236-242) Norwegian in-class exercise	Bresnan P4.1: Dutch & Japanese, pp. 354-361; 5 tasks altogether.
13	M 14	(ii) logophoric pronouns The rest of Bresnan Ch. 11.
	W 16	(iii) Formalizing binding constraints Bresnan 10.4 Dalrymple Ch. 11, Sec. 2. Dalrymple Ch. 6, Sec. 1.4 'Off-path constraints'
	F 18	(vi) Topicalization, scrambling, and binding Dalrymple Ch. 14, Sec. 3. (trace vs. traceless account) Bresnan Ch. 9, Sec. 9.5 'Detecting empty categories'	P4.2:  Icelandic & a little Russian; pp. 361-370; 12 tasks altogether.
14	M 21	Argument structure and mapping theory Bresnan Ch. 14 Dalrymple Ch. 8	Anaphoric binding problem set
	W 23
	F 25		XLE hw3: case and agreement Lexical Mapping Theory exercise M.S. Word LMT exercise form
15	M 28	Review Course evaluations
	W 30
	May F 2 Last class day
	Thurs. 8	Thursday, May 8, 2:00–5:00 pm.  Final exam	Second short paper due.