Possibility-Seeking Experiments: Testing Syntactic Hypotheses on the Level of the Individual

• 영문명: Possibility-Seeking Experiments: Testing Syntactic Hypotheses on the Level of the Individual
• 발행기관: 한국생성문법학회
• 저자명: Daniel Plesniak
• 간행물 정보: 『생성문법연구』제33권 제1호, 1~47쪽, 전체 47쪽
• 주제분류: 인문학 > 언어학
• 파일형태: PDF
• 발행일자: 2023.02.28

영문 초록

This paper explores an emerging theoretical and experimental approach to bridging the gap between generative syntactic theories and the judgements of individuals. Crucially, there are times when generative theories seem to make absolute predictions about how a given sentence should be judged, yet there is judgement variation among individuals. To overcome this challenge, this new approach adapts generative hypotheses in order to predict a range of possible judgement patterns across sentences, allowing the incorporation of judgement variation into predictions while still maintaining definite testability. To exemplify this approach, a demonstration experiment examining bound variable anaphora (BVA) is presented, addressing the longstanding debate as to whether BVA can be used as an effective probe for c-command relations. Using the “possibility-seeking” methodology, BVA is shown to obey clear c-command-based constraints. Using said constraints, BVA can be used to test crucial theories in generative syntax with a powerful new level of precision.

목차

1. Introduction

2. Establishing Idealized Results

3. Allowing for Variation

4. Testing the Predictions

5. Conclusion

References

키워드

bound variable anaphora distributive readings coreference individual-level variation c-command