A long tradition takes word order differences within one and the same language and across languages to be a consequence of movement. More recently Chomsky has made the suggestion that, given the architecture of UG, movement in narrow syntax should have interpretive effects at both interfaces (LF and PF). Any putative movement that has an effect on the PF side but no effect on the LF side should thus be expunged from narrow syntax, with the consequence that any word order difference devoid of LF effects should be confined to the PF interface. This requires an algorithm at PF that converts hierarchical structures to linear order. To assume as an algorithm the apparent fact that the physics of speech leaves just two options (a head either precedes or follows its complements) seems far from being sufficient in that it falls short of accounting for a number of linear order generalizations. Here it is argued that some meaningless movement must be assumed if we want to capture these generalizations and provide a theory of externalization based on the Linear Correpondence Axiom, an algorithm compatible with these generalizations.

Externalization and meaningless movement

Guglielmo Cinque
2024-01-01

Abstract

A long tradition takes word order differences within one and the same language and across languages to be a consequence of movement. More recently Chomsky has made the suggestion that, given the architecture of UG, movement in narrow syntax should have interpretive effects at both interfaces (LF and PF). Any putative movement that has an effect on the PF side but no effect on the LF side should thus be expunged from narrow syntax, with the consequence that any word order difference devoid of LF effects should be confined to the PF interface. This requires an algorithm at PF that converts hierarchical structures to linear order. To assume as an algorithm the apparent fact that the physics of speech leaves just two options (a head either precedes or follows its complements) seems far from being sufficient in that it falls short of accounting for a number of linear order generalizations. Here it is argued that some meaningless movement must be assumed if we want to capture these generalizations and provide a theory of externalization based on the Linear Correpondence Axiom, an algorithm compatible with these generalizations.
2024
Cartography and Explanatory Adequacy
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/10278/5078541
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