LINGUIST List 20.110
Tue Jan 13 2009
Diss: Lang Acq/Syntax: Waldmann: 'Input och output. Ordföljd i ...'
Editor for this issue: Evelyn Richter
<evelynlinguistlist.org>
1. Christian
Waldmann,
Input och output. Ordföljd i svenska barns huvudsatser och bisatser/Input and Output: Word order in Swedish children's main and embedded clauses
Message 1: Input och output. Ordföljd i svenska barns huvudsatser och bisatser/Input and Output: Word order in Swedish children's main and embedded clauses
Date: 13-Jan-2009
From: Christian Waldmann <christian.waldmannvxu.se>
Subject: Input och output. Ordföljd i svenska barns huvudsatser och bisatser/Input and Output: Word order in Swedish children's main and embedded clauses
E-mail this message to a friend
Institution: Lund University
Program: Department of Scandinavian Languages
Dissertation Status: Completed
Degree Date: 2008
Author: Christian Waldmann
Dissertation Title: Input och output. Ordföljd i svenska barns huvudsatser och bisatser/Input and Output: Word order in Swedish children's main and embedded clauses
Dissertation URL: http://luur.lub.lu.se/luur?func=downloadFile&fileOId=1148127
Linguistic Field(s):
Language Acquisition
Syntax
Subject Language(s): Swedish (swe)
Dissertation Director:
Lisa U. Christensen
Christer Platzack
Ute Bohnacker
Dissertation Abstract:
This thesis investigates the word order in the main and embedded clauses offour Swedish monolingual children, covering the age range 1;3-4;0. Using agenerative framework, a quantitative and qualitative analysis focusing onthe syntax of verb placement and complementizers is presented.
Chapters 1 to 4 offer a background to the thesis. In chapter 1 the aims andthe material are presented. Chapter 2 provides a generative analysis ofverb placement and complementizers, constituting the descriptive frameworkof the empirical studies. Chapter 3 discusses some theoretical issues inlanguage acquisition research and their implementation into the study.Particular attention is paid to the relation between input and output.Finally, chapter 4 depicts some methodological considerations.
Chapters 5 to 8 present the empirical results. It is shown that Swedishchildren are exposed to a robust input of verb movement to the secondposition in the clause, C°, whereas the input frequency for the absence ofverb movement from V° is very low. In embedded clauses the input isambiguous between verb movement and absence of movement. Also Swedishchildren are exposed to both overt and covert complementizers.
Early on, three children productively and consistently move the finite verbto the second position (C°) in main clauses. The fourth child acquires verbmovement in main clauses gradually. The finite verb initially seems tosurface in its base-generated position (V°), then in a medial position (I°)and finally in the second position (C°). All four children had masteredverb movement to the second position in main clauses when they startedproducing embeddings with overt and covert complementizers. Finally, allchildren occasionally over-generalize verb movement in embedded clauses byincorrectly placing the verb before a sentence adverbial instead of after it.
Chapter 9 discusses the theoretical ramifications by evaluating theempirical results in the light of the theoretical issues discussed inchapter 3. Especially I argue against a particular structure-buildinghypothesis to functional differentiation which states that overtcomplementizers trigger the acquisition of the CP-layer. Furthermore, Ipropose that inaccurate verb movement in embedded clauses in Swedishchildren is the result of an ambiguous input. This suggests a greater rolefor input than traditionally assumed in generative acquisition studies.
|