MINIMALIST SYNTAX

Minimalist Syntax is a collection of essays that analyze major syntactic processes in a variety of languages, all unified by their perspective from within the Minimalist Program.



Introduces important concepts in the Minimalist approach to syntactic theory.

Emphasizes empirical consequences of the Minimalist approach through innovative analyses.

Highlights the importance of Minimalist syntax in explaining features of natural languages.

Includes contributions from leading syntacticians.

Randall Hendrick is Professor of Linguistics at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is author of Anaphora in Celtic and Universal Grammar (1988), editor of Syntax and Semantics 23: The Syntax of the Modern Celtic Languages (1990), and has published extensively on syntax, morphology, and psycholinguistics.

"This book, a collection of treatments of syntactic phenomena by leading proponents of Minimalism, is an extremely valuable application of Minimalist theory to a wide range of empirical data. It will be of great value to graduate syntax courses that introduce Minimalism, and the empirical coverage will make it highly accessible to students. I look forward to using this book in my own graduate courses." Mark Baltin, New York University

“This volume contains excellent surveys not only of several grammatical topics currently under intense scrutiny, but also of several decades of relevant research that has led to these well-defended current formulations. Three articles on logical form, the binding theory, and the varying fortunes – perhaps demise – of the control module trace how some perplexing Minimalist issues have developed out of earlier results. Two further articles on historical change and phrase structure outline and defend emerging approaches to, respectively, comparative (Germanic) syntax and the possibility of syntax without trees. The book is ideal for a seminar on Minimalism and its antecedents.” Joseph Emonds, Kobe-Shoin University (Japan)

Acknowledgments.

List of Contributors.

Introduction (Randall Hendrick).

1. On Control (Norbert Hornstein).

2. On Logical Form (Danny Fox).

3. Steps toward a Minimal Theory of Anaphora (Howard Lasnik).

4. Syntactic Variation, Historical Development, and Minimalism (Hoskuldur Thrainsson).

5. Phrase Structure (Robert A. Chametzky).

Index.