The Asymmetry of Optimality Theoretic Syntax and Semantics

Zeevat, Henk

doi:10.1093/jos/17.3.243

Cited by 60 publications

(49 citation statements)

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“…The candidate set of feedback optimisation is not restricted to winners of the first optimisation. Herein the proposed model differs from serial bidirectional models like that of Wilson (2001) or Zeevat (2001). We also see that the bidirectional model is really a model of syntactic bidirectionality.…”

Section: Mðp(cm)mentioning

confidence: 63%

Correspondence in OT syntax and Minimal Link effects

Vogel¹

2004

Minimality Effects in Syntax

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The aim of this paper is the exploration of an optimality theoretic architecture for syntax that is guided by the concept of correspondence: syntax is understood as the mechanism of "translating" underlying representations into a surface form. In minimalism, this surface form is called "Phonological Form" (PF). Both semantic and abstract syntactic information are reflected by the surface form. The empirical domain where this architecture is tested are minimal link effects, especially in the case of whmovement.The OT constraints require the surface form to reflect the underlying semantic and syntactic representations as maximally as possible. The means by which underlying relations and properties are encoded are precedence, adjacency, surface morphology and prosodic structure. Information that is not encoded in one of these ways remains unexpressed, and gets lost unless it is recoverable via the context. Different kinds of information are often expressed by the same means. The resulting conflicts are resolved by the relative ranking of the relevant correspondence constraints.

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Section: Mðp(cm)mentioning

confidence: 63%

Correspondence in OT syntax and Minimal Link effects

Vogel¹

2004

Minimality Effects in Syntax

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“…Zeevat (2000) has argued for this kind of active, creative processes. However, there is also a problem for the bidirectional processing view.…”

Section: Choosing the Right Referring Expressionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The second case (Figure 2b) is using the recursion of weak bidirection (super-optimality) and has a completely different status. Because of its strictly non-local nature the proposed algorithms that calculate the super-optimal solutions do not even fit the simplest requirements of psychologically realistic models of online, incremental interpretation (Zeevat, 2000;Beaver & Lee, 2004).…”

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confidence: 99%

“…Beaver & Lee (2004) argue that if more rounds of optimization are allowed, the bidirectional OT-model severely overgenerates in the sense that in later rounds peculiar new form-meaning pairs will emerge as winners. Before the Beaver & Lee paper, Zeevat (2000) argued against the symmetric view of OT pragmatics starting from the famous rat/rad problem and its pragmatic counterparts. (1984) who considers the Q and the I principle as diametrically opposed forces in language change, and it conforms to the good old idea that synchronic structure is significantly informed by diachronic forces.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Some experimental aspects of optimality theoretic pragmatics

Blutner¹

2010

The Role of Data at the Semantics-Pragmatics Interface

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The article has three main concerns: (i) it gives a concise introduction into optimality-theoretic pragmatics; (ii) it discusses the relation to alternative accounts (relevance theory and Levinson's theory of presumptive meanings); (iii) it reviews recent findings concerning the psychological reality of optimality-theoretic pragmatics and its central part concept -bidirectional optimization.A present challenge is to close the gap between experimental pragmatics and neo-Gricean theories of pragmatics. I claim that OT pragmatics helps to overcome this gap, in particular in connection with the discussion of asymmetries between natural language comprehension and production. The theoretical debate will be concentrated on two different ways of interpreting bidirection: (a) bidirectional optimization as a psychologically realistic online mechanism; (b) bidirectional optimization as an offline phenomenon of fossilizing optimal form-meaning pairs. It will be argued that neither of these extreme views fits completely with the empirical data when taken per se.

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“…More elaborate treatments are [Zeevat, 2001], [Zeevat, 2007b] and [Zeevat, 2007c], while [Zeevat, 2007a] takes up the consequences for presupposition projection in more detail. The pragmatic constraints can be seen as a definition of what is marked in interpretation.…”

Section: The Pragmatic Systemmentioning

confidence: 99%

Where is pragmatics in optimality theory?

Zeevat¹

2008

Intention, Common Ground and the Egocentric Speaker-Hearer

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This paper deals with the architectural issues of pragmatics within an overall account of natural language in optimality theory. It is argued that pragmatics can be seen as an optimisation problem described by its own constraint system which lies outside the constraint system that defines grammar (the production oriented OT models of syntax and phonology). Speaking and hearing both involve grammar and pragmatics, but in different ways. The paper argues against the popular view that grammar and interpretation should be mixed into a symmetric constraint system and connects the proposed architecture with the views that underlie the motor theory of understanding and the mirror neuron theory of understanding behaviour.

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The Asymmetry of Optimality Theoretic Syntax and Semantics

Cited by 60 publications

References 0 publications

Correspondence in OT syntax and Minimal Link effects

Correspondence in OT syntax and Minimal Link effects

Some experimental aspects of optimality theoretic pragmatics

Where is pragmatics in optimality theory?

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