ULCL Introduction to Syntax and semantics
Course outline
Second Semester 2023
Tutor:
Prof. Dr. Walid Amer
1. Course description
The aim of this course is to provide a state-of-the-art overview of transformational generative
syntax, the Government and Binding framework. In the course, we will emphasize the
comparative aspect of generative research, paying close attention to the nature of cross-
linguistic variation.
The course will also cover semantics, it will touch meaning, semantic constraints, reference
and referential expressions, denotations and connotations, lexemes, ambiguity and semantic
devices.
Introductory reading materials will be taken from the following books (specified in each
class):
Amer, Walid, (2016) Introducing syntax. IUG bookshop.
Charles W.Kreidler (1998) Introducing Semantics, London
Adger (2003): Core Syntax. Oxford University Press.
Carnie: Syntax (2002). A generative introduction. Blackwell Publishers.
Liliane Haegeman (1991) Government and binding theory. BlackWell
Ian Roberts (1996) Comparative Syntax, British library
WEEK TOPIC REFERENCE
1 Introduction Prof. Walid Amer
Introducing syntax
2 Syntactic categories Introducing syntax
3 -4 Theta & Case theories Den Dikken 1995, Ch1,
Menuzzi 1999, Ch1
5-6 VP configurationality, Argument Structure, Larson 1988
Head movement and binding theory
Pollock 1989
Hale & Keyser 1993
7 Control theory Ian Roberts 1996
8 XP. And Wh-constructions Cinque 1991, Ch1
9 Word order of English Introducing syntax
10 On double object & dative constructions Introducing syntax
11 Introduction to semantics Charles Kreidler
1998
12 Study of meaning Charles Kreidler
1998
13 The dimensions of meaning
14 lexemes
15 Reference and denotation
16 Ambiguity
17 Semantic devices
4. References
Bailyn, John Frederick (2002): Scrambling to reduce scrambling, Part 1 & II. In Glot
International 6-4 & 6-5.
Baker, M. 1985. The mirror principle and morphosyntactic explanation. Linguistic Inquiry
16.3, 373-416.
Baker, M., K. Johnson, and I. Roberts. 1989. Passive arguments raised. LI 20, 219-251.
Belletti, Adriana (2001): Agreement Projections. In M. Baltin & C. Collins (eds) The
handbook of Contemporary Syntactic Theory. Oxford/Malden: Blackwell, p. 483-510.
Besten, den. H. 1985. The ergative hypothesis and free word order in Dutch and German. In J.
Tom‡n (ed) Studies in German grammar.
Bobaljik, J. 1998. Floating Quantifiers: handle with care. Glot International 3, 6 3- 9.
Burzio, L. 1986. Italian Syntax, a Government-Binding approach, Kluwer Academic
Publishers. Chomsky, N. 1959. "Review of B.F. Skinner, Verbal Behavior." Language
35.1:26-58.
Charles W.Kreidler (1998) Introducing Semantics, London
Chomsky, N. 1988. Language and problems of knowledge. MIT Press.
Chomsky, N. 1995. The minimalist program. Cambridge, MA.
Chomsky, N. 2000. Minimalist inquiries: the framework. In Step by Step: essays on
minimalist syntax in honour of Howard Lasnik, ed. Roger Martin, David Michaels
and Juan Uriagereka, Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 89-155.
Chomsky, N. 2001a. Derivation by phase. In Ken Hale: A Life in Linguistics, ed. Michael
Kenstowicz. Current studies in linguistics 36. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 1-52.
Chomsky, N. 2001b. Beyond Explanatory Adequacy. Ms. MIT.
Cinque, G. 1991. Types of A-bar-dependencies. MIT Press.
Dikken, M. den. 1995. Particles, on the Syntax of verb-particle triadic, and causative
constructions, Oxford University Press.
Dobrovie-Sorin, C. 1990. Clitic Doubling, WH movement and Quantification in Romanian.
Linguistic Inquiry 21, 351-397.
Fox, Danny (1999) Reconstruction, Binding Theory and the Interpretation of Chains, LI 30,
157-196.
Haegeman, L. 1995. The syntax of negation, Cambridge University Press.
Hale, K. and S.J. Keyser (1993) ‘On argument structure and the lexical expressions of syntactic
relations’, in: K. Hale and S.J. Keyser (eds.) The View from building 20: essays in linguistics in
honor of Sylvain Bromberger, Cambridge (Mass), 53-109.
Hoekstra, T. 1988. Small Clause results. Lingua 74. 101-139.
Hornstein, N. 1995. Logical Form, from GB to Minimalism, Blackwell Publishers.
Iatridou 1990. About Agr(P). Linguistic Inquiry 21. 551-577
Kayne, R. 1994. The antisymmetry of syntax, MIT Press.
Kayne, R. 1999. Overt vs. covert movement. SYNTAX 1.2: 128-191.
Larson, R., 1988. On the double object construction, Linguistic Inquiry 19, 335-391.
Lasnik, H. and M. Saito. 1984. "On the nature of proper government," Linguistic Inquiry 15,
235-289.
Levin, B. and M. Rappaport Horav (1995). Unaccusativity At the Syntax-Lexical Semantics
Interface. Linguistic Inquiry Monographs 26, Cambridge (Mass.): MIT Press.
Liliane Haegeman (1991) Government and binding theory. BlackWell
Longobardi, G. (1994). Proper names and the theory of N-movement in syntax and logical
form. Linguistic Inquiry 25.
Menuzzi, S. 1999. Binding theory and pronominal anaphora in Brazilian Portuguese, PhD
Dissertation, Leiden University.
Moro, A. 1997. The raising of Predicates. MIT Press.
Platzack, C. & A. Holmberg. 1989. The role of Agr and Finitenes. Working papers in
Scandinavian Syntax 43, p. 51-76.
Pollock, J.-Y. 1989. Verb movement, Universal Grammar, and the structure of IP. Linguistic
Inquiry 20, 365-424.
Reinhart, T. & E. Reuland. 1993. Reflexivity. Linguistic Inquiry 24, 657-720.
Rizzi, L. 1982. Issues in Italian Syntax. Foris Publications.
Roberts, Ian (2001): Head Movement. In M. Baltin & C. Collins (eds) The handbook of
Contemporary Syntactic Theory. Oxford/Malden: Blackwell, p. 113-147.
Sportiche, D. 1995. "Clitic Constructions," in Rooryck, J. and L. Zaring (eds.) Phrase
structure and the lexicon, Kluwer Academic Publishers.
Stowell, T. 1983. Subjects across categories. The Linguistic Review 2, 285-312.
Zanuttini, Rafaella (2001): Sentential Negation. In M. Baltin & C. Collins (eds) The
handbook of Contemporary Syntactic Theory. Oxford/Malden: Blackwell, p. 511-535.
Zwart, J.-W. 1997. Morphosyntax of verb movement, Kluwer Academic Publishers.
Walid Amer (1996) On double object construction, Unpublished Ph.D dissertation, Essex
university, UK.
Watanabe, Akira (2001): Wh-in-situ Languages. In M. Baltin & C. Collins (eds) The
handbook of Contemporary Syntactic Theory. Oxford/Malden: Blackwell, p. 226-254.
VIP web page in syntax
http://ar.scribd.com/doc/23201494/36/X-bar-Theory
