Overview

Disjunctive application is a type of interaction between phonological mappings that has received special attention since the inception of generative phonology (Chomsky & Halle 1968) and has significantly impacted research in other subfields in linguistics. The principle commonly held to be responsible for disjunctive application, the Elsewhere Condition (Kiparsky 1973), is argued in this book to be little more than a collection of necessary stipulations within Chomsky & Halle's original SPE framework. By contrast, disjunctive application is shown to follow automatically from the most basic assumptions of Optimality Theory (Prince & Smolensky 1993), with no added stipulations necessary. The stage for these demonstrations is set with in-depth discussion of the history and analysis of blocking interactions, of which disjunctive application is a special case. The distinguishing feature of disjunctive application is shown to be complementarity. The analyses of two types of complementarity (allophonic or 'unbounded' complementary distribution as opposed to 'bounded' complementary distribution) in both SPE and Optimality Theory are discussed in detail, and it is shown that both have been analyzed very differently in SPE but very similarly in Optimality Theory. The various stipulated components of the Elsewhere Condition are then discussed and contrasted with the lack of any such stipulation in Optimality Theory. This is followed by a proof of two theorems within Optimality Theory that solidify the result that two mappings in a particular formal relation to each other are bound to apply in complementary fashion.

Full Product Details

9781845533366

Table of Contents

Reviews

'Bakovic does something rare in this book. He takes a set of problems that occupied much attention at an earlier stage in the development of phonological theory, questions that were abandoned not because answers had been found but rather because phonologists' attention had turned elsewhere. He explores the history and the logic of the issues involved, shows how (and why) they should be translated into contemporary frameworks, and thus revives discussion of some important issues in the field. There are more such veins to be mined, and this study shows how rewarding that effort can be.' Stephen R. Anderson, Dorothy R. Diebold Professor of Linguistics, Professor of Psychology and Cognitive Science, Yale University 'Eric Bakovic's new book provides a new look at the Elsewhere Condition. He is able to step back from the idiosyncrasies of the major phonological theories of recent years, and to encourage the reader to step back with him, and to rethink the puzzling character of many of the phenomena that have been offered as crucial cases for establishing one interpretation or another of the Elsewhere Condition. This is required reading for all concerned with the development of phonological theory.' John Goldsmith, Edward Carson Waller Distinguished Service Professor, University of Chicago

'Bakovic does something rare in this book. He takes a set of problems that occupied much attention at an earlier stage in the development of phonological theory, questions that were abandoned not because answers had been found but rather because phonologists' attention had turned elsewhere. He explores the history and the logic of the issues involved, shows how (and why) they should be translated into contemporary frameworks, and thus revives discussion of some important issues in the field. There are more such veins to be mined, and this study shows how rewarding that effort can be.' Stephen R. Anderson, Dorothy R. Diebold Professor of Linguistics, Professor of Psychology and Cognitive Science, Yale University 'Eric Bakovic's new book provides a new look at the Elsewhere Condition. He is able to step back from the idiosyncrasies of the major phonological theories of recent years, and to encourage the reader to step back with him, and to rethink the puzzling character of many of the phenomena that have been offered as crucial cases for establishing one interpretation or another of the Elsewhere Condition. This is required reading for all concerned with the development of phonological theory.' John Goldsmith, Edward Carson Waller Distinguished Service Professor, University of Chicago

Author Information

Eric Bakovic is an Associate Professor of Linguistics at the University of California, San Diego. He has published extensively in phonology and phonological theory, and is founding editor of the Journal of Phonological Analysis.

Tab Content 6

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

Countries Available