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Phrase Structure Rules from 57
- 1. Phrase Structure Rules 1957 -65
- 2. • How do children learn languages so quickly? • By practicing a lot? • Isn’t there too much information? • Why does it get more difficult after a certain time?
- 4. Be careful! • What does the Innateness Hypothesis claim? • We are innately better at learning languages than animals. • Nobody disagrees with this.
- 5. We are innately superior to animals at languages • Nobody disagrees with that • Nobody has EVER disagreed with it • Never in history • That’s NOT the innateness hypothesis!
- 6. OK, so what IS the INNATENESS hypothesis? • Human language ability is SPECIAL PURPOSE • It is separate from other mental abilities • It works INDEPENDENTLY from other mental abilities • The skills involved in language ability are UNIQUE to language • And humans are born with this ability
- 7. Why should language be SEPARATE? • And why should syntax be separate from meaning? • Simple answer: • Linguists just LIKED the idea • There’s no actual evidence to belive that!!
- 8. • Anyway, the Innateness Hypothesis became very popular (because linguists LIKED the idea) • Chomsky started looking for evidence of how our unique language ability works • Evidence that ALL the world’s languages are basically the same!!! • Universal Grammar!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! • 普遍文法
- 9. All the world’s languages are basically the same? • Deep deep deep deep down – they’re the SAME • Why should we believe that? • Because linguists WANTED to believe it • There’s no actual evidence!
- 10. All the world’s languages are basically the same?? Even though they look really different Different word order Or no word order Or very long words instead of sentences They are ALL basically the same • So you can just study one (English) and understand them ALL!
- 13. Phrase Structure Rules weren’t new
- 14. But now we were taking them REALLY seriously!
- 15. We are going to discover something new about our brains!!
- 16. In 1957, it was still pretty simple
- 18. S -> NP + VP
- 19. S -> NP + VP
- 20. S -> NP + VP
- 21. S -> NP + VP
- 22. VP -> Verb + NP
- 23. VP -> V + NP
- 24. VP -> V (+ Adv)
- 25. VP -> V (+ Adv P)
- 26. NP -> Det + N
- 27. NP -> Det + N
- 28. NP -> Det + N
- 29. How can we make these rules the same for all languages?
- 30. You can’t!
- 31. Many languages are completely different!
- 32. Or are they?
- 33. Maybe we can make them LOOK the same ….
- 34. If we MOVE THINGS AROUND!!
- 35. Why should we move things around?!!
- 36. What about this?
- 38. Verb -> Aux + V
- 39. Verb -> tense + V
- 40. Why is aux (tense) BEFORE the verb?
- 41. It’s walk-ed NOT –ed walk
- 42. Well look at this!
- 43. Aux seems to come before the verb!
- 44. Maybe there’s some funny invisible movement!?!
- 45. See! It’s not THAT crazy!
- 46. Is it?
- 47. Anyway …
- 48. We are starting to see …
- 50. … all over the place
- 51. One pattern for all languages!!
- 53. walked
- 54. walked verb
- 69. walked Valency<NP:Subject> Verb AUX AUX, TENSE WHO CARES? WE CAN CALL IT ANYTHING WE LIKE WE ARE LINGUISTS!
- 70. walked Valency<NP:Subject> Verb AUX WE HAVE EXTRA STRUCTURE!
- 72. walked Valency<NP:Subject> Verb AUX WE CAN MOVE SOMETHING THERE!
- 75. walked Valency<NP:Subject> Verb AUX Our goal is to show that all languages are basically the same!
- 92. walk Valency<NP:Subject> Verb AUX BUT WHAT’S THE POINT?! -ed
- 100. walk Valency< > Verb AUX DID VP S NP (sub) she SAME AS THIS! IF WE MOVE THINGS AROUND! !!!!!!!!!!!
- 111. walk Valency< > Verb AUX -ed VP S NP (sub) she XP X
- 112. walk Valency< > Verb AUX did VP S NP (sub) she XP X
- 113. walk Valency< > Verb AUX did VP S NP (sub) she XP X IT MUST BE TRUE!
- 114. walk Valency< > Verb AUX did VP S NP (sub) she XP X WE CAN MAKE EVERYTHING THE SAME!
- 115. walk Valency< > Verb AUX did VP S NP (sub) she XP X BY MOVING THINGS AROUND!
- 116. But is that really OK? • Moving things around • So all the world’s languages LOOK the same? • Is that really OK?
- 117. 1965
- 118. Plato’s problem
- 119. What’s that?
- 120. The gap between knowledge and experience
- 121. We know stuff …
- 122. … without learning it
- 123. At least it seems that way
- 124. Lack of input
- 126. We are born knowing things!
- 127. Maybe
- 128. Don’t forget it’s a hypothesis
- 129. Hypothesis
- 130. Big word
- 131. It means JUST an idea
- 132. But what if we ARE born with some knowledge…
- 133. Maybe we are NOT…
- 134. But let’s say we ARE …
- 135. Does that prove…
- 136. Language and ordinary thought are separate?
- 137. I have an apple, I have a pen, uh … apple-pen
- 138. Does that prove language is special?
- 139. What about invisible movement? • Well, in 1993 … • Chomsky said … • … there’s too much invisible movement! • Stop the invisible movement! • Or reduce it to a minimum • The Minimalist Program
- 140. Problems with the Minimalist Program? • Well, if you stop moving things around • The world’s languages are obviously NOT the same • So what’s Universal Grammar? • Merge? • Recursion? • I have a pen • I have an apple • Uh … apple-pen
- 141. The innateness hypothesis … Universal Grammar? • Anything special to language? • Merge? • Recursion? • What do YOU think?
- 142. YouTube: Noam Chomsky – The Merge Function in Thought and Speech
- 143. What is this mysterious, recursive operation …?
- 144. … that humans SOMEHOW developed?
- 145. It must be the SIMPLEST one imaginable!
- 146. Well, what’s the simplest one imaginable?
- 147. Take two units that have already been formed
- 148. Put them together to make a bigger unit
- 149. I have an apple, I have a pen, uh … apple-pen
- 150. Somewhere, in ANY system, you’re going to find that
- 151. Somewhere, in ANY system!
- 152. Merge, recursion … in ANY system!
- 153. Ordinary thought!
- 154. Mathematics!
- 155. Art!
- 156. Molecules!
- 157. Genetic inheritance!
- 158. Somewhere in ANY system!
- 159. So it’s obviously NOT special to language!!!!!!!!!!
- 160. Martin Minsky – Artificial Intelligence expert
- 161. Chomsky’s ideas SOMEHOW became popular
- 162. And for 40 years…
- 163. The study of language
- 164. Was REPLACED by the study of grammar!
- 165. People stopped trying to understand how language works!
- 167. A disaster!
- 168. Because of Chomsky!
- 169. Most universities changed their linguistics departments to grammar departments!
- 170. An important field replaced by an unimportant one!
- 171. And Chomsky gave up linguistics!
- 172. And focused on politics!