This dissertation presents a theory of markedness constraints that apply exclusively to material in phonologically prominent or “strong” positions, called here M/str(ong) constraints. It is proposed that two substantively based restrictions hold of such constraints. The first restriction is the Prominence Condition, which states that the only legitimate M/str constraints are those whose satisfaction enhances the perceptual prominence of the strong position in question. For example, an M/str constraint demanding high-sonority nuclei in the strong position stressed syllable is legitimate, but a constraint that simply bans a typologically marked feature value in some strong position is not. The Prominence Condition correctly predicts that all M/ str constraints are prominence-enhancing or augmentation constraints. The second restriction, the Segmental Contrast Condition, applies to M/str constraints on positions that are strong for psycholinguistic (as opposed to phonetic) reasons. This restriction has its basis in the importance of psycholinguistically strong positions for early-stage word recognition. It prohibits any M/str constraint from referring to a psycholinguistically strong position if its satisfaction would impede early-stage word recognition, such as by neutralizing segmental feature contrasts (except for those that improve left-edge demarcation, which potentially facilitates word recognition). Thus, an M/str constraint calling for high-sonority nuclei in the psycholinguistically strong position initial syllable, despite passing the Prominence Condition, will be banned by the Segmental Contrast Condition; its satisfaction neutralizes a segmental contrast that is not at the left edge. The Prominence Condition and the Segmental Contrast Condition are formally implemented as filters on the output of generalized constraint-building schemas, determining which of the logically possible M/str constraints are actually included in the universal constraint set. In an extension of Inductive Grounding (Hayes 1999a), these and other constraint filters are viewed as the locus of functional grounding in the formal phonological system. This Schema/Filter model allows the constraint set to reflect substantive phonetic and psycholinguistic factors, while maintaining a view of phonology as a formal system that manipulates formal objects—including constraints and the basic phonological elements from which they are constructed—without direct access to fine-grained details of articulation, acoustics, perception, and processing.

This dissertation is primarily about purpose clauses in English, those apparently infinitival expressions that English speakers include in their sentences to indicate that something has been done for some reason. (UNFORMATTED TABLE FOLLOWS) (1) They brought John along in order to talk to him . (2) They brought John along to talk about himself to the students . (3) They brought John along to talk to . (TABLE ENDS) In Chapter I we will establish that the infinitives in (1)-(3) are indeed adjuncts, that they cannot in general be selected by lexical properties of the head verbs of their sentences. In Chapter 2, within the general framework of the theory of Government and Binding (cf. Chomsky (1981)), we will take up two matters. First, we will argue that differing syntactic properties of the infinitives in (1)-(3) follow rather naturally if we consider the infinitive in (1) to be a full S', that in (2) to be a simple S, and that in (3) a bare VP. The other matter we will take up in Chapter II will be the conditions under which the unexpressed elements in the infinitives in (1)-(3) can be considered to be referen- tially dependent on other NP elements in the matrix sentence. This referential dependence we call control. Control of these adjuncts is determined by a couple of conditions. The nature of the controlling NP can be characterized within the theories of thematic relations ((THETA)-roles) developed by Gruber (1965) and Jackendoff (1972) et seq. The nature of the conditions under which the adjuncts in (1)-(3) can adjoin can only be characterized by such "extra-thematic" notions as "availability" and "agentivity". In Chapter III we will suggest an account of the possibilities of extraction from the above infinitives. In Chapter IV we will shift our attention principally to the kind of infinitive in (4), which we'll call an easy-infinitive (EI), and the rela- tion that sentences like (4) have to sentences like (5). (UNFORMATTED TABLE FOLLOWS) (4) That test was easy to do . (5) It was easy to do that test. (TABLE ENDS) The properties of the EI in (4) are virtually identical to the properties of the infinitive sporting an object gap in (3). I suggest they be iden- tified. In Chapter V, we'll briefly consider how the present account might be incorporated into a couple of other theories of syntax, Generalized Phrase Structure Grammar and Lexical-Functional Grammar.

A logicosemantic analysis of certain kinds of wh-clauses is developed, on which wh-phrases translate as open sentences, that is, as expressions of the semantically interpreted representation which contain free variables. Evidence is presented that sentences that embed indirect questions constitute a semantically heterogeneous class, consisting of those interpreted as quantified sentences, and those interpreted in the same way as direct questions. The evidence consists primarily in the distribution of wh-phrase quantifiability by adverbs of quantification. The theoretical framework is the kind of representational discourse semantics developed independently by Heim and Kamp, in particular their elaboration of the work by Lewis on restricted quantification and the variable quantificational force of indefinites under such adverbs. In chapter 1, following an overview of the dissertation, a summary of relevant aspects, in particular, the form and modeltheoretic interpretation of the logical translations, of the Kamp/Heim theory is presented, sufficient to provide the theoretical basis for the proposed analysis of wh-clauses. In order to set the stage for the latter, chapter 2 is devoted to a brief review of some of the more influential recent analyses of the semantics of questions, concentrating on issues related to the truthconditional interpretation of these constructions. In chapter 3 the first part of the analysis of wh-clauses is presented, concentrating on logicosemantic similarities between wh-phrases and indefinite NPs; the role of pragmatic presupposition is argued to be crucial in determining the correct logical translations of sentences embedding a wh-clause. In chapter 4 some challenges to the proposed analysis, concerning the claim of many recent theories that questions have an exhaustive interpretation, are taken up and argued not to have force. In chapter 5 the analysis is extended to account for quantificational asymmetries between wh-phrases and indefinites; wh-movement is argued to be a determinant of wh-phrase quantifiability, and the role of a syntactic level of Logical Form in the interpretation of wh-clauses is investigated. In appendices several issues raised by the proposed analysis are discussed that are somewhat peripheral to the central points, and in need of further research.

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This dissertation explores the interplay of grammar and context in the interpretation of modal words like ought, necessary , and need. The empirical foci of the discussion are patterns in the use of strong and weak necessity modals in conversation, and the interpretation of syntactically and semantically versatile modals like need in the various grammatical configurations they appear in across languages. It is argued that a sensitivity to collective commitments in a conversation is necessary for understanding certain aspects of modal strength, in particular the traditional distinction between strong and weak necessity modals (exhibited by must and ought to in English). It is proposed that strong necessity modals can only reference priorities that are presupposed to be collectively committed to, whereas weak necessity modals are evaluated with respect to a mixed bag of priorities, crucially including ones that are presupposed not to be collectively committed to. A domain restriction approach to weak necessity is adopted, following a demonstration that it is superior to a number of probabilistic alternatives. Modal verbs and adjectives that take both infinitival and nominal complements are shown to pattern alike across languages in requiring a teleological, or goal-oriented interpretation when their complements are not infinitives (but rather noun phrases or certain Complementizer Phrases). This limitation is lifted with infinitival complements, showing that transitive configurations of certain intensional verbs are not semantically equivalent to the infinitival configurations of the same verbs. A result of this research is a fine grained analysis of the differences between closely related necessity modals and attitude verbs.

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This dissertation is a study of the syntax of switch-reference (SR) and its implications for the theory of grammar. SR, found in many genetically and geographically diverse languages, is a phenomenon whereby referential identity between subjects of hierarchically adjacent clauses is encoded by the presence of a morpheme, usually suffixed to the verb of the subordinate clause. Noncoreferentiality between subjects is indicated by a different morpheme, likewise suffixed to the subordinate verb. The dissertation argues that SR should be analysed as a syntactic rather than a purely pragmatic or functional feature of language; SR may appear to be a device to eliminate possible ambiguity in discourse, but SR-marking redundantly occurs even in environments that have no potential for ambiguity. Moreover, SR-marking does not occur in certain constructions where it would be expected, were it governed exclusively by functional or pragmatic considerations. I propose instead that the syntax of SR follows from the various locality conditions on syntactic binding that are central to the Government and Binding theory of syntax. These conditions carry the major explanatory burden in the theoretical description of the SR systems from Native American, Australian, and New Guinea languages which are surveyed in the dissertation. I attempt to show that the apparent complexity and exotic nature of SR and associated topics admit of a principled, intuitive account within the Government and Binding framework.

This thesis will outline some aspects of Local Grammar, a non-transformational linguistic theory that is presented as an alternative to transformational grammar. The formalism does not have a transformational component.Instead, the lexicon is enriched and a well-defined semantic component is provided. The work of this thesis is an outgrowth of work done jointly by the author and Rick Saenz as well as the work of other researchers (Bresnan 1978, Dowty 1978 and Montague 1973). Chapter II presents an overview of the Local Grammar formalism. It then provides a non-transformational analysis of some constructions which have been said to be caused by the transformation of Wh-Movement in transformational analyses. The ability of the Local Grammar framework to handle phrase structure rules of the form X ---> 0 is crucial to the analysis. Chapter III considers the problem of formulating explicit parsing algorithms to parse sentences with respect to grammars written within the Local Grammar framework. These parsing algorithms are based on parsing algorithms for context-free grammars. Two algorithms are constructed, one top-down and the other bottom-up. It is argued that the bottom-up algorithm is more suitable as a parser for Local Grammar than the top-down algorithm. Chapter IV attempts to constrain the algorithms developed in Chapter III to obey some of the psycholinguistic parsing strategies proposed by Frazier (1979), Frazier and Fodor (1978), and Fodor and Frazier (1980). It is shown that, for the most part, both the top-down and bottom-up algorithms can be made to model these strategies equally well. Chapter V summarizes the results of the thesis in two different ways, as providing one coherent proposal for a linguistic theory and as investigating many important linguistic issues.