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Research Interests
Theoretical linguistics, devoted to the study of the human language faculty.
Specifically: Theoretical phonology, morphology,
and syntax; Romance Linguistics.
Recent and ongoing work
 A
New Perspective on the Phonology - Morphology Connection (Flash 5
movie)
Earlier work
Some of my earlier work was devoted to the study of the argument structure
of verbs, and helped establish the hypothesis (known as the "unaccusative
hypothesis") that the apparent subject of certain verbs (like fall, exist)
is in fact the object in argument structure (See Publications,
Area A) . That work shed light on the patterns of case marking and
auxiliary selection in some of the Romance languages. One of the factual
observations made in that work later became known in linguistics as "Burzio's
generalization".
Other work has been devoted to the principles controlling the expression
of pronominal coreference (See Publications,
Area B). It argues that in choosing an element to express coreference,
options are organized according to the hierarchy reflexive > non-reflexive
pronoun > name. This hierarchy reflects a principle of economy
of referential expression, as reflexives lack any independent reference,
while names have full independent reference and pronouns lie in between.
In a structure like John saw himself/ *him, this principle
will impose the reflexive pronoun (the referentially most parsimonious),
excluding the non-reflexive pronoun him (when read as coreferential
with John). The same principle will also impose the (more
parsimonious) pronoun him in He thought that Mary saw him/
*John, hence excluding the name John (when read
as coreferential with he). Other principles sensitive to the structural
distance between a pronominal and its antecedent will sometimes independently
exclude the reflexive option, as in the last example, where himself
would be barred, hence inducing selection of the non-reflexive pronoun
--the next best choice. Beside the above hierarchy, the work in question
identifies several other hierarchies which appear to hold language-universally.
These concern the structural distance just alluded to, and the conditions
under which reflexives can felicitously agree with their antecedents.
In one further line of research, I have studied the patterns of morphological
case (See Publications,
Area C). I have argued that the apparently "naive" view of traditional
grammar that case (Nominative, Accusative, Dative, etc.) simply encodes
grammatical relations (subject, direct object, indirect object) turns
out to be surprisingly correct. That view is generally taken to be false
in contemporary work in light of certain counterexamples, such as I
expect him to leave, where him is demonstrably the
subject of leave and yet bears Accusative Case. What makes this reappraisal
possible is understanding the grammar as an optimization system (as in
Optimality Theory, see below) rather than as a system of inviolable conditions
(a view also entailed by my work on pronominal coreference). Apparent
counterexamples to the naive view can be reduced to principles acting
under specific circumstances, that overcome the more general association
of cases and grammatical relations. The latter association is thus only
a violable condition rather than a false one.
While I remain interested in issues of syntactic theory such as those
just described, in recent years I have turned to the area of phonology
and word structure (morphology). My book Principles of English Stress (Cambridge, 1994. ASIN 0-521-44513-2)
offers radically new solutions to a number traditional problems of English
morpho-phonology, such as vowel length allomorphy, as in divi:ne/ divinity;
obli:ge/ obligatory; genera:te/ generative, fi:ni:te/ infinite; Elizabeth/
elizabe:than (where colons mark long or diphthongized vowels), and the
distinction between re-stressing and non-restressing suffixes, as in párent/
parént-al (re-stressing) versus américan/ américan-ist (same stress).
Those solutions rely on a constraint-based approach to morpho-phonology
which I have proposed in that work, and which has subsequently converged
with the "Optimality Theory" of Prince and Smolensky (see Articles D,
H). See 'Recent and Ongoing Work'.
Courses
- 050.205 The Structure of English
- 050.316/ 616 Morpho-Phonology
- 050.320/ 620 Introduction to the Syntax of Natural Languages (Syntax
I)
- 050.325/ 625 Sound Structure in Natural Language (Phonology I)
- 050.327/ 627 Advanced Topics in Sound Structure (Phonology II)
- 050.227/ 427 Topics in the History of the Romance Languages
- 050.822 Research Seminar in Syntax
- 050.823 Research Seminar in Sound Structure
- 050.824 Research Seminar: Lexical Representation
- 050.825 Research Seminar in Optimality Theory
List of publications
| BOOKS |
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1994: Principles
of English Stress, Cambridge University Press.
ASIN 0-521-44513-2 |
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1986: Italian
Syntax: A Government-Binding Approach, Reidel, Dordrecht
(xiii+468 pp.).
ISBN 90-277-2014-2 & 90-277-2015-0. |
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Reviewed:
- Lingua e Stile, XXI, 4 (1986): Giorgio Graffi
- L'Indice, IV, 5 (1987): Giulio Lepschy
- Studies in Language, 12, 1 (1988): Adriana Belletti
- Language, 64, 1 (1988): Donna Jo Napoli
- Romance Philology, 42, 4 (1989): Giulio Lepschy
- Lingua Nostra, L, 2-3 (1989): Paola Benincà
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| ARTICLES
/ BOOK CHAPTERS |
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Under revision: 'Lexicon
and Grammar: unequal but inseparable', ms. Johns Hopkins
University. |
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In press: Burzio, Luigi and
Niki Tantalou 'Modern
Greek Accent and Faithfulness Constraints in OT', Lingua.
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In Press: 'Phonology
and Phonetics of English Stress and Vowel Reduction', Language
Sciences |
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2006: ‘Lexicon
Versus Grammar in English Morphophonology: Modularity Revisited’
Korean Journal of English Language and Linguistics 6-3,
437-464. |
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2005: 'Sources
of Paradigm Uniformity', in Laura J. Downing, T. A. Hall,
Renate Raffelsiefen, eds. Paradigms in Phonological Theory.
Oxford: Oxford University Press: 65-106. |
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2004: 'Paradigmatic
and Syntagmatic Relations in Italian Verbal Inflection'.
In Julie Auger, J. Clancy Clements and Barbara Vance (eds.)
Contemporary Approaches to Romance Linguistics, John
Benjamins, Amsterdam: 17-44.
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2003 'Output-to-Output
Faithfulness: the Italian Connection', Lingue
e Linguaggio 1, 69-104. |
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2002 'Surface-to-Surface
Morphology: when your Representations turn into Constraints'
in P. Boucher (ed.) Many Morphologies, Cascadilla Press.
142-177. (Preliminary version: ROA 341 0999; http://roa.rutgers.edu/). |
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2002: 'Missing
Players: Phonology and the Past-tense Debate,' Lingua
112, 157-199. |
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2001: 'Zero
Derivations', Linguistic Inquiry 32.4, 658-677. |
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2000: 'Segmental
Contrast meets Output-to-Output Faithfulness' The Linguistic
Review 17, 2-4, 368-384. |
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2000: 'Missing Players: Phonology
and the Past-tense Debate,' in Kleanthes K. Grohmann and Caro
Struijke, eds. University of Maryland Working Papers in Linguistics,
vol. 10, 73-112. |
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2000 ‘The Rise of Optimality
Theory' in Lisa Cheng and Rint Sybesma (eds) The First Glot
International State-of-the-Article Book. New York: Mouton
de Gruyter, 199-220. |
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2000
‘Anatomy of a Generalization,' in Eric Reuland, ed. Arguments
and Case: Explaining Burzio's Generalization, John Benjamins,
Amsterdam. ISBN: 9027227551 & 155619918X |
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2000: ‘Anatomy of a Generalization,'
in Syntactic and Functional Explorations: In Honor of Susumu
Kuno, Ken-ichi Takami, Akio Kamio and John Whitman, eds.
Kurosio Publishers, Tokyo. (updated version of article above). |
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2000 ‘Cycles, Non-Derived-Environment-Blocking,
and Correspondence,' in Joost Dekkers, Frank van der Leeuw and
Jeroen van de Weijer, eds. Optimality Theory: Syntax, Phonology,
and Acquisition. Oxford University Press. |
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1999 "Anaphora and Soft Constraints,"
in Jon Franco, Alazne Landa and Juan Martín, eds. Grammatical
Analyses in Basque and Romance Linguistics, John Benjamins,
Amsterdam. (Updated version of 1998 article). |
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1999: ‘Italian Participial Morphology
and Correspondence Theory,' in Geert Booij, Angela Ralli and
Sergio Scalise, eds. Proceedings of the First Mediterranean
Conference of Morphology. University of Patras. |
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1998, with Elvira DiFabio:
‘Corrispondenze Accentuali,' in Miscellanea in Onore di Dante
Della Terza, Edizioni Cadmo, Fiesole, Italy (443-457). |
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1998: ‘Anaphora and Soft Constraints,'
in Pilar Barbosa, Danny Fox, Paul Hagstrom, Martha McGinnis,
and David Pesetsky, eds. Is the Best Good Enough? Optimality
and Competition in Syntax' MIT Press and MIT Working Papers
in Linguistics. |
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1998: ‘Multiple Correspondence,'
Lingua 103, 79-109. |
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1997: ‘Strength in Numbers',
in Viola Miglio and Bruce Morén, eds. University of Maryland
Working Papers in Linguistics 5 (1997): Selected phonology papers
from H-O-T 97, 27-52. |
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1996: ‘The Role of the Antecedent
in Anaphoric Relations,' in R. Freidin, ed. Current Issues
in Comparative Grammar, Kluwer, Dordrecht, 1-45. |
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1996: ‘Surface Constraints
versus Underlying Representation,' in: Durand, Jacques and Bernard
Laks, eds. Current Trends in Phonology: Models and Methods.
European Studies Research Institute, University of Salford Publications.
(97-122). |
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1996: ‘Where English Prosody
Meets Phonological Theory,' in Pérez Guerra, Javier, M.Teresa
Caneda Cabrera, Marta Dahlgreen, Teresa Fernández-Colmeiro and
Eduardo J. Varela Bravo, eds. Proceedings of the XIX International
Conference of AEDEAN. Vigo: Universidade de Vigo. (51-65). |
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1995: ‘The Rise of Optimality
Theory,' GLOT International 1.6, 3-7. University of Leiden. |
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1995: ‘On the Metrical Unity
of Latinate Affixes,' in H. Campos and P.M. Kempchinsky Evolution
and Revolution in Linguistic Theory: Essays in Honor of Carlos
Otero, Georgetown University Press (revised version of 1991
article). |
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1994: ‘Weak Anaphora,' in
G.Cinque, J.Koster, L.Rizzi and R. Zanuttini, eds. Paths
towards Universal Grammar. Studies in honor of Richard S. Kayne,
Georgetown University Press. |
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1994: ‘Metrical Consistency,'
in E. Ristad, ed. Proceedings of the DIMACS Workshop on Human
Language, American Mathematical Society, Providence RI. |
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1994: with Elvira DiFabio:
‘Accentual Stability,' in M. Mazzola, ed. Issues and Theory
in Romance Linguistics (LSRL XXIII), Georgetown University
Press, Washington, D.C. |
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1993: ‘English Stress, Vowel
Length and Modularity,' Journal of Linguistics 29.2,
359-418. |
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1992: ‘Principles in Phonology,'
in E. Fava, ed. Proceedings of the XVII Meeting on Generative
Grammar (Trieste, February 22-24, 1991), Rosenberg and Sellier,
Torino. |
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1992: ‘On the Morphology of
Reflexives and Impersonals,' in Christiane Lauefer and Terrell
Morgan, eds. Theoretical
Analyses in Romance Linguistics (LSRL XIX), John Benjamins,
Amsterdam. |
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1991: ‘The Morphological Basis
of Anaphora,' Journal of Linguistics 27.1, 1-60. |
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1991: ‘Grammatical Relations,'
Oxford International Encyclopedia of Linguistics, Oxford
University Press. |
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1991: ‘On the Metrical Unity
of Latinate Affixes,' in Germán Westphal, Benjamin Ao, and Hee-Rahk
Chae, eds. Proceeding of the Eigth Eastern States Conference
on Linguistics, Department of Linguistics, Ohio State University.
Reprinted in Rivista di Grammatica Generativa 16, 1-27. |
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1991: ‘English Vowel Length
and Foot Structure,' in P.M. Bertinetto, M. Kenstowicz and M.
Loporcaro, eds. Certamen Phonologicum II: Papers from the
1990 Cortona Phonology Meeting, Rosenberg and Sellier, Torino. |
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1989: ‘On the non-Existence
of Disjoint Reference Principles,' Rivista di Grammatica
Generativa, 14. |
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1989: ‘Prosodic Reduction,'
in Carl Kirschner and Janet De Cesaris eds. Studies
in Romance Linguistics, John Benjamins, Amsterdam. |
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1987: ‘English Stress,' in
P.M. Bertinetto and M. Loporcaro (eds.) Certamen Phonologicum:
Papers from the 1987 Cortona Phonology Meeting, Rosenberg
and Sellier, Torino. |
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1983: ‘Conditions on Representation
and Romance Syntax,' Linguistic Inquiry, 14, 193-221. |
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1982: ‘D-structure Conditions
on Clitics,' Journal of Linguistic Research, 2.2, 23-54. |
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1978: ‘Italian Causative Constructions,'
Journal of Italian Linguistics, 3.2, 1-71. |
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Other affiliations
Member faculty, Center
for Language and Speech Processing, School of Engineering, Johns Hopkins
University.
Member of editorial board for:
Georgetown University Press.
Linguistic Inquiry, MIT Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Probus, Mouton De Gruyter, New York.
Rivista di Grammatica Generativa, Unipress, Padova, Italy
The Linguistic Review, Mouton De Gruyter, New York.
Education & Experience
Ph.D. in Linguistics and Philosophy, 1981
MIT, Cambridge, MA
• Curriculum Vitae in pdf format
PhD Dissertations directed
- 1989: Sharon L. Shelly Object-Gapped Infinitivals in Romance, Harvard
University.
- 1990: Elvira
G. DiFabio. The Morphology of the Verbal Infix isk in Italian and
Romance, Harvard University.
- 1996: Adamantios
I. Gafos. The Articulatory Basis of Locality in Phonology, Johns
Hopkins University.
- 2000: Colin
Wilson. Targeted Constraints: An Approach to Positional Neutralization
in Optimality Theory. Johns Hopkins University.
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