This is the web page for the seminar (now over), which was held at Johns Hopkins in Spring 1999. Included are the syllabus, bibliography, and handouts for things I presented myself.
The syntax and semantics of questions
050.822 Research Seminar
Spring 1999, Tuesday 3:30-5:30pm
Paul Hagstrom (hagstrom@jhu.edu)
Mission statement. In this seminar, we will be looking at major recent approaches to the syntax of questions as well as introducing and linking to major approaches to the semantics of questions. Participants will presumably have some experience with syntax, but less experience with semantics; one of the goals of the seminar will be to 'de-mystify' semantics by looking at the problem questions pose from both syntactic and semantic angles. We will probably focus on problems posed by wh-in-situ languages (for example, apparent lack of island phenomena), although we will also discuss analyses of the syntactic typology of wh-movement as well. Another topic we will consider is the morphology of questions (the role of "question particles", the common crosslinguistic relation between question words and other things, such as indefinites, negative polarity items, disjunction, ...), and how these might fit into the syntactic and semantic picture. The syntactic framework we will primarily be discussing will be of the "Government & Binding" sort (intended to include both "OT" and "minimalist" approaches, but to exclude LFG, HSPG, etc.).
Readings. For each week there are generally 2-3 (all fairly short) readings listed. I tried to keep the amount of reading achievable, so try to at least look at all of them if possible---however, if the rare occasion arises when you can only read 2 of 3, they're listed in order of importance, so read the 2 listed first. If you have extra time, you might look at the "see also" readings, which will hopefully be discussed too. Readings will be placed in the "espresso lounge" upstairs with other class readings.
Structure. I envision presentations being informal, and reasonably short. On days where two papers are being presented, I'll probably take the first half hour, splitting the rest of the time between the papers being discussed. So, something like 45 minutes for each paper, though presumably this will vary depending on the complexity of the issues involved.
Life as a registered participant. The course expectations are (i) a paper at the end, (ii) two presentations/leadings-of-discussion (of readings or of own research, preferably one of each). Try to talk to me by the end of March about paper topics you might be interested in. For the grade to be recorded, your paper should make it to me by a week before I have to turn in grades. I'm happy to read drafts, discuss possible directions, etc. My office is Krieger 137C, email is hagstrom@jhu.edu.
Life as an unregistered participant. Of course, I can't formally 'require' anything, but even those who are not formally registered in the course are heartily encouraged to present readings and/or their own research.
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
Week 1: The typology of Wh-movement, wh-in-situ as basic
The surface typology of wh-word-movement (one vs. all vs. none).
Is there a uniform connection to CP? Is it driven by semantics?
Reasons given for "covert wh-movement" of wh-in-situ, reasons against...
Implementations: scope marking (representational), covert movement (derivational),
unselective binding (hybrid).
Some reason to believe even moved wh-phrases are
"put back" for interpretation.
Readings:
Ackema & Neeleman 1998.
Week 2: The morphology of wh-in-situ
The "Clausal Typing Hypothesis" and Q morphemes. (Cheng 1997)
The Q-movement hypothesis; connecting dareka to dare...ka? (Hagstrom 1999)
Connecting wh-words and quantifiers (Kim 1989).
Readings:
Cheng 1997 (ch 2), Hagstrom 1999, Kim 1989.
See also:
Hagstrom 1998 (ch 2) (it's a longer version of Hagstrom 1999).
Schedule interrupted for practice talk ("Connecting morphology and semantics: What Japanese particles tell us about the meaning of questions", talk given at Swarthmore, February 11, 1999.)
Week 3: Introduction to semantics of questions
The relation between syntax and semantics (Heim & Kratzer 1998).
Compositionality in interpretation, semantic types ("Semantics 101")
Questions as characterizing their answers (Hamblin 1958, Hagstrom 1998).
Readings:
Hamblin 1958, Hagstrom 1998 (ch 5[sec 1-2]),
Heim & Kratzer 1998 (ch 1, 2, sec 6.3.1, sec 7.1, sec 7.3).
Weeks 4-5: Some major approaches to wh-in-situ.
LF-pied piping (Nishigauchi 1990).
Unselective binding (Pesetsky 1987, Aoun & Li 1993).
Invisible overt movement (Watanabe 1992).
Representation approaches, scope marking (Brody 1995, Legendre et al. 1995)
Readings:
John Pesetsky 1987
Frankie Watanabe 1992
Colin Reinhart 1998 (wh-in-situ)
Paul Legendre, Wilson, Smolensky, Homer, and Raymond 1995
See also:
Aoun & Li 1993, Brody 1995 (ch. 2),
Nishigauchi 1990 (ch. 2).
Week 6: Semantics and answerhood
Rullmann & Beck 1996 saving Karttunen 1977 from Groenendijk &
Stokhof 1984.
Heim 1995, similar goal.
Readings:
Paul Legendre, et al. 1995 continued.
Marina Rullmann & Beck 1996 (on answerhood)
See also:
Heim 1994 [IATL paper]
Week 7: Interpreting wh-words in situ (Special Bonus Class, Spring Break)
Overview of issues of the semantics of questions; Groenendijk &
Stokhof 1994.
Semantic arguments for interpreting wh-words in situ.
Rullmann & Beck 1997 and presupposition projection.
Readings:
John Groenendijk &
Stokhof 1984 [sec 4.1-3 and sec 6]
Paul Rullmann & Beck 1997 (on
which-phrases).
Week 8: Flexible Functional Application again, pair-lists, etc.
(or Did what I wrote in my thesis make any sense?)
Pair-list readings in multiple questions. What are they?
Applications of FFA in my proposal (islands, PL readings, ka-drop).
Readings:
Paul Hagstrom 1998
[sec 5.5, sec 6.1, sec 6.4, review secs 5.3-4]
See also:
Dayal 1996 (on long distance lists),
Garrett 1996 (PL sensitive to islands?)
Schedule interrupted for GLOW conference.
Week 9: Questions with quantifiers
Pair-list and functional readings with quantifiers (Chierchia 1991)
Funny locality effects (Sloan 1991)
Readings:
Frankie Sloan 1991
Marina Chierchia 1991
Hagstrom 1998 (ch. 7)
See also:
Hagstrom 1998 [secs 6.2-3]
(my translation of Chierchia, but without an explanation of WCO??),
Chierchia 1993 (longer, more sophisticated version of Chierchia 1991),
Sharvit 1996 (discusses "QR" of interrogative clauses).
Week 10: Scope marking and partial wh-movement
"Direct" vs. "indirect" dependencies between "expletive" wh-word
and its associate-- Dayal (re: Hindi) vs. Müller (re: German and several others).
Readings:
Colin Dayal 1994
Geraldine Müller 1996
See also:
Cole & Hermon 1998
Weeks 11-12: Continuing partial wh-movement
Readings:
Paul Horvath (1997)
Paul Fanselow & Mahajan (1996)
Return to Paul Hagstrom's home page.
Mail: hagstrom@cogsci.jhu.edu