This is a highly recommendable book. It elegantly introduces generative grammar as an empirical science. Written in a clear and friendly tone, it is extremely readable and makes complicated linguistic theory accessible to students' - Ken Ramshøj Christensen, Aarhus University, Denmark This clear and practical introduction to Syntactic Theory introduces students to theory building, hypothesis testing and evaluation through the framework of Chomsky's Government-Binding Theory. Initial chapters guide the student through essential topics such as X'-Theory, Transformations and elementary Binding Theory, progressing to cover more advanced issues such as Reconstruction, the light verb vP and control as movement. Presenting the core linguistic theory and problem solving skills that are essential to the subject, this updated and revised second edition features: • New material on the Minimalist Program and Government-Binding Theory • Expanded chapters on Phrase Structure and Functional Categories • A wealth of new tree diagrams as well as revised end-of-chapter exercises The liberal use of in-text exercises engage the reader at every stage of theory-development, while an 'Open Issue' at the end of each chapter encourages active participation and further exploration of the chapter's topic. With an engaging, informal style, Syntactic Theory makes the most difficult topics accessible to a wide range of students. Clear, practical and accessible, Syntactic Theory introduces students to theory building and evaluation through Government-Binding Theory. Now fully updated, this second edition features new chapters on the Minimalist Program, expanded chapters on Phrase Structure and Functional Categories and extensively revised end-of-chapter exercises.

Marking a return to generative grammar in its original sense, this book focuses on the development of precisely formulated grammars whose empirical predictions can be directly tested. Problem solving is also emphasised.

Syntactic theory is central to the study of language. This innovative book introduces the ideas which underlie most approaches to syntax and shows how they have been developed within two broad frameworks: principles and parameters theory and phrase structure grammar. While other texts either concentrate on one theory or treat them as totally separate, here both approaches are introduced together, highlighting the similarities as well as the differences. Thoroughly updated in the light of major recent developments, this second edition includes expanded explanations of the main characteristics of the two theories, summaries of the main features, exercises reinforcing key points and suggestions for further investigation.

This textbook is intended to give students a quick start in using theory to address syntactic questions. At each stage, Cowper is careful to introduce a theoretical apparatus that is no more complex than is required to deal with the phenomenon under consideration. Comprehensive and up-to-date, this accessible volume will also provide an excellent refresher for linguists returning to the study of Government-Binding theory. "Cowper exhibits the analytical devices of current principles-and-parameters approaches, takes readers carefully through the central elements of grammatical theory (including very recent work), and ushers them selectively into the technical literature. . . . A serious introduction for those who want to know the nuts and bolts of syntactic theory and to see why linguists are so excited these days."—David Lightfoot, University of Maryland "An excellent short introduction to the Government and Binding model of syntactic theory. . . . Cowper's work succeeds in teaching syntactic argumentation and in showing the conceptual reasons behind specific proposals in modern syntactic theory."—Jaklin Kornfilt, Syracuse University

An Introduction to Syntactic Analysis and Theory offers beginning students a comprehensive overview of and introduction to our current understanding of the rules and principles that govern the syntax of natural languages. Includes numerous pedagogical features such as 'practice' boxes and sidebars, designed to facilitate understanding of both the 'hows' and the 'whys' of sentence structure Guides readers through syntactic and morphological structures in a progressive manner Takes the mystery out of one of the most crucial aspects of the workings of language – the principles and processes behind the structure of sentences Ideal for students with minimal knowledge of current syntactic research, it progresses in theoretical difficulty from basic ideas and theories to more complex and advanced, up to date concepts in syntactic theory

Chomsky proposes a reformulation of the theory of transformational generative grammar that takes recent developments in the descriptive analysis of particular languages into account. Beginning in the mid-fifties and emanating largely form MIT, an approach was developed to linguistic theory and to the study of the structure of particular languages that diverges in many respects from modern linguistics. Although this approach is connected to the traditional study of languages, it differs enough in its specific conclusions about the structure and in its specific conclusions about the structure of language to warrant a name, "generative grammar." Various deficiencies have been discovered in the first attempts to formulate a theory of transformational generative grammar and in the descriptive analysis of particular languages that motivated these formulations. At the same time, it has become apparent that these formulations can be extended and deepened.The major purpose of this book is to review these developments and to propose a reformulation of the theory of transformational generative grammar that takes them into account. The emphasis in this study is syntax; semantic and phonological aspects of the language structure are discussed only insofar as they bear on syntactic theory.

The format of this book is unusual, especially for a book about linguistics. The book is meant primarily as a research monograph aimed at linguists who have some background in formal semantics, e. g. Montague Grammar. However, I have two other audiences in mind. Linguists who have little or no experience of formal semantics, but who have worked through a basic mathematics for linguists course (e. g. using Wall, 1972, or Partee, 1978), should, perhaps with the help of a sympathetic Montague gramma rian, be able to discover enough of how I have adapted some of the basic ideas in formal semantics to make the developments that I undertake in the rest of the book accessible. Logicians and computer scientists who know about model theoretic semantics and formal systems should be able to glean enough from Chapters I and II about linguistic concerns and techniques to be able to read the remainder of the book, again possibly with the help of a sympathetic Montague grammarian. However, readers should beware. Chapter II is not meant as a general introduction either to formal semantics or to linguistics and while much of the presentation there is going over ground that is already well covered in the literature, the particular formulation and the emphases are very much oriented to the developments to be undertaken later in the book.