This book presents an introduction to optimality theory, a grammatical framework of recent origin prince and smolensky 1993, mccarthy and prince 1993a, b. Introduction1 a challenge to any theory of phonology is to reconcile two types of interaction. Manuscript, rutgers university and university of colorado at boulder. This article surveys the motivations for ot, its core principles, and the basics of analysis. Contrast in phonology theory, perception and acquisition avery, peter. The fundamental idea behind ot is that surface forms of language.
Evidence for the assumption that there should be such a core of principles comes from two domains. Exceptionality in ot and final consonants in french. For each chapter, mccarthy adds brief introductory notes and a list of study and. This is an introduction to optimality theory, whose central idea is that surface forms of language reflect resolutions of conflicts between competing constraints. A readable introduction to optimality theory phonology. I used this a few years back in a graduate level phonology course. Markedness is built into grammars in the form of universal output constraints.
Optimality theory optimality theory prince and smolensky 1993 ot is a theory of constraint interaction. Ot differs from other approaches to phonological analysis, such as autosegmental phonology and linear phonology spe, which typically use rules rather. Optimality theory has transformed the field of linguistics more than almost any other development of the past halfcentury, and prince and smolensky started it all. Therefore, d cannot be the optimal candidate under any ranking of just these three constraints, though it could be optimal with a larger constraint set.
Pullum university of california, santa cruz we develop an extensible description logic for stating the content of optimalitytheoretic constraints in phonology, and specify a class of structures for interpreting it. It allows for the calculation and visualization of the costs and benefits that influence the outcome of a decision, and contributes to an understanding of adaptations. Pdf cambridge textbooks in linguistics optimality theory. Theory, in which markedness has no substantive status in the grammar, but functions as an external system of annotations on parameter values, evaluating a grammars complexity. A surface form is optimal if it incurs the least serious violations of a set of constraints, taking into account their hierarchical ranking. The main idea is that grammars impose a set of restrictions on what are valid surface forms. Model theory and the content of ot constraints christopher potts geo. A proposal for the treatment of noun incorporation and similar phenomena. Rene kagers textbook is one of the first to cover optimality theory ot, a declarative. Cambridge core phonetics and phonology optimality theory by rene kager. The original reference for ot is prince and smolensky 1993. Inventory on biblio is continually updated, but because much of our booksellers inventory is uncommon or even oneofakind, stockouts do lptimality from time to time. Chapter 5 moves up to morphological structure with the redu.
Optimality theory presented by ashour abdulaziz, eric dodson, jessica hanson, and teresa li. Optimality theory by rene kager, 1999 online research. Optimality theory cambridge textbooks in linguistics. Rene kagers textbook is one of the rst to cover optimality theory ot, a declarative grammar framework that swiftly took over phonology afterit was introduced by prince, smolensky, and mccarthy in 1993. Bradley, uc davis november 5, 20 abstract this article surveys research in spanish phonology from the perspective of optimality theory, a formal linguistic framework based on ranked and violable constraints. Ot reclaims traditional grammars ability to express surface generalizations. This evaluation allows researchers to make predictions about an organismss optimal behavior or other aspects of its phenotype. In linguistics, optimality theory frequently abbreviated ot. Optimality theory cambridge textbooks in linguistics series by rene kager. This is an introduction to optimality theory, whose central idea i. Optimality theory prince and smolensky 1993, mccarthy and prince 1993a,b turns markedness statements into the actual substance of grammars. This is a preprint version of an article to appear in.
Part of language acquisition can then be described as the process of adjusting the ranking of these constraints. Download pdf optimalitytheory free online new books in. Optimality theory in linguistics is the theory that surface forms of language reflect resolutions of conflicts between competing constraints. Optimality theory cambridge textbooks in linguistics rene. Many criticisms of ot are, according to its proponents, based on fundamental misunderstanding of how it works. As the theory of representations in syntax has ramified, the theory of operations has dwindled in content, even to triviality and, for some, nonexistence.
Kagers book provides a comprehensive overview of ot theory and practice. Optimality theory ot is a wideemployed theoretical framework used in contemporary linguistics. Although much of the interest in ot has been associated with its use in phonology the area to which ot was first applied, the theory is also applicable to other subfields of. Optimality theory is grammar about rules or constraints. Kagers explanations are clear, and he does a god job walking you through the various topics. Ren kager s textbook is one of the first to cover optimality theory ot, a declarative grammar flamework that swiftly took over phonology after it was introduced by prince, smolensky, and. For each chapter, mccarthy adds brief introductory notes and a list of study and research questions. Optimality theory assumes that these components are universal. Chapter 3 considers some effects of syllable structure constraints.
Chapter 4the most ambitious in the bookdiscusses kagers own specialty, the optimization of metrical structure, whose effects on word shape are not limited to stress. Prince and smolensky 1993 introduced optimality theory ot as a. Jan 01, 2004 between 1993 and 2004, prince and smolenskys optimality theory was by far the most widely circulated manuscript among phonologists. Optimality theory by rene kager cambridge university press. Rene kager s textbook is one of the rst to cover optimality theory ot, a declarative grammar framework that swiftly took over phonology afterit was introduced by prince, smolensky, and mccarthy in 1993. Optimality theory an introduction publish your masters. Download pdf optimalitytheory free online new books. Optimalitytheory download optimalitytheory ebook pdf or read online books in pdf, epub, and mobi format. Karttunen, rene kager, paul kiparsky, mike kenstowicz, ellis visch, andras kornai, akin. Mccarthy points out that some of the most significant work on ot is available for free on the rutgers optimality archive. Click download or read online button to optimalitytheory book pdf for free now. Archangeli 1997, tesar, grimshaw, and prince 1999, kager 1999.
Kager s explanations are clear, and he does a god job walking you through the various topics. The theory was later expanded by prince and john mccarthy in 2001 optimality theory is usually considered a. Ren6 kager s textbook is one of the first to cover optimality theory ot, a declarative grammar framework that swiftly took over phonology after it was introduced by prince, smolensky, and mccarthy in 1993. Optimality theory was introduced in the 1990s by linguists alan prince and paul smolensky optimality theory. A read is counted each time someone views a publication summary such as the title, abstract, and list of authors, clicks on a figure, or views or downloads the fulltext. Optimality theory as applied to language was originally proposed by the linguists. Fortunately, it is now available for a larger audience in this text edition. About this document this article is a draft of my chapter on markedness and faithfulness constraints in the blackwells companion to phonology chapter 74. A reader is a collection of readings on this important new theory by leading figures in the field, including a lengthy excerpt from prince and smolenskys neverbeforepublished optimality theory. Differences in grammars reflect different rankings of the universal constraint set, con. Mar 03, 2012 optimality theory in linguistics by kie zuraw 1. Candidate d, however is harmonically bounded by a, and by c. Having only done rule based phonology, i didnt find optimality theory to be at all intuitive at first.
Constraints are the two approaches equivalent or are they fundamentally different. Optimality theory cambridge textbooks in linguistics rene kager download bok. Optimality theory has drawn a good deal of criticism, most of which is directed at its application to phonology rather than syntax or other fields. Optimality theory in phonology is a textbook for an advancedlevel phonology course that contains excerpts from 33 important articles and manuscripts on optimality theory ot. Optimality theory ot is a linguistic model originally proposed by the linguists alan prince and paul smolensky in 1993. Though originally developed from generative phonology, the principles of optimality theory have also been applied in studies of syntax, morphology, pragmatics, language change, and other areas. Optimality theory cambridge textbooks in linguistics free. Optimality theory models grammar with ranked, violable, competing constraints. Roa, which was created by alan prince in 1993, is an electronic depository of work in, on, or about ot. Optimalitytheory download optimalitytheory ebook pdf or read online books in pdf.
The approach based on optimality models in biology is sometimes called optimality theory. Mccarthy, university of massachusetts, amherst ot does not need to. Optimality theory has been deployed by linguists to analyze all levels of linguistic structure, from phonetics to pragmatics. An appropriate and illuminating example of differing domination hierarchies is for instance provided by rene kager in his work optimality theory ibid 14 17. If a hypothesized gen is not free enough, then some inputs might have only. Mit press prince and smolensky 1993 introduced optimality theory ot as aframework for linguistic analysis. Introduction my goal in this paper is to provide a principled treatment for a few schizophrenic french words exhibiting an apparent confusion regarding the status of their final consonants. In biology, optimality models are a tool used to evaluate the costs and benefits of different organismal features, traits, and characteristics, including behavior, in the natural world. Rhythmic vowel deletion in optimality theory utrecht university. Anttila showed how this prediction is borne out in certain cases of free variation in finnish. The outcomes represent the best candidates the ones incurring the least serious violations. Optimality theory is a general model of how grammars are structured. Ot reclaims traditional grammars ability to express surface generalizations syl.
Constraint interaction in generative grammar compiles the most important readings about optimality theory in phonology from some of the most prominent researchers. Derivational residue in phonological optimality theory ben hermans, marc van oostendorp. Optimality theory jhu computer science johns hopkins university. This is a preprint version of an article to appear in language and linguistics compass optimality theory and spanish phonology travis g. It also addresses some frequently asked questions about this theory and offers suggestions. Optimality modeling is the modeling aspect of optimization theory. Optimality theory cambridge textbooks in linguistics 9780521589802. Oct 04, 2012 optimality theory models grammar with ranked, violable, competing constraints. Ren6 kagers textbook is one of the first to cover optimality theory ot, a declarative grammar framework that swiftly took over phonology after it was introduced by prince, smolensky, and mccarthy in 1993. Rene kager, optimality theory cambridge textbooks in linguistics publisher.
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