Linguistic Theory in America (2nd Edition) - Softcover

Newmeyer, Frederick J.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0125171528 ISBN 13: 9780125171526

Publisher: Academic Press, 1987

Synopsis

Linguistic Theory in America, Second Edition focuses on the origin and development of the theory of transformational generative grammar. The book first elaborates on the state of American linguistics in the mid-1950s, the Chomskyan revolution, and the movement from syntactic structures to the aspects of the theory of syntax. Discussions focus on the incorporation of semantics into the model, revisions in the syntactic component, generative phonology, impact of generative grammar on other fields, syntactic structures, and structural linguistics. The text then takes a look at the rise of generative semantics and linguistic wars. Topics include late generative semantics, collapse and legacy of generative semantics, steps to generative semantics, and emerging opposition to generative semantics. The manuscript elaborates on the extended standard theory and approaches to syntax, including generalized phrase structure grammar, constraints on transformational rules, and constraints on surface structure and base rules. The text is a dependable source of data for researchers interested in the theory of transformational generative grammar.

About this title

About the Author

Frederick J. Newmeyer is Howard and Frances Nostrand Professor of Linguistics at the University of Washington in Seattle where he has taught since 1969. He was Secretary-Treasurer of the Linguistic Society of America from 1989 to 1993 and its President in 2002. He specializes in syntax and the
history of linguistics and in his current research program seeks to synthesize the results of formal and functional linguistics. He is the author of the books English Aspectual Verbs (1975), Linguistic Theory in America (1980), Grammatical Theory: Its Limits and its Possibilities (1983), The
Politics of Linguistics (1986), Generative Linguistics: Historical Perspective (1996), and Language Form and Language Function (1998). He was also editor of the four-volume compilation Linguistics: The Cambridge Survey (1988).

Review

"With the publication of the second edition of Linguistic Theory in America, Frederick Newmeyer continues to offer the field one of its clearest and most valuable explications. This volume's comprehensive coverage reviews the literature and places it within the dual perspective of the development of linguistic theory and the development of the academic field of linguistics."
--WORD

Edition details

• Publisher: Academic Press
• Publication date: 1987
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0125171528
• ISBN 13: 9780125171526
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 2
• Number of pages: 320