The philosophy of generative linguistics / Peter Ludlow.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Peter Ludlow presents this work on the philosophy of generative linguistics. He explains the motivation of the generative framework, describes its mechanisms, and addresses issues of broad philosophical interest, for instance the ontology of linguistics, the nature of data, language/world relations, and best theory criteria.

Print version record.

1. Linguistic preliminaries -- 1.1. Transformational grammar from ST to EST -- 1.2. Government and binding theory -- 1.3. The principles and parameters framework -- 1.4. The minimalist program -- 2. The ontology of generative linguistics -- 2.1. E-language, I-language, Psi-language -- 2.2. Having linguistic rules and knowing linguistic facts -- 2.3. Levels of explanation in the theory of grammar -- 2.4. Abstracta and non-isomorphic representation -- 2.5. Types and tokens -- 2.6. Derivation vs. representation -- 3. Data, intuitions, judgments -- 3.1. Linguistic phenomena, linguistic data, linguistic theory -- 3.2. Linguistic intuitions are linguistic judgments -- 3.3. Linguistic judgments are reliable (enough) -- 3.4. Linguistic judgments as scientific experiments -- 3.5. On the alleged priority of the data -- 4. A role for normative rule governance? -- 5. Worries about rules and representations -- 5.1. Quinean indeterminacy arguments -- 5.2. Kripke/Wittgenstein concerns about rules -- 5.3. Externalism about syntax? -- 6. Referential semantics for narrow Psi-languages -- 6.1. The compatibility of referential semantics and narrow and Psi-languages -- 6.2. Chomsky's incompatibilist arguments -- 6.3. The bite the bullet strategy and Chomsky's response -- 6.4. The compatibilist bites back -- 6.5. The prospects for a non-referential semantics -- 7. Best theory criteria and methodological minimalism -- 7.1. Simplicity criteria -- 7.2. Formal rigor -- 7.3. Minimal effort and optimal switching points.

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