Linguistics Chapter 1 Introduction Introduction Overview And Objectives This Introduces Students The

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Introduction 3

Chapter 1: Introduction

Chapter Overview and Objectives

This chapter introduces students to the topics, structure, and theoretical orientation of the

textbook. After completing this chapter, students should be able to

٪ Distinguish among the psychological system, vocal tract, and speech.

Key Terms

generative grammar

software

vocal tract

speech

data

theory

Commentary on Chapter 1

The introduction is the only chapter that does not contain exercises. As a first-day activity that

previews some of the concepts students will read about in Chapter 1, you might provide them

with some data and take the class through a question-and-answer session in which they

analyze it (with your help).

For example, give each student a handout like the one on page 4 of this manual. Explain

briefly that you’re going to have them look at some “tag” questions, so-called because they

consist of a statement with a question “tagged” onto it. As you read aloud each sentence in (I),

ask students to mark any sentences that sound out of the ordinary with an asterisk. (Have

them to this individually and quickly; the point is that they rely on their “gut reaction” about

which sentences sound unremarkable and which ones don’t.)

After students have worked individually to judge the sentences, write the sentences on

the board or on an overhead and ask the class as a whole about their judgments. First, ask the

4 Introduction

Now on to part (II) of the handout. Having judged sentences (1-6) as either well-formed

or not, the students have a body of data upon which to draw. They can now proceed to use

this data—their judgments—to infer the principles that allowed them to make the judgments.

Unlike the first step, this step requires conscious analysis to formulate and fine-tune each

statement.

By dividing the sentences into two groups—those with * and those without—students can

start to arrive at the principles that govern tag questions. While this will take some trial and

error on their part (as well as reference to some terms they might not have used in a while—

like “auxiliary verb” and “antecedent of a pronoun”), with your help they can eventually

arrive at the following principles:

٪ The verb in a tag question must match the verb in the declarative (cf. 3, which uses a

present-tense verb in the declarative but a past-tense verb in the tag).

٪ The declarative and the tag cannot both be negative (cf. 4, which contains a negative

in both parts). (Although the data do not illustrate it, you might point out that a

If students are able to arrive at all of these principles, they will have done quite a bit for

the first day of class! The point to close with is they have been “doing” linguistics: trying to

formulate a conscious statement of the principles that allow speakers to judge sentences as

well-formed or not.

It is also worth pointing out that principles must be refined as new data is encountered—

for instance, ask students how they would form a tag question for the sentence Mary went.

Again, they will be able to formulate an immediate, uniform response (didn’t she?)—but it

violates one of the principles that accounted so well for sentences 1-6. A linguist’s work is

never done….

Sample analysis: “Tag” questions

I. Data (acceptability judgments): Mark unacceptable S’s with an asterisk (*).

1. Mary can’t go, can she?

2. Mary has gone, hasn’t she?