Bound variable, split antecedent and ellipsis interpretations in L2 Portuguese: implications for L2 acquisition theories (Variável ligada, antecedente cindido e interpretações de elipse em Português como L2:implicações para as teorias de aquisição de L2)

Autores

  • Jason Rothman University of Iowa (USA)
  • Michel Iverson University of Iowa (USA)
  • Tiffany Judy University of Iowa (USA)

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.22481/el.v7i2.1098

Palavras-chave:

Overt Pronoun Constraint, Inflected Infinitives, L2 acquisition, Adult UG-accessibility

Resumo

Recently, in light of minimalist assumptions, some partial UG-accessibility accounts to adult second language acquisition have made a distinction between the post-critical period ability to acquire new features based on their LF-interpretability (i.e. interpretable vs. uninterpretable features) (HAWKINS, 2005; HAWKINS; HATTORI, 2006; TSIMPLI; MASTROPAVLOU, 2007; TSIMPLI; DIMITRAKOPOULOU, 2007). The Interpretability Hypothesis (TSIMPLI; MASTROPAVLOU, 2007; TSIMPLI; DIMITRAKOPOULOU, 2007) claims that only uninterpretable features suffer a post-critical period failure and, therefore, cannot be acquired. Conversely, Full Access approaches claim that L2 learners have full access to UG’s entire inventory of features, and that L1/L2 differences obtain outside the narrow syntax. The phenomenon studied herein, adult acquisition of the Overt Pronoun Constraint (OPC) (MONTALBETTI, 1984) and inflected infinitives in non-native Portuguese, challenges the Interpretability Hypothesis insofar as it makes the wrong predictions for what is observed. The present data demonstrate that advanced learners of L2 Portuguese acquire the OPC and the syntax and semantics of inflected infinitives with native-like accuracy. Since inflected infinitives require the acquisition of new uninterpretable ?-features, the present data provide evidence in contra Tsimpli and colleagues’ Interpretability Hypothesis.

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Biografia do Autor

Jason Rothman, University of Iowa (USA)

Jason Rothman is an assistant professor of Hispanic linguistics and language acquisition at the University of Iowa (USA). His main areas of research span adult L2 acquisition, bilingualism, child L1 acquisition, adult L3/Ln acquisition and comparative acquisition epistemology. From the generative paradigm, his work has mainly examined the acquisition of complex syntax and its semantic entailments as well as syntactic properties that require integration with discourse pragmatics. Recent articles have appeared or are to appear in Applied Linguistics, International Journal of Bilingualism, International Review ofApplied Linguistics, Language Acquisition, Second Language Research, Studies in Second Language Acquisition including other major journals in the field.

Michel Iverson, University of Iowa (USA)

Michel Iverson is a second-year doctoral candidate in the t he Spanish and Portuguese Department at the University of Iowa (USA) specializing in Hispanic linguistics and adult language acquisition. His research focuses on adult second language acquisition, the newly emerging field of L3/Ln acquisition and heritage language acquisition from the generative linguistic paradigm, looking at both Spanish and Portuguese acquisition. His dissertation will focus on how the age of acquisition of a second language affects the acquisition of a third language. He plans to graduate in 2012. In addition to chapters in peer reviewed volumes, recent work has appeared in International Review of Applied Linguistics, Language Acquisition, EuroSLA yearbook, Hispania and the Journal of Portuguese Linguistics.

Tiffany Judy, University of Iowa (USA)

Tiffany Judy is a second-year doctoral candidate in the the Spanish and Portuguese Department at the University of Iowa (USA). Her main area of study is Ge nerative Second Language Acquisition, although her research interests include L2 and L3 acquisition and heritage speaker bilingualism. Her previous work has examined bare infinitives in Brazilian Portuguese while more recent work has investigated adult second language acquisition of the syntax and semantics of the DP in Spanish and Portuguese, focusing mainly on Noun-drop, kind-denoting versus set-denoting interpretations and the semantics of full DPs versus Bare Plurals. She is currently conducting a bidirectional study on Null Subject Parameter resetting in adult second language learners of Spanish and English. Her dissertation will examine the end state of adult second language learners of Spanish (L1 Farsi). Her publications include several peer-reviewed book chapters as well as an in press article in Studies in Second Language Acquisition.

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Publicado

2009-12-01

Como Citar

ROTHMAN, J.; IVERSON, M.; JUDY, T. Bound variable, split antecedent and ellipsis interpretations in L2 Portuguese: implications for L2 acquisition theories (Variável ligada, antecedente cindido e interpretações de elipse em Português como L2:implicações para as teorias de aquisição de L2). Estudos da Língua(gem), [S. l.], v. 7, n. 2, p. 261-300, 2009. DOI: 10.22481/el.v7i2.1098. Disponível em: https://periodicos2.uesb.br/index.php/estudosdalinguagem/article/view/1098. Acesso em: 4 nov. 2024.