Change, Chance, and Optimality (Oxford Linguistics) (Paperback)

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Review

"A stunning book, elegantly argued and deftly written. A major
theoretical critique, confronting Optimality Theory and other
formalist innatist paradigms with the realities of evolutionary
biology and neuroscience. One of the most important and sophisticated
works in phonological theory of the past
couple of decades."--Roger Lass, University of Cape Town
"This book is a careful study of some of the fundamental issues
underpinning current linguistics, especially Optimality Theory, and it
is a very welcome and timely contribution to debate in that area."--
Andrew Spencer, University of Essex


Book Description
This book is about how languages change. It is also a devastating
critique of a widespread linguistic orthodoxy. April McMahon argues
that to provide a convincing explanation of linguistic change the
roles of history and contingency must be accommodated in linguistic
theory. She also shows that theoretical work in related disciplines
can be used to assess the value of such theories. Optimality Theory,
or OT as it is usually called, dominates contemporary phonology,
especially in the USA, and is becoming increasingly influential in
syntax and language acquisition. Having set out its basis principles,
Professor McMahon assesses their explanatory power in analysing
language change and its residues in current phonological systems.
Using cross-linguistic data, and drawing comparisons with other
theories inside and outside linguistics, she shows that OT is
incapable of accounting for language change, without the addition of
rules and an appreciation of chance and historical contingency that
would then undermine its theoretical underpinnings. OT relies on
innateness and needs to discuss the origins of allegedly
genetically-specified features. The author considers the nature and
evolution of the human language capacity, and demonstrates a profound
mismatch between the predictions of evolutionary biology and the
claims for innateness made in OT.

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Product Details

* Paperback: 216 pages
* Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (March 15, 2005)
* Language: English
* ISBN-10: 0198241259
* ISBN-13: 978-0198241256"