LNGT0101A: Introduction to Linguistics/Fall 2012

Assignment #5: Due on WednesdayNov28th by e-mail no later than 5pm, or by hand in class, if you are submitting a hard copy. Delay policy applies. No extensions will be given, except for academically legitimate reasons. So, start working early!

Instructions: Please read thoroughly and carefully!
- This homework assignment consists of TWO parts: I and II. Read each part carefully and make sure you answer all the questions. The whole assignment is worth 80 points. The number of points each question is worth is given next to the question.
- Remember that only 4 homework assignments out of 5 will count towards the calculation of your overall grade. If you submit all 5, I will drop the one with the lowest score and count the 4 assignments with highest scores.
- As usual, please do print out the homework from the .pdf file, not the .doc file, to avoid any problems that may result from missing phonetic symbols.
- Please type your answers in a .doc file (you may use the homework .doc file, but you do need to edit it and delete the questions and keep only your answers to them). If you do not use Microsoft Word, you may submit your homework in .pdf format. Any other file types are not accepted. Please make sure to name the file ‘assignment5_your_last_name’.
- Submitting your homework in handwritten format is acceptable, and will not affect your score in any way. However, if you decide to do that, please make sure you submit legible handwritten answers, use a pen (not a pencil), and leave wide margins for me to write comments in. Handwritten assignments that are illegible or do not follow the above instructions closely will be returned to you without being graded, will have to be resubmitted, and will be subject to the delay penalty upon resubmission.
- Finally, please make sure you write and sign (either by hand or electronically) the Honor Code Pledge on the homework before turning it in.
Part I: Syntax
  1. Exercise 20 from the textbook, pp. 175-176. Do only Swahili, Korean, and Tagalog. (Do NOT do French or Japanese; you will not get any credit for either one).

Note: Make sure to list at least THREE differences for every language (that is, 9 total). (9 points)

  1. Consider the following sentences:
  1. They fed her baby carrots.
  2. We saw that gas can explode.

Each of the two sentences above is ambiguous between two meanings. For each sentence, do the following:

  1. First, indicate what the ambiguity is by providing two possible paraphrases for each sentence. (4 points)
  2. Second, using the phrase structure rules we talked about in class, draw for each sentencetwo syntactic trees (that is, FOUR total trees), showing how each tree is associated with a different meaning. (12 points)

Note 1: Make sure to refer to the handout I gave out in class regarding complements of verbs in English to help with the needed phrase structure rules.

Note 2: Also, refer to your notes from Prof. Gustavo Freire’s lecture. They should be helpful for one of the two sentences.

  1. Consider the following sentences from Edo and Lakhota, respectively:

Edo

Òzó / má / tá / wéé / írén / ghá / rhiè / éfórò / Úyì / yè / néné / ékpétin
Ozo / did.not / say / that / he / will / put / photo / Uyi / in / the / box
“Ozo did not say that he will put a photo of Uyi in the box.”

Lakhota

John / wawapi / k’uhe / oyuke / ki / ohlate / iyeye
John / letter / that / bed / the / under / found.
“John found that letter under the bed.”

Now, answer the following question:

For each sentence, draw a syntactic tree in the same way we did in class for English and Japanese sentences. (10 points)

Note 1: You can treat the word ‘má’ in Edo as an Aux. You can also treat the string ‘éfóròÚyì’ as a NP without having to worry about its internal structure.

Note 2: Assume that Det (for ‘determiner’) in Lakhota is a head that takes an NP as a complement. (This is unlike what we assumed for English where Det is treated as a specifier.)

Part II: Sociolinguistics
  1. Measuring language attitudes

Find at least FIVE native speakers of American English from FIVE different US dialectal regions (none of them can be a student from the class), and replicate Dennis Preston’s study of attitudes towards the different regional dialects in the US (this was discussed both in class as well as in Myth 17 in Language Myths; you can also find the study and maps of the results HERE). To proceed, do the following:

  1. First, using the map provided HERE, interview the five speakersindividually (you must NOT interview them all in the same session), and elicit from each speaker, on a scale from 1 to 10, what they think is:

(i)the most correct American English dialect,

(ii)the least correct American English dialect,

(iii)the most pleasant American English dialect, and

(iv)the least pleasant American English dialect.

Make sure to provide clear instructions to your interviewees using the instructions on the lecture slides (which are also provided HERE).

Tabulate your speakers’ responses in the following table. (10 points)

Speaker’s US state / Most correct dialect and score / Least correct dialect and score / Most pleasant dialect and score / Least pleasant dialect and score

Now, answer the following two questions:

  1. Do your findings corroborate those of Preston’s? Comment on the similarities and differences (if any). (5 points)
  2. Compare your results with those of at least one other student in the class. Do you both have similar findings? If yes, why do you think this is? If not, what possible reasons could be responsible for the divergence? (5 points)
  1. On issues of linguistic egalitarianism and linguistic discrimination

Issues of linguistic egalitarianism among all languages and all dialects are not commonly understood by many people. Similarly, discussion of linguistic discrimination is not as common as other types of discrimination, even though it can have similar negative consequences for some individuals in society. What do you think are some of the reasons why linguistic egalitarianism and linguistic discrimination are under-discussed in the public arena? What are possible ways to bring these two issues to more people’s attention? Do you think linguists exaggerate when they talk about the importance of these two issues? Why? Why not? Make sure to provide explicit examples to support your arguments. Your answer to this exercise should be in the form of a 500-word essay. (25 points)

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