Parsing below the Segment in a Constraint Based Framework 论文

摘要

This dissertation proposes a new model of subsegmental phonology within Optimality Theory that differs from standard Auto segmental Phonology both in its limited use of representational distinctions and in the form of the grammar to which the representations submit. The research focuses particularly on phonological units which are invisible to parsing in certain contexts, such as floating features and ghost segments, and demonstrates that the current understanding of segmental representation does not adequately characterize the full range of subsegmental phenomena found cross-linguistically. I propose instead an analysis in the framework of Optimality Theory in which the grammar derives the variety of surface phenomena from a single underlying representation. The typology which results from this analysis correctly classifies the entire range of behavior associated with subminimal phonological units while allowing a unique characterization of the immunity of defective segments from the demands of regular parsing. This dissertation thus both enlarges the empirical foundation on which an adequate theory of segment structure must be based, and in developing such an account sheds new light on classic problems of subsegmental parsing.