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French data and phonological theory

French data and phonological theory Although 'the phonology of French, perhaps more than any other single language, has served as the testing ground for a wide range of theories' (Anderson 1982: 534), one cannot but be worried about the relevance of such theories if, as notes Kaisse (1985:163), (it is an unfortunate fact that much of the literature on liaison is prefaced with a paragraph disagreeing with the basic data on which some previous analysis was based', a remark which also applies to other aspects of French phonology, and in particular to the analysis ofshwa and aspirated 'h'. This paper examines the data found in some of the theoretical analyses of French made during the last 15 years and tries to identify the causes of this disagreement: (1) variability of usage, even within what is known as standard French, (2) heterogeneity of the analyzed data, (3) insufficient control of monitored speech, (4) unwarranted extrapolation of marginal data, and even (5) use of what appears to be mere fiction. It is important to realize that sound theories can only be based on sound data. It is an unfortunate fact that much of the literature on liaison [in French] is prefaced with a paragraph disagreeing http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Linguistics - An Interdisciplinary Journal of the Language Sciences de Gruyter

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References (28)

Publisher
de Gruyter
Copyright
Copyright © 2009 Walter de Gruyter
ISSN
0024-3949
eISSN
1613-396X
DOI
10.1515/ling.1987.25.5.815
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Although 'the phonology of French, perhaps more than any other single language, has served as the testing ground for a wide range of theories' (Anderson 1982: 534), one cannot but be worried about the relevance of such theories if, as notes Kaisse (1985:163), (it is an unfortunate fact that much of the literature on liaison is prefaced with a paragraph disagreeing with the basic data on which some previous analysis was based', a remark which also applies to other aspects of French phonology, and in particular to the analysis ofshwa and aspirated 'h'. This paper examines the data found in some of the theoretical analyses of French made during the last 15 years and tries to identify the causes of this disagreement: (1) variability of usage, even within what is known as standard French, (2) heterogeneity of the analyzed data, (3) insufficient control of monitored speech, (4) unwarranted extrapolation of marginal data, and even (5) use of what appears to be mere fiction. It is important to realize that sound theories can only be based on sound data. It is an unfortunate fact that much of the literature on liaison [in French] is prefaced with a paragraph disagreeing

Journal

Linguistics - An Interdisciplinary Journal of the Language Sciencesde Gruyter

Published: Jan 1, 1987

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