A Thematic Guide to Optimality Theory (Research Surveys in Linguistics) (Paperback)

by John J. McCarthy (Author) "]This chapter introduces the central premises of Optimality Theory..." (more)
Key Phrases: unfaithful mappings, harmonic ascent, most harmonic member, Natural Phonology, Axininca Campa, Duplication Problem (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
'The most attractive virtue of this book is that it is designed to be user-friendly ... I believe that this book makes a considerable contribution to the field ... we would like to welcome this book as a textbook or an adjunct to another textbook or a reference.' Studies in English Literature

'Overall, McCarthy's Thematic Guide to OT is an excellent research survey that I highly recommend to schoalrs and graduate students interested in phonology and in linguistic science in general ... McCarthy's Guide, thus, should be considered a remarkable attempt to offer a global perspective on Optimality Theory as a model of Universal Grammar.' Canadian Journal of Linguistics

Product Description
This book describes Optimality Theory from the top down, explaining and exploring the central premises of OT and the results that follow from them. Examples are drawn from phonology, morphology, and syntax, but the emphasis throughout is on the theory rather than the examples, on understanding what is special about OT and on equipping readers to apply it, extend it, and critique it in their own areas of interest. The book's coverage extends to work on first- and second-language acquisition, phonetics and functional phonology, computational linguistics, historical linguistics, and sociolinguistics. Chapters conclude with extensive suggestions for further reading, classified by topic, and are supplemented by a massive bibliography (over 800 items).

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Product Details

• Paperback: 332 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (January 12, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 052179644X
• ISBN-13: 978-0521796446
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #995,440 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars excellent, August 19, 2005

By	[e-mail] - See all my reviews

About me: I'm in molecular biology. I read this book because I was interested in if and how "Optimality Theory" manages to capture and explain the phenomena of structural complexity and structural diversity in language. I can only review the book from my "outsider" position.

I think Optimality Theory in its simplicity and brilliance rivals the Theory of Evolution. It will not become as widely popular, because its formulation is more complex, but its impact in linguistics will equal the impact of evolutionary theory in biology. (Actually I think OT is more interesting than TToE, because it explains the underlying structure and emerging laws rather than limiting itself to describe what happens on the surface.)

I think John McCarthy does a very good job in explaining its basic principles. The examples are (necessarily) taken from phonology and sometimes syntax. I didn't understand all of them in great detail (as I said I'm not a linguist), but I understood all the principles, which was all I wanted.

I recommend this book to people who are interested in linguistics, or in complexity in general. (Obviously I'm in no position to assess for example whether it would be a good study guide for students of linguistics.)

3 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Tought stuff, March 11, 2003

By	A. Sullivan (Saint Paul, MN United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This material assumes a lot of previous knowledge in the field. It is really difficult to grasp reading cover to cover. However, once you get the hang of it, McCarthy does a great job of demonstrating the theory at work.