Transitivity

[Stuart Robinson]

I know the literature on transitivity is enormous, but I was wondering
whether people on the list could recommend a couple of good works on the
issue of where the prototypical transitive scenario originates--in
particular, the issue of whether it is innate or learned. I know that some
authors (e.g., Hopper & Thompson) feel that transitivity derives its
prominence from its association with other things (such as grounding) while
others think that it is somehow basic (perhaps innate?). I would assume
that if you thought transitivity was derived, you would have to think that
it is learned, but that if you thought it was basic, you would lean towards
nativism of some sort. But I would be interested in hearing what other
people think. Thanks in advance.

Sincerely,
Stuart Robinson

______________________

Stuart P. Robinson (Stuart.Robinson at anu.edu.au)
Linguistics Department, Australian National University
Canberra ACT 0200, Australia
PHONE: 61-2-6249-0703 |||| FAX: 61-2-6279-8214