32.2668, Books: A Unified Theory of Polarity Sensitivity: Alqassas

[The LINGUIST List]

LINGUIST List: Vol-32-2668. Tue Aug 17 2021. ISSN: 1069 - 4875.

Subject: 32.2668, Books: A Unified Theory of Polarity Sensitivity: Alqassas

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Date: Tue, 17 Aug 2021 15:35:07
From: Tyler Simnick [Tyler.Simnick at oup.com]
Subject: A Unified Theory of Polarity Sensitivity: Alqassas

 


Title: A Unified Theory of Polarity Sensitivity 
Subtitle: Comparative Syntax of Arabic 
Series Title: Oxford Studies in Comparative Syntax  

Publication Year: 2021 
Publisher: Oxford University Press
	   http://www.oup.com/us
	

Book URL: https://global.oup.com/academic/product/a-unified-theory-of-polarity-sensitivity-9780197554883?utm_source=linguistlist&utm_medium=listserv&utm_campaign=linguistics 


Author: Ahmad Alqassas

Hardback: ISBN:  9780197554883 Pages: 258 Price: U.S. $ 125
Paperback: ISBN:  9780197554890 Pages: 258 Price: U.S. $ 65


Abstract:

Polarity sensitivity is a ubiquitous phenomenon involving expressions such as
anybody, nobody, ever, never, somebody and their counterparts in other
languages. These expressions belong to different classes such as negative and
positive polarity, negative concord, and negative indefinites.

In this book, Ahmad Alqassas proposes a unified approach to the study of this
phenomenon that relies on examining the interaction between the various types
of polarity sensitivity, with a particular focus on Arabic. Alqassas shows
that treating this interaction is fundamental for scrutinizing their licensing
conditions. Alqassas draws on data from Standard Arabic and the major regional
dialects represented by Jordanian, Egyptian, Moroccan, and Qatari. Through the
(micro)comparative approach, Alqassas explains the distributional contrasts
with a minimal set of universal syntactic operations such as Merge, Move, and
Agree. He also considers a fine-grained inventory of negative formal features
for polarity items and their licensors. These simple features paint a complex
landscape of polarity and lead to important conclusions about syntactic
computation.

By engaging with the rich but under-studied landscape of Arabic polarity
sensitivity, this book provides a new perspective on the syntax-semantic
interface and develops a unified syntactic analysis for polarity sensitivity.
These contributions have important implications for the study of Arabic and
for syntactic theory more generally.
 



Linguistic Field(s): Semantics
                     Syntax

Subject Language(s): Arabic, Standard (arb)


Written In: English  (eng)

See this book announcement on our website: 
http://linguistlist.org/pubs/books/get-book.cfm?BookID=155553




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