16.2234, Books: Modified Issue 16.2217: Wedgwood

Fri Jul 22 13:51:13 UTC 2005

LINGUIST List: Vol-16-2234. Fri Jul 22 2005. ISSN: 1068 - 4875.

Subject: 16.2234, Books: Modified Issue 16.2217: Wedgwood

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1)
Date: 22-Jun-2005
From: Ellie Brown < Ellie.Brown at elsevier.com >
Subject: Shifting the Focus: Wedgwood 

-------------------------Message 1 ---------------------------------- 
Date: Fri, 22 Jul 2005 09:49:27
From: Ellie Brown < Ellie.Brown at elsevier.com >
Subject: Shifting the Focus: Wedgwood 

Title: Shifting the Focus 
Subtitle: From Static Structures to the Dynamics of Interpretation 
Series Title: Current Research in the Semantics/Pragmatics Interface, Volume 14  

Publication Year: 2005 
Publisher: Elsevier Ltd.
	   http://www.elsevier.com/linguistics

Book URL: http://books.elsevier.com/elsevier/?isbn=0080445772 

Author: Daniel Wedgwood,   

Hardback: ISBN: 0080445772 Pages: 312 Price: U.K. £ 62.99
Hardback: ISBN: 0080445772 Pages: 312 Price: U.S. $ 99.95
Hardback: ISBN: 0080445772 Pages: 312 Price: Europe EURO 91.95

Abstract:

How direct is the mapping between linguistic constructions and their
interpretations? Much less direct than we commonly assume, according to
Daniel Wedgwood. Extending current ideas from frameworks like Relevance
Theory and Dynamic Syntax, Wedgwood upholds a radical position on modelling
linguistic competence: the idea of interfacing static syntactic and
semantic representations must be abandoned in favour of models of the
incremental construction of meaning during parsing---which may involve
significant pragmatic enrichment. In illustration, Wedgwood presents a
detailed study of a key meeting point of grammar and pragmatics: focus, in
particular its syntactic expression in Hungarian. The result is a
strikingly simple explanation of a complex set of syntactico-semantic
phenomena, touching on information structure, negation, quantification and
complex predication. For its clear and bold theoretical argumentation and
its novel analysis of some notorious data, this book will be of interest to
all linguists, philosophers and computational linguists concerned with the
relationships between syntax, semantics, pragmatics and information structure.

Table of Contents:
Language and Meaning. Relevance Theory and Implications for Linguistic
Structure. The Hungarian Data. Focus and Grammar. Focus and Quantifier
Distribution. Dynamic Structured Meanings: Predication and Information
Structure. Verbal Modifiers and Main Predication. 'Aspectual Constructions'
and Negation. Summary and Conclusions. Bibliography. Index.

Endorsements
"Wedgwood's book tackles two difficult tasks at once. It makes a radical
contribution to debate about the basic form of linguistic theory and
presents an impressively broad and deep example of specific linguistic
analysis.

This book will interest anyone concerned with the interrelations of
structure and meaning in natural languages - whether on a philosophical
level or via numerous concrete proposals on issues like the interaction of
information structure with quantification and negation."
-Professor James R Hurford, University of Edinburgh, UK

"A novel and radical dynamic perspective on language, with Hungarian as a
case study. Anyone interested in how the web of syntax and semantics fit
together with properties of general reasoning should not miss out on this
book."
-Professor Ruth Kempson, King's College London 

Linguistic Field(s): Pragmatics
                     Semantics
                     Syntax

Written In: English  (ENG)

See this book announcement on our website: 
http://linguistlist.org/get-book.html?BookID=15735

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