85076 - Morphosyntax (1) (LM)

Course contents

The course will focus mainly on the critical discussion of some of the key concepts of traditional grammar, which will be reviewed in light of the latest linguistic theories and of the analysis of real data, taken from Italian and its varieties and other languages.

We will deal with the analysis of a formal model of syntax, which rests on explicit hypotheses on the relationship with morphology and semantics, and we will systematically compare it both with other theoretical models and with traditional grammatical analysis. We will then delve into a specific phenomenon with broad implications for understanding the interaction between the morphosyntactic, semantic and pragmatic levels: the notion of 'subject' and its empirical (also in an cross-linguistic perspective) and theoretical ramifications.

The aim of the course is to transmit the ability to tackle the study of language structures in a conscious and critical way and above all to acquire tools for the analysis of real data.

During the first week of classes a detailed syllabus, with a list of topics for each lecture and the suggested reading (from the material indicated in the "Readings/Bibliography" section), will be published. The syllabus will be made available on the Virtuale e-learning platform.

Prerequisites:

The course discusses advanced grammatical models, comparing and evaluating them. As such, it has been designed for students with a solid basic background in linguistics (i.e. with competences like those that are developed in General Linguistics classes, or in classes on the History of various languages). The students who believe not to have this background knowledge are advised to refer to a basic handbook of linguistics, as. e.g. Berruto, G. / Cerruti, M. (2017), La linguistica. Un corso introduttivo , Torino, UTET.

Readings/Bibliography

1) M. Frascarelli, F. Ramaglia, B. Corpina (2014 o edizioni successive), Elementi di sintassi, Cesena, Caissa

2) A. Colombo e G. Graffi (2017), Capire la grammatica. Il contributo della linguistica, Roma, Carocci

3) In-depth analysis of the notion of subject: one paper in English (Keenan 1976), which will be provided in electronic format on the Virtuale platform at the course start.

Students who do not attend the lectures will prepare (1) and (2), and substitute (3) with the following text:

G. Salvi (2013), Le parti del discorso, Roma, Carocci

Teaching methods

Lectures, practical exercises, seminar-like discussion of research results

Students with SLD or temporary or permanent disabilities: please get in touch with the dedicated University office (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en) and the lecturer right away to seek together the most effective strategies for participating in class and/or preparing for the exam.

Assessment methods

The final exam is an oral colloquium dealing with the course contents; its aim is to evaluate the critical skills and methodological knowledge gained by the student.

Reaching a clear view of all the course topics as well as using a correct language terminology will be evaluated with maximum grades. The capacity of building autonomous paths to connect different topics of the course will be appreciated.
Mnemonic knowledge of the course topics or not completely appropriate terminology will be evaluated with intermediate grades.
Unknown topics or inappropriate terminology use will be evaluated, depending on the seriousness of the omissions, with minimal or insufficient grades.

All the students will be asked to start from a subject freely choosen by them.

All the students must register for the exam with Almaesami. The oral colloquia can be scheduled in different days depending on the number of students enrolled. The precise day will be communicated once the enrollment list will be closed.

 

Students with SLD or temporary or permanent disabilities

Please get in contact with the responsible University office in good time (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en): the office will propose some adaptations, which must in any case be submitted 15 days in advance to the lecturer, who will assess their appropriateness in relation to the learning objectives of the course.

Teaching tools

The material (syllabus, slides used in class, texts under (3)) will be uploaded on the "Virtuale" e-learning platform (https://virtuale.unibo.it/). The e-learning platform will also be used as a general managing tool for the course (i.e. for short-term notices). Students can access the course page on the platform directly with no need for a course password (institutional login will suffice).

Office hours

See the website of Chiara Gianollo