The following schedule is subject to change. All listed readings are required. Â Click on any of the listed reading assignments to be taken to the “Readings” page (password-protected).
| Week | Date | Topic | Reading | Assignments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | F 9/3 | Course Overview; Requirements | ||
| 2 | M 9/6 | No Class (Labor Day) | ||
| W 9/8 | What is (knowledge of) a language? | Chomsky 1957, 1965 excerpts | ||
| F 9/10 | Anderson 2004, Ch. 8 (198-212) | |||
| 3 | M 9/13 | Generative grammar: Representing the structure of our linguistic knowledge | ||
| W 9/15 | Anderson 2004, Ch. 8 (213-230) | |||
| F 9/17 | Optional: Pinker 1994, Ch. 5 (124-149) | |||
| 4 | M 9/20 | The Intellectual Milieu: Bloomfield and American Structural Linguistics | Newmeyer 1986, Ch. 1, Ch. 2 excerpts Searle 1972, sect. 1, 2, 4 |
Writing Assignment #1 Due |
| W 9/22 | The Intellectual Milieu: Skinner and American Behaviorist Psychology | |||
| F 9/24 | Chomsky 1959 (26-44, 54-58) | |||
| 5 | M 9/27 | Nature vs. nurture in language acquisition: The argument from the “poverty of the stimulus” | Chomsky 1988 excerpts | |
| W 9/29 | ||||
| F 10/1 | What is Universal Grammar? | Chomsky 1988 excerpt Cook 1988, Ch. 1 (1-12) |
Writing Assignment #2 Due | |
| 6 | M 10/4 | |||
| W 10/6 | The developmental course of language acquisition | Jackendoff 1994, Ch. 8 | ||
| F 10/8 | ||||
| 7 | Tu 10/12 | Language acquisition in unusual circumstances | Jackendoff 1994, Ch. 9 (112-122) | |
| W 10/13 | In-class Exam #1 | |||
| F 10/15 | Sign language acquisition; Home Sign Systems | Jackendoff 1994, Ch. 7, Ch. 9 (122-125) | ||
| 8 | M 10/18 | Pidgins and Creoles: Evidence for Universal Grammar? | Jackendoff 1994, Ch. 10 (126-135) Bickerton 1983 |
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| W 10/20 | Sentence comprehension | Whitney 1998, Ch. 7 (203-213) | ||
| F 10/22 | Whitney 1998, Ch. 7 (213-222) | |||
| 9 | M 10/25 | Sentence production | Whitney 1998, Ch. 9 (271-284) | |
| W 10/27 | Writing Assignment #3 Due | |||
| F 10/29 | Neural substrates of language | Jackendoff 1994, Ch. 11 Sacks 2005 (optional) |
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| 10 | M 11/1 | |||
| W 11/3 | Is human language unique? Human vs. animal communication | Anderson 2004, Ch. 2 Language Files excerpt |
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| F 11/5 | Class cancelled | |||
| 11 | M 11/8 | Human vs. animal communication (cont’d) | Hauser 2000, Ch. 8 | |
| W 11/10 | In-class Exam #2 | |||
| F 11/12 | Language and evolution | Bickerton 2007 | ||
| 12 | M 11/15 | |||
| W 11/17 | How (not) to make a machine talk: Humans, computers, and language | Devlin 1997, Ch. 7 (143-149, 160-172; 154-160 are optional, but recommended) |
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| F 11/19 | Devlin 1997, Ch. 9 (208-235) | |||
| 13 | M 11/22 | |||
| W 11/24 | No Class (Fall Recess) | |||
| F 11/26 | No Class (Fall Recess) | |||
| 14 | M 11/29 | Does language shape thought? | Whitney 1998, Ch. 4 (114-127) Pullum 1989 |
|
| W 12/1 | Boroditsky 2001 (skip ‘Method’ sections) | |||
| F 12/3 | The Piraha language: Grammar, culture, and cognition | Colapinto 2007 | ||
| 15 | M 12/6 | Gordon 2004 Frank et al. 2008 |
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| W 12/8 | Final Thoughts; Course Evaluations | |||
| F 12/10 | No Class | |||
| 16 | Th 12/16 | Final Exam (3-5pm) |