Why I will not become a corpus linguist* | Amsterdam University Press Journals Online
2004
Volume 25, Issue 2-3
  • ISSN: 1384-5845
  • E-ISSN: 2352-1171

Abstract

Abstract

This article discusses the intuitionist approach to the study of syntax: the study of the internal structure of phrases/sentences with the help of data obtained by introspection. Some critics claim that this approach is inadequate (if not obsolete) on the assumption that introspection data are not empirical data and are therefore inherently inferior to corpus data based on ‘real language’. Fortunately, not all linguists who promote the use of corpora are of this opinion: Odijk (2020), for instance, stresses that data from corpora and data collected in artificial experimental settings (including introspection) should all be considered empirical data: all relevant evidence should be taken into account, and no form or source of evidence has a privileged status. Although I agree with this statement in principle, this article will argue that there are reasons for assuming that introspection research is a better method for collecting synchronic syntactic data than corpus research.

Loading

Article metrics loading...

/content/journals/10.5117/NEDTAA2020.2-3.003.BROE
2020-10-01
2024-03-28
Loading full text...

Full text loading...

/deliver/fulltext/13845845/25/2-3/03_NEDTAA2020.2-3_BROE.html?itemId=/content/journals/10.5117/NEDTAA2020.2-3.003.BROE&mimeType=html&fmt=ahah

References

  1. Broekhuis, Hans(2016). Syntax of Dutch: the data set. Nederlandse Taalkunde21, 297-325.
    [Google Scholar]
  2. Broekhuis, Hans, NorbertCorver, Marcelden Dikken, EvelienKeizer & RietVos (2012-2019). Syntax of Dutch (8 volumes). Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press.
    [Google Scholar]
  3. Broekhuis, Hans & Marcelden Dikken(2018). Tot (aan) het einde ((aan) toe: The internal syntax of a Dutch complex PP. Glossa104, 1-19.
    [Google Scholar]
  4. Bybee, Joan L. & ClayBeckner(2010). Usage-based theory. In: HeineBernd & NarrogHeiko (eds.), The Oxford handbook of linguistic analysis. Oxford, Oxford University Press, 828-855.
    [Google Scholar]
  5. De Hoop, Helen(2016). Woordvolgordevariatie: theorie versus empirie?Nederlandse Taalkunde21, 265-284.
    [Google Scholar]
  6. Kübler, Sandra & HeikeZinsmeister(2015). Corpus Linguistics and Linguistically Annotated Corpora. London/New York: Bloomsbury Academic.
    [Google Scholar]
  7. Newmeyer, Frederick J.(1983). Grammatical theory. Its limits and possibilities. Chicago/London: University of Chicago Press.
    [Google Scholar]
  8. Odijk(2020). De verleidingen en gevaren van GrETEL. Nederlandse Taalkunde25, 7-37.
    [Google Scholar]
  9. Sprouse, Jon & DiogoAlmeida(2010). Assessing the reliability of textbook data in syntax: Adger’s Core Syntax. Journal of Linguistics48, 609-652.
    [Google Scholar]
  10. Van Bergen, Geertje & Peterde Swart(2010). Scrambling in spoken Dutch: definiteness versus weight as determinants of word order variation. Corpus Linguistics and Linguistic Theory6, 267-295.
    [Google Scholar]
  11. Van de Velde, Freek(2014). Nederlandse predeteminatoren als levend fossiel. Nederlandse Taalkunde19, 87-103.
    [Google Scholar]
http://instance.metastore.ingenta.com/content/journals/10.5117/NEDTAA2020.2-3.003.BROE
Loading
/content/journals/10.5117/NEDTAA2020.2-3.003.BROE
Loading

Data & Media loading...

  • Article Type: Research Article
Keyword(s): competence; corpus linguistics; introspection; performance; syntax
This is a required field
Please enter a valid email address
Approval was a Success
Invalid data
An Error Occurred
Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error