The acquisition of wh-questions and auxiliary movement by Korean-English bilingual children
Abstract
In this dissertation, I will propose the Person Feature Auxiliary Movement (PFAM) Hypothesis, which states that the combination of certain features in the head of C yield certain Spell Out results. More specifically, the PFAM Hypothesis states that when [Q] and a valued [TNS] feature are present in C, the resulting Spell Out is a phonologically null element ø, while the combination of [Q], valued [TNS], and a person specification result in the Spell Out of do. The PFAM proposes this analysis in order to account for the pattern of T-to-C movement that is found in the development of wh-questions by Korean-English bilingual children. In order to further investigate these patterns, a longitudinal study and elicitation experiment were conducted, the latter specifically targeting the effect of [PRS] in auxiliary movement. The data from the two studies revealed four stages of acquisition for do and be, where auxiliary inversion is acquired person-by-person in the following order: second, first, and third person. The PFAM Hypothesis explains this data such that when T contains a person specification, the feature forms a complex matrix with [TNS]. When the uninterpretable [uTNS] targets [ TNS] for movement, the complex matrix that contains [PRS] must also be pied-piped to maintain integrity of the matrix. Thus, the features [Q], valued [TNS], and [PRS] are present in C and are Spelled Out as do. If a phonological element, such as be is moved to C, that element gets Spelled Out in C position. However, if no [PRS] feature is present in T, the [TNS] feature can be singly targeted by [u TNS] in C. Thus, the combination of features [Q] and [TNS ] Spell Out as a phonologically null element in C, or ø. The PFAM Hypothesis accounts for the acquisition data found in this study and its predictions are borne out in the findings.
Degree
Ph.D.
Advisors
Benedicto, Purdue University.
Subject Area
Linguistics
Off-Campus Purdue Users:
To access this dissertation, please log in to our
proxy server.