Nasals on my mind : the phonetic and the cognitive approach to the phonology of nasality
This thesis compares two approaches to the phonology of nasality and consists therefore of two main parts: the phonetic approach, which is discussed in part 1, and the cognitive approach (part 2). This is to say that this thesis investigates how the Language Acquisition Device employs nasality to define vocalic or consonantal systems of contrast, on the one hand, and phonotactic constraints and phonological processes, on the other. Ultimately, the phonetic approach is rejected, while the cognitive view is argued to be the more empirical one. Part 1, which deals with the phonetic approach, has three chapters. In chapter 1, I show after a brief introduction to Popper's evolutionary view of research and empiricism, that the assumption that the phonologial behaviour of nasality or any other phonetically defined notion is phonetically motivated or grounded (the 'Phonetic Hypothesis', 'PH') is flawed. Chapter 2 investigates feature theories, e.g. underspecification and feature geometry, and discusses the metatheoretical problems these framework have due to the assumption of the PH. This demonstrates that phonological processes involving 'nasality' cannot be explained by the employment of features. In Chapter 3,1
Ploch, Stefan
Linguistics
Nasals on my mind : the phonetic and the cognitive approach to the phonology of nasality. This thesis compares two approaches to the phonology of nasality and consists therefore of two main parts: the phonetic approach, which is discussed in part 1, and the cognitive approach (part 2). This is to say that this thesis investigates how the Language Acquisition Device employs nasality to define vocalic or consonantal systems of contrast, on the one hand, and phonotactic constraints and phonological processes, on the other. Ultimately, the phonetic approach is rejected, while the cognitive view is argued to be the more empirical one. Part 1, which deals with the phonetic approach, has three chapters. In chapter 1, I show after a brief introduction to Popper's evolutionary view of research and empiricism, that the assumption that the phonologial behaviour of nasality or any other phonetically defined notion is phonetically motivated or grounded (the 'Phonetic Hypothesis', 'PH') is flawed. Chapter 2 investigates feature theories, e.g. underspecification and feature geometry, and discusses the metatheoretical problems these framework have due to the assumption of the PH. This demonstrates that phonological processes involving 'nasality' cannot be explained by the employment of features. In Chapter 3,1
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