Article ID Journal Published Year Pages File Type
1103411 Language Sciences 2007 15 Pages PDF
Abstract
This paper looks at syntactic inversions, a phenomenon first brought to the attention of Generative Metrics in Youmans [Youmans, G., 1983. Generative tests for generative meter. Language 59, 67-92]. These inversions are poetic lines that show disruption to the syntax so as to better satisfy the metrical constraints. In this paper, I show that two metrical constraints force these inversions, and that lines surface even with the violation of these metrical constraints. Furthermore, I argue that the inversions are best modeled by interleaving syntactic and metrical constraints, as certain types of syntactic constructions never occur. This suggests that some syntactic constraints outrank metrical ones, while other syntactic constraints are themselves outranked by the metrical constraints.
Related Topics
Social Sciences and Humanities Arts and Humanities Language and Linguistics
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