Lingüística Central Oxford Serie

This fast-track introduction to syntax assumes no prior knowledge of linguistic theory. It is designed for specialist undergraduates and for those coming to linguistics for the first time as graduates.

This textbook approaches second language acquisition from the perspective of generative linguistics. Roumyana Slabakova reviews and discusses paradigms and findings from the last thirty years of research in the field, focussing in particular on how the second or additional language is represented in the mind and how it is used in communication. The adoption and analysis of a specific model of acquisition, the Bottleneck Hypothesis, provides a unifying perspective. The book assumes some non-technical knowledge of linguistics, but important concepts are clearly introduced and defined throughout, making it a valuable resource not only for undergraduate and graduate students of linguistics, but also for researchers in cognitive science and language teachers.

The book introduces the major branches of theoretical linguistics - phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics - in the context of cognitive science, with reference to fields such as vision, auditory perception, and philosophy of mind.