A Thematic Guide to Optimality Theory (review)

Optimality theory (OT) has a very simple architecture that is easy to explain. OT is not an easy theory to fully comprehend, however, for a variety of reasons. (i) While the architecture is simple, the results follow from constraint interaction, which can be quite complex and surprising. (ii) There is a distinction between the capabilities of the theory and that of specific, specialized constraints—the former is, fortunately, the focus of this book. (iii) Researchers are developing the theory not only within the traditional linguistic domains of syntax and phonology, but also in important studies in language variation and change, language acquisition, and so forth. A good introduction will both introduce the formal properties and present the important results, not just within a single domain but spanning the full range of linguistic research.

John J. McCarthy’s A thematic guide to optimality theory admirably meets these challenges: it introduces the reader to OT and its intellectual context, explains how it works and how to actually ‘do’ it, elucidates important results of the model, and relates OT to multiple aspects of the study of language. In fact, the care and attention given to making this book maximally useful to every reader—including the helpful website at http://people.umass.edu/jjmccart/errata.html —brought back in full force M’s excellence as a teacher, reminding me strongly of when he directed my master’s thesis. The pedagogical approach is perhaps most apparent in the preamble, ‘How to use this book’, which presents a variety of ways to read the book, depending both on the reader’s background and on the reader’s goals in reading the book. One class of reader who may truly benefit is the OT skeptic: though not all key questions are answered, the book can serve to clarify the nature of one’s skepticism.

Ch. 1 lays out the model, with special focus on the necessary properties, or architecture, of OT. M provides an extremely clear exposition of the essence of OT, laying out the basic tenets shared by all versions of OT. Consequently, this chapter risks being too abstract, yet cannot be too concrete. M deals with this challenge in three ways: (i) he effectively uses examples that are familiar from non-OT literature to illustrate the issues being presented; (ii) there are extensive cross-references to later portions of the book where the concrete examples are presented; and (iii) concepts are presented in context and slowly (yet not pedantically!), so that the reader has time to assimilate each new concept and integrate it into the whole model being developed.

Ch. 2 explores the development of linguistic thought, showing both connections and differences between OT and specific aspects of a variety of earlier models. Ch. 3, the heart of the book and focus of this review, thoroughly examines consequences of constraint interaction. The fact that these results follow straightforwardly from the architecture of the theory itself, not from particular details assigned to that architecture, provides a compelling argument for OT. This chapter serves multiple types of readers, from the student first learning about OT to the advanced researcher. It also provides a model for other authors giving an overview of a particular theory. The final chapter explores the use of OT in a variety of domains—syntax, acquisition, computation modeling, and so forth. Here as elsewhere, the focus is primarily on how the architecture of the model informs our understanding of these different domains of research.

Ch. 3, ‘The results of optimality theory’, provides a deep understanding of OT and may be the preferred starting point for those already quite familiar with OT. M avoids explanations that crucially rely on narrow assumptions about constraints and representations. Instead, he effectively elucidates and illustrates his points in terms of the basic architecture of OT. Emphasized throughout this chapter, both explicitly and implicitly, is the point that under OT, grammatical patterns arise through a highly interactive...