This course offers an introduction to compositional semantics, which is the component of grammar that relates complex linguistic expressions to their meanings. We will learn how the meaning of a sentence can be computed from the meaning of its parts, a core assumption being that the meaning of a (declarative) sentence are its truth-conditions: the conditions that must be satisfied in a given situation in order for the sentence to be true in that situation.
There will be handouts based on at least some of the titles listed below.
Beck, Sigrid & Remus Gergel (2014) "Contrasting English and German Grammar", De Gruyter.
Heim, Irene & Angelika Kratzer (1998) "Semantics in Generative Grammar", Blackwell.
Portner, Paul (2005) "What Is Meaning", Blackwell
- Course owner: Alexander Wimmer
Semester: SuTerm 2023