Paradigms and Periphrasis

Recent work in realizational paradigm-based morphological theory is based on the idea that morphology is an independent component of grammar, irreducible to other components—an idea that Jackendoff refers to as "representational modularity." But representational modularity raises questions about the organization of the morphological component and its interaction with the lexicon, semantics, and syntax. The study of periphrastic expressions and their relevance for derivational and inflectional paradigms is necessary to challenge current assumptions about lexical representation, semantic compositionality, and the interface between morphology and syntax. This book contains original contributions bearing on the relation between paradigms and periphrastic expressions, as attested in numerous genetically and geographically unrelated languages.