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In this course, we will be concerned with grammatical optionality, i.e. the possibility to realize the same meaning by means of several competing grammatical expressions. A classical example is the analytic-synthetic alternation in English comparative forms: angry, angrier-more angry. We will discuss this case as well as other phenomena that show such optionality, e.g. possession and causation, as well as double marking, more angrier, from a synchronic, diachronic and developmental (acquisition) perspective. The goal is to identify what regulates this optionality and the factors that lead speakers to choose one particular form. |
