第二语言习得中普遍语法的可及性——“根本差异假说”引起的反思

Accessibility of Universal Grammar in Second Language Acquisition: a critique of Fundamental Difference Hypothesis

自从乔姆斯基于八十年代提出了原则和参数理论,普遍语法理论已被广泛地应用于第二语言习得研究领域,并迅速成为解答二语习得中逻辑问题的主流学说。但是二语习得与母语习得之间存在的巨大差异,使诸多学者对普遍语法在二语习得中的地位和作用提出了质疑,而普遍语法可及性便成为争论的焦点。文章对其中影响较大的根本差异假说进行了分析,讨论了其在理据上的不足,指出了目前普遍语法理论框架的优势和局限,探讨了走出研究困境的出路。

Since 1980＂s when Chomsky came up with the theory of ＂Principles and Parameters＂, his ideas on Universal Grammar have been widely adopted in the field of Second Language Acquisition, and in a short time become the dominant theory explaining the logical problem in SLA. But due to the great discrepancy between the acquisition of first language and second language, many scholars doubt and argue against the accessibility of Universal Grammar in Second Language Acquisition. This article analyzed one of those no--access views--Fundamental Difference Hypothesis and discussed the weakness in its supporting evidence as well as theoretical explanation in comparison with the UG theory, aiming to find a way out of the present research dilemma.