On the basis of the Basic Variety...

Abstract

The goal of this essay is to consider, from a generativist acquisition standpoint, the interplay between source language and target language in relation to two of the central points in the Klein and Perdue article. The first point concerns the stance Klein and Perdue take towards L2 data. The authors argue that the analysis of the target language should not be used as the model for analyzing interlanguage data,and I agree. I add,however, that the grammar of the L1 should be used (initially) and, in fact, argue that the structure of the L1 is pivotal to understanding L2 development and hence to theorizing about L2 acquisition. The second point addresses the authors' most theoretical claim: that under the technical assumptions of Minimalism, the Basic Variety is a ‘ “perfect”I-language’–‘perfect’ in that all its features are [weak]. I contest this proposal. First I show–granting for the sake of argument that the allegedly universal characteristics of the Basic Variety hold–that this analysis fails and that L1 feature strength instead must be appealed to initially. Second, I suggest that the apparent universal characteristics of the Basic Variety are just that: apparent. The fact that the Basic Variety has the particular characteristics it does is but a function of the particular target languages in the project.