Universal Grammar and Second Language Acquisition

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This study examines the acquisition of Subjacency and ECP effects by Japanese learners' of English. A typical strategy taken in most second language (L2) acquisition studies is to test the L2 learners' knowledge of particular UG modules whose S-Structure effects are not observed in their first language but in the L2. The operation of Subjacency and ECP in the L2 was examined by comparing languages with and without overt S-Structure movement. Although an intense controversy did not rage on the question of UG-accessibility for L2 learners whose L1s obey Subjacency, the past literature on the access to Subjacency by L2 learners whose L1s have wh-elements in situ have led to conflicting conclusions. In the Minimalist Program, however, S-Structure modules are replaced by PF and LF conditions and Subjacency and ECP effects are explained by the Minimal Link Condition (MLC). The experiment I conducted shows that although Japanese learners of English exhibit sensitivity to Subjacency and ECP effects, some 'false beginners' seem to violate UG principles. However, it is claimed that the violation is more apparent than real, and that the MCL is not violated in the mental representations of these L2 learners. Those who allow the extraction of an adjunct from a wh-island tend to use multiple-specifier constructions. This lends support to the hypothesis that the final state of L1 acquisition including L1 parameters and functional categories constitutes the initial state of L2 acquisition.