7. Positive constraints and finite goodness in Harmonic Serialism
Wendell Kimper · University of Toronto Press eBooks · 2016
In Optimality Theory (OT) (Prince and Smolensky, 1993/2004), constraints have traditionally been negatively rather than positively defined; that is, they assign violations rather than rewards. Because OT’s Gen can perform multiple operations (and multiple instances of a single operation) simultaneously, negative constraints have been necessary. A positive constraint suffers from the Infinite Goodness problem (Prince, 2007); for any structure favored by a positive constraint, an infinite number of instances of that structure can be epenthesized, and there ceases to be an optimum. In Harmonic Serialism (HS) (McCarthy, 2000, 2002, 2007), however, Gen is restricted to performing one operation at a time. This means that infinitely epenthetic candidates can no longer be entertained, and positive constraints are a viable possibility. In this paper, I discuss the properties of HS that render positive constraints feasible, as well as possible limitations on the types of constraints that may be viably positive. Furthermore, I argue that positive constraints have certain advantages over their negativelydefined counterparts. In particular, negative constraints driving autosegmental spreading processes produce a number of pathological predictions; because they assign violations for unassimilated segments, they interact in unattested ways with processes that affect the number of segments in a word. A positive spreading constraint, on the other hand, assigns rewards for assimilated segments; this, combined with the gradual harmonic improvement of HS, permits a superior account of harmony processes. The paper is organized as follows. Section 2 discusses the infinite goodness problem and its resolution in HS, section 3 shows how a positive constraint provides a better account of harmony processes than its negative counterparts, and 4 discusses potential limitations on the formulation of positive constraints in HS.