X-Bartheory: Its Pros/Strengths and Cons/Weaknesses in Generative Grammar

Abstract

The X-bar theory is an interesting field in linguistic investigation. X-bar theory deepens our understanding of grammatical structure, and as a result may help us use the language in question (English language) more effectively. This study is a critical review, primarily aimed at exploring and examining the strengths and limitations of the X-bar theory in the analysis of syntactic structures in the English language. While we do not claim that X-bar syntax is the “best” approach to the analysis of [English] sentences, it has advantages over some other approaches. The study proves that despite the limitations of the X-bar theory like overworking the I-node et.c. It is an important theory that is worth studying by linguists as relevant in the study of syntactic structures of the English language. The analytical frameworks provided by contemporary scholars, Aarts and Radford, which ultimately are based on insights of Chomsky, Jackendoff and other scholars going back to the 1970s, are used and adapted for the analysis of sentences in this study. These two linguists use the Transformational Generative Grammar approach in their analysis of English phrases and sentences. It is therefore hoped that this study will provide, in addition to the already existing data, a current material on the X-bar theory especially for researchers in the field of generative linguistics.