Ljubljana, Slovenia

Decomposing the Meaning of Modals

when 31 July 2023 - 11 August 2023
language English
duration 2 weeks
fee EUR 490

Modal statements, like “The keys must be in the drawer” or “We must take the train”, involve a complex interplay of syntax, semantics, and pragmatics. The goal of this introductory class is to understand how we can decompose the meaning of modal words like can or must, by going through their standard quantificational analysis inherited from modal logic, with particular attention to the work of Kratzer. The class will combine insights from various disciplines: logic, philosophy and formal semantic theories of modality, cross-linguistic fieldwork, psycholinguistics experiments, and language acquisition.

Course leader

Annemarie van Dooren and Anouk Dieuleveut

Target group

Students

Fee info

EUR 490: Early student registration
EUR 690: Early non-academic registration

Scholarships

There are several scholarship options which you can read about on our website.