On the failure of hasty phonology : A review of Michael Kenstowicz and Charles Kisseberth, Topics in phonological theory

Abstract

‘On the failure of hasty phonology’ is a review of M. Kenstowicz and C. Kisseberth: Topics in phonological theory. Part 1 presents seven recent phonological analyses by K and K which have been refuted in the recent literature for sometimes futile reasons: technical failure, incoherent reasoning, incorrect renderings of primary sources, and so on. Six of these seven analyses are repeated in Topics, although at least for some of them reanalyses were available to the authors. In part 2 are presented three new phonological analyses included by K and K in Topics which again fail for futile reasons. The line of research represented by Topics is called here hasty phonology, and in part 3 it is concluded that Topics, taken as a report on this type of phonology, is a disappointing book.