The Drawbacks of Optimality Theoretic Phonology: Objections and Refutations

Abstract

Optimality theory was introduced in the early 1990s as an alternative model of the organization of natural human language sound systems. It suggests that the observed forms of language arise from the optimal satisfaction of conflicting constraints. Optimality theory differs from other approaches to phonology, like autosegmental phonology and linear phonology (The Sound Pattern of English), which are typically rule-based approaches rather than constraints (such as faithfulness and markedness operating between underlying forms, inputs, and surface representations, outputs). This study briefly reviews the rise of Optimality theory and its main tenets, teasing out a detailed study of the various critiques that have been addressed to the Optimality theory and its theoretical and applicable domains. It presents a critical appraisal of the role of Optimality theory in phonology to show its main shortcomings and defects. In addition to other criticisms directed to the theory that are triggered by different scholars, the study suggests some other weak points that may be added to those pointed out by such previous critiques. On the basis of what is revealed by the criticism, it is concluded that Optimality theory suffers from different shortcomings and problems. Six problems are identified: the ambiguity of generating process, not paying attention to the lexicon, the uselessness of creativity of mind, wrong ranking, diversity of the same sound in different languages, and focus on parallelism rather than serialism.