Theta system at the concept-syntax interface

Although thematic roles play an important part in the interpretation of the lexical information carried by verbs and the regulation of the distribution of syntactic arguments,they have the problem of definability as their semantic content and inventory as well as their prominence hierarchy with respect to their linking to syntactic positions have never been clearly defined.To solve the problem,syntacticians attempt to eliminate theta roles from the lexicon and derive them instead from the decomposition of syntactic or event structures and the postulation of functional categories.This approach,downplaying the status of the lexicon as an active module and blurring the boundaries between the lexicon and syntax,is actually an echo of the analysis proposed by Generative Semantics,which has been abandoned by the mainstream generative linguistics after Chomsky(1970) because of its conceptual and empirical problems that can hardly be solved.Against this background,Reinhart takes a rather different approach in her analysis of theta roles by decomposing them into two features,i.e.c(cause change) and m(mental state),and establishes a universal mapping mechanism to account for the interaction between lexical semantics and syntax.We think that the Theta System proposed by Reinhart is a substantial step toward the understanding of lexical semantics and the concept-syntax interface.In this paper,we present a critical survey of the Theta System as proposed by Reinhart(1991,1996,2002,etc.) and discuss its advantages and limitations in terms of theoretical considerations and empirical evidence.