7 - Domain Boundaries

Summary

Two asymmetric constraint families help to shape the metrical grid at prosodic boundaries. The NONFINALITY family of constraints prohibits prominence at the end of a domain. NONFINALITY constraints produce a wide range of effects and provide a uniform account of phenomena that otherwise appear to be unrelated. One NONFINALITY constraint helps to produce the falling stress contour of compounds in English. Other NONFINALITY constraints reproduce traditional foot extrametricality effects. Still other NONFINALITY constraints make metrical prominence sensitive to syllable weight. They ensure that stress avoids light syllables, sometimes shifting stress to a heavy syllable and sometimes producing lengthening effects, both iambic and trochaic. Finally, a NONFINALITY constraint helps to introduce clash or lapse near the right edge of a form. The INITIAL PROMINENCE family requires prominence at the beginning of a domain. The main role that INITIAL PROMINENCE constraints have played in previous analyses is introducing clash or lapse at the left edge of a form. Together, the NONFINALITY and INITIAL PROMINENCE constraints are responsible for the asymmetries found in the typology of word-level prominence patterns. They introduce clash and lapse configurations near the edges of prosodic words, allowing the grammar to produce patterns beyond the perfect alternation patterns.