Why minimal multiple rules provide a unique window into UG and L2

Abstract

This article clarifies some ideas presented in this issue’s keynote article (Amaral and Roeper, this issue) and discusses several issues raised by the contributors’ comments on the nature of the Multiple Grammars (MG) theory. One of the key goals of the article is to unequivocally state that MG is not a parametric theory and that its current version follows very explicit minimalist assumptions. We also refine the notion of ‘minimal multiple rules’ to make their theoretical status more precise. Overall, we would like to acknowledge the important contribution of all the articles in this issue to the evolution of the theory.