ABSTRACT
The Principles and Parameters approach to syntax and acquisition of syntax, as outlined in Chomsky, relies on an important assumption that the model of syntax developed by theoretical linguists should be compatible with the data drawn from language acquisition. The theoretical model of language is based on facts and constraints imposed on acquisition. The task for theoretical syntax is to discover the abstract principles that underlie language, as well as to explain their complex interaction. This chapter applies a solution to the problem of long-distance reflexives, Relativized SUBJECT, which both meets the theoretical requirements of simplicity and generality, and lends itself to empirical verification based on acquisition data. The strong claim of Relativized SUBJECT is that long-distance binding of simple reflexives correlates with absence of morphological AGR. The chapter argues Serbo-Croatian speakers analyze morphologically complex English reflexives as simple, due to transfer from the first language (L1).
