Linear and structural accounts of theta-role assignment in agrammatic aphasia

Patients with Broca's aphasia have long been known to interpret who is doin g what to whom in certain kinds of comprehension tasks in quite anomalous w ays. Attempts to explain their observed interpretation patterns have focuse d on how theta-roles get to be assigned to NPs in a so-called "agrammatic'' patient's representation. These attempts follow one of two basic approache s. In one approach, it is specified that theta-roles are assigned according to linear considerations, and in the other approach, it is proposed that t heta-role assignment is achieved structurally. This review paper argues tha t the structural accounts are to be preferred to the linear accounts on bot h conceptual and empirical grounds.