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The analysis of the syntax is restricted to four features: the number of constituents, verb presence, verb position, and agent presence. By focusing on these four features, the small steps taken in the beginning stages of the L2 acquisition process become evident.

In learning a second language it is necessary to know how words can be grouped. The ability to correctly form word groups, or constituents, aids the listener’s comprehension, and is thus an essential skill for second language learners. Constituents can be defined as the minimal units that form a semantic construction of an utterance. Utterances parsed in syntactic trees show that a constituent can be a single word or string of words such that there is one node that dominates those words and no other words. Three tests of constituency were applied to identify a constituent: movement, substitution, and stand-alone. As the examples below illustrate, the process of determining constituents was not always without uncertainty. The utterances were often obscure in meaning and ungrammatical, making decisions ambivalent.

In determining the number of constituents, the presence of a deictic place marker needs to be explained more specifically. Examples (6.5a) and (6.5b) show two utterances using deictic markers: the demonstrative pronoun

deze (this) in (6.5a) and the adverb hier (here) in (6.5b). Both stand at the

beginning of an utterance and refer specifically to the picture being described. This type of place deixis was not included as a constituent, and therefore, (6.5a) contains one constituent, lopen (to walk) and (6.5b) three constituents, de politie, gaan, met deze meneer (the police, go, with this man).

(6.5) a Deze lopen.

This walk.INF ‘This one, walks.’

b Hier de politie gaan met deze meneer.

Here the police go.INF with this man. ‘Here, the police goes with this man.’

Not all deictic place markers at the beginning of an utterance were excluded, as examples (6.6a) and 6.6b) illustrate. In (6.6a) intonation was decisive. If the demonstrative pronoun referred to the picture, there was a pause after

deze (this). If it modified the following noun, then there was a pause after the

noun. In (6.6a), the demonstrative pronoun modified vrouw (woman) forming the constituent deze vrouw (this woman) and was, therefore, included in the count. In (6.6b) the use of the copula is (is) makes the

construction syntactically correct; it contains three constituents, dit, is,

vrouw (this, is, woman). But if the demonstrative pronoun and the copula

were followed by a verb phrase as in (6.6c), then dat is (that is) referred to the picture, and was not counted as a constituent.

(6.6) a Deze vrouw lopen.

This woman walk.INF

‘This woman walks/is walking.’ b Dit is vrouw.

This is woman. ‘This is a woman.’ c Dit is vrouw lopen.

This is woman walk.INF ‘This is a woman walks.’

Repetitions, interjections, and all L1 utterances were not included as constituents, or in word count. The following six examples in (6.7), (6.8a, b) and (6.9a, b, c) illustrate the parsing of utterances into constituents. The constituents are separated by a vertical line. In (6.7) the response contains a series of syntactically unconnected single words. Each one is an utterance within that response. At the same time, each utterance is also a single constituent. Such a response is often a summing up of objects or actions seen in a picture such as expressing a single action or single entities through nouns (persons or objects) or qualities (adjectives).

(6.7) Winkel. | Eieren. | Vrouw. | Boodschap. | Boodschap. | Taart. | Eieren. |

Store. | Eggs. | Woman. | Shopping. | Shopping. | Cake. | Eggs. | The examples (6.8a) and (6.8b) illustrate an utterance with two constituents, one formed by a noun (the agent) with a verb and the other by a noun the carrier with an adjective.

(6.8) a Vrouw | lezen.

Woman | read.INF ‘The woman reads.’ b Man | vies.

Man | dirty. ‘The man is dirty.’

Longer utterances, such as those containing three constituents, as illustrated in (6.9), often contain a verb and a complement. In (6.9a) the direct object

cadeautje (gift) is the added complement. This is an example for which the

tests of movement, substitution, and stand-alone all apply. In (6.9b) the added complement is the prepositional phrase met deze man (with this man). In this example, even though an incorrect preposition was used, met (with) instead of naar (to), the tests of constituency still apply. In (6.9c) the test of movement applies. Although the utterance is grammatically incorrect, it is clear that the adverbial is a constituent. In Dutch the adverbial adjunct een

beetje (a little) should follow the verb: leest een beetje (reads a little.), if we

are dealing with a main clause.

(6.9) a Vrouw | pakt | cadeautje. Woman | fetches | gift.

‘The woman fetches the gift.’

b De politie | gaan | met deze meneer. (target: De politieagent gaat The police | go.INF | with this man. naar die meneer.) ‘The police goes with this man.’

c Vrouw | beetje | lezen. (target: De vrouw leest een Woman | a little | read.INF beetje.)

‘The woman reads a little.’

Utterances containing an embedded meta-utterance and certain compound verbs form special cases, as (6.10) and (6.11) illustrate. The embedded meta- utterance ik denk (I think) in (6.10) is taken as one chunk and thus, forms one constituent. In this particular example, the utterance contains three constituents.

(6.10) Vrouw | ik denk | lezen. (target: De vrouw leest denk

Woman | I think | read.INF ik.)

‘The woman, I think, is reading.’

Particle verbs form a particular case in Dutch. The particle can be separated from the verbal part. In such cases the verb components were counted as one constituent. Example (6.11) illustrates the separable verb openmaken (to open). This utterance contains three constituents: maakt (makes) and open (open) form one constituent, papier (paper) a second constituent, en kijkt (and looks) the third constituent.

(6.11) Maakt | papier | open | en kijkt.

Makes | paper | open | and looks. ‘She opens the paper and looks.’

Each utterance was examined for verb presence and position as well as the presence of an agent or another semantic role. The five examples in (6.12) illustrate the different types of utterances. Utterances without a verb, such as in (6.12a) were not further analyzed.

(6.12) a Verb not present. In de doos een kan.

In the box a jug.

b Verb present, but position inconclusive and agent not present. Lopen.

Walk.INF

c Verb present, but position incorrect and agent not present. Die cadeau pakken.

That gift fetch.INF

d Verb present, but position incorrect and agent present. Meneer soep eten.

Man soup eat.INF ‘The man eats soup.’

e Verb and position correct and agent present. De vrouw leest krant.

The woman reads newspaper. ‘The woman reads a newspaper.’