Routledge Dictionary of Language and Linguistics
Essential trait of all natural languages whose functioning is based on the speaker being able to produce and interpret—by means of a finite set of (a) linguistic expressions and (b) combinatory rules—an infinite set of utterances. This ability to command a complex rule apparatus has long intrigued and motivated researchers just as much as its apparent quick learnability in language acquisition. Since Chomsky, creativity is a central notion of transformational grammar, the objective of which is to describe this infinite use of finite resources in a technically appropriate form. Chomsky distinguishes between ‘rule-governed’ and ‘rule-changing’ creativity.
While rule-governed creativity is limited by the pre-given possibilities in the linguistic system, rule-changing creativity affects this system.
References
Chomsky, N. 1964. Current issues in linguistic theory. The Hague.
——1965. Aspects of the theory of syntax. Cambridge, MA.
——1966. Topics in the theory of generative grammar. The Hague.
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