This authoritative survey shows readers how specific methodological assumptions underlie the core analyses on which syntactic theory is based. The author, an internationally respected figure in the field, gives extensive treatment of Government and Binding (GB) theory and summarizes the major proposals and results of Case theory, Theta theory, X' theory, Binding theory, the theory of A- and A' movement, locality conditions, and the theory of Logical Form (LF). He also provides an up-to-date introduction to a number of more recent proposals, including Chomsky's Minminalist Program, Larsonian Shells, and Kaynes's Antisymmetry theory. The most coherent and organized account of syntactic theory currently available, this volume is enhanced by carefully selected and extensive sets of exercises, annotated suggestions for further reading at the end of each chapter, and a comprehensive glossary of technical terms.