Pronouns and the problem of reference in transformational grammar

Abstract

The problem of reference is one of the main problems in transformational gram­ mar. It does not concern only the pronominalization and reflexivization rules (both transformational and interpretive) but also many other rules, such as, for instance, deletion rules, movement rules, etc. Inspite of its importance for transformational grammar as a whole the problem of reference is still largely unsolved. Attempts to deal with it have been only partially successful; several points still have to be explained before a complete solution can be found.