subjects are ranked higher than objects, an object can have the subject as its antecedent, but not vice versa. With basic cases, this approach makes the same prediction as the c-command approach. The first two sentences from the previous section are repeated here: a. Larryi promoted himselfi. – Indicated reading obligatory b. *Himselfi promoted Larryi. – Indicated reading impossible; sentence ungrammatical Since the subject outranks the object, sentence a is predictably acceptable, the subject Larry outranking the object himself. Sentence b, in contrast, is bad because the subject reflexive pronoun himself outranks its postcedent Larry. In other words, this approach in terms of rank is assuming that within its binding domain, a reflexive pronoun may not outrank its antecedent (or postcedent). Consider the third example sentence from the previous section in this regard: The picture of himselfi upset Larryi. – Indicated reading possible The approach based on rank does not require a particular configurational relationship to hold between a reflexive pronoun and its antecedent. In other words, it makes no prediction in this case, and hence does not make an incorrect prediction. The reflexive pronoun himself is embedded within the subject noun phrase, which means that it is not the subject and hence does not outrank the object Larry. A theory of binding that acknowledges both linear order and rank can at least begin to predict many of the marginal readings. When both linear order and rank combine, acceptability judgments are robust, e.g. a. Barbarai hopes that shei will be promoted. – Linear order and rank combine to make the indicated reading easily possible. b. *Shei hopes that Barbarai will be promoted. – Linear order and rank combine to make the indicated reading impossible. a. Bill'si grade upset himi. – Linear order alone makes the indicated reading possible; rank is not involved. b. ?Hisi grade upset Billi. – Linear order alone makes the indicated reading unlikely; rank is not involved. This ability to address marginal readings is something that an approach combining linear order and rank can accomplish, whereas an approach that acknowledges only c-command cannot do the same. The traditional binding theory: Conditions A, B, and C The exploration of binding phenomena got started in the 1970s and interest peaked in the 1980s with Government and Binding Theory, a grammar framework in the tradition of generative syntax that is still prominent today. The theory of binding that became widespread