GI2apuntes

Text grammar: rules or rather principles by which sequences of words and sentences can be combined into meaningful larger linguistic wholes. It transcends the boundaries of the sentence. Sentences are dependent elements of texts. A TG should explain the factors which determine both:

Factors/circumstances in an idealized communicative situation in which texts occur as spoken or written utterances.

Sets of constituents in texts and ways in which constituents are selected by an idealized encoder and combined into texts in actual text production.

-Explain how texts fall into distinct groupings on account of dominant types of internal constitution (Text type, group, form).

-Isolate and specify constituents from which communicants can choose (Varieties).

Substance: Short, medium, long sentences: tone-groups without/ with pauses, stops and commas.

Form: base paragraph initiator - base sentence - bit sentence (base terminators)

Text: extended structure of syntactic units such as words, groups and clauses and textual units marked by both coherence and completion.

Thematic text base: a text initial linguistic unit which both structurally and semantically permits expansion into text by sequences of coherence and completed linguistic units. Typically: headlines.

Descriptive text base:

-simple phenomenon-registering sentence with be/intensive, stative verb (seem, contain)

-simple action recording sentence with dynamic verb in the past tense and Aplace + time

-simple phenomenon-identifying sentence with be [present] and a NP as C for synthetic exposition

TASK: Choose five texts from various sources and find their text bases. Do they fit into Werlich's typology?

Coherence: created when a text base unit is expanded in linear progression in ordered and completed sequences of linguistic units.

Completion: signals which indicate both the beginning and end of one or more of the sequences that have established coherence.

Texts can be viewed as one of several factors interrelated in an inclusive context. Context refers to all situational factors (such as persons with intentions, reactions, presuppositions and status, objects, relations, etc.) and socio-historical circumstances in the non-verbal environment that lies inside and outside the area of sense perception shared by communicants.

Huddleston, R. (1984) An Introduction to the Grammar of English. Cambridge: C.U.P.

Quirk, R. et al. (1985) A Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language. London: Longman

Schiffrin, D. (1994) Approaches to Discourse, Oxford (UK)/Cambridge (USA): Blackwell

What is the meaning of the cohesive relation between a man and he? The meaning is that they refer to the same thing. The man is also functioning cohesively by the repetition of “man” and the accompanying “the” as anaphoric signal. (cf. None but the brave deserve the fair)

COHESION = the interpretation of some element is dependent on that of another. The one PRESUPPOSES the other, i.e., it cannot be effectively decoded except by recourse to it.

(2) A man who sat in a breakfast nook looked up from his scrambled eggs to see a white unicorn.

Any unit which is structured hangs together so as to form text. All grammatical units (sentences, groups, words) are internally cohesive simply because they are structured.

Since cohesive relations are not concerned with structure, they may be found just as well within a sentence as between sentences. They have in principle nothing to do with sentence boundaries. However, because it is the unit of grammatical structure, the sentence tends to determine the way in which cohesion is expressed:

SUBSTITUTION, ELLIPSIS & LEXICAL COHESION: unaffected by the sentence structure CONJUNCTION: associated with grammatical structure:

We cannot show that there is any functional relation between two sentences in (1) in the sample text such that the two form a configuration of mutually defining structural roles. Whereas within the sentence we can specify a limited number of possible structures (modification, subordination, etc.).

(5)He said so. We can decode it but we cannot INTERPRET it. (cf. John said everything)

The situation, meaning the context of situation in which a text is embedded, refers to all those extra-linguistic factors which have a bearing on the text itself. The question is, what are the external factors affecting the linguistic choices that the speaker or writer makes. For Halliday:

FIELD OF DISCOURSE: total event, purposive activity of addresser, subject-matter

REFERENCE

“he”: “some person, male, other than speaker or addressee, identifiable in environment.” (endophoric/exophoric)

-Grammatical function of reference item may be different from referent: class not necessarily preserved.

SUBSTITUTION

-Not necessarily same clause function: If I use leaden ones his hide is sure to flatten them.

REPUDIATION: In any anaphoric context, something is carried over from a previous instance. What is carried over may be the whole of what there was, or it may be only a part of it; and if it is only a part of it, then the remainder, that which it is not carried over, has to be repudiated.

THE SAME presupposes an entire nominal group including any modifying elements, except such as are explicitly repudiated.

(18)The children work very hard in the garden. They must do (VERBAL SUBSTITUTION)

ELLIPSIS

SENTENCES whose structure is such as to presuppose some preceding item. Structural slot.

-Presupposition in the structure: incompleteness (found in preceding text = anaphoric)

(20)This is a fine hall you have here. I’m proud to be lecturing in it (REFERENCE)

CONJUNCTIVE elements are cohesive INDIRECTLY: meanings which presuppose the presence of other components in the discourse.

CONJUNCTIVE RELATIONS = very general relations that may be associated with different threads of meaning

Clause as message: thematic structures

Organization of informational content:

THEME: point of departure

RHEME: rest of the message

(1)

Jeeves	brought Bingo a cup of tea at 8 a.m.
theme	rheme

variants:

Bingo	was brought a cup of tea by Jeeves at 8 a.m.
A cup of tea	was brought to Bingo at 8 a.m. by Jeeves
A cup of tea	Jeeves brought Bingo at 8 a.m.
A cup of tea	Jeeves brought it to Bingo at 8 a.m.
At 8 a.m.	Bingo was brought a cup of tea by Jeeves
At 8 a.m.	a cup of tea was brought to Bingo by Jeeves
theme	rheme

The motivation for these variants is not to be sought in the clause in isolation, but in its relationship to that part of the discourse at which it is located. The speaker organizes the content of the clause in order to establish the point of departure of the clausal message and to highlight that constituent which is presented as New information, usually at the end of the clause.

2.1 THE CONCEPTS OF "THEME"/"RHEME", "GIVEN"/"NEW"

Processibility principle (Leech 1983): the text should be presented in a manner which makes it easy for the hearer to decode in time.

End-focus: this maxim recommends that if the rules of language allow it, the part of the clause which contains new information should be placed at the end (tone-units)

End-weight: in a syntactic structure less complex constituents precede more complex ones. Hence the characteristic English sentence has a predominance of right-branching over left-branching.

(2)That the President will resign is on the cards

(2a)It is on the cards that the President will resign

CLAUSE AS MESSAGE

Conventionally, speakers begin their utterances with given information and keep new information till the end. In fact given and new isolate the two poles of communicative dynamism.

given/new --- theme/focus.

Given and new: extra-linguistic

Theme and focus (rheme): linguistically defined (position and prosody)

THEME:

-the first part is given

-it supplements the basis on which new information is predicated

-an existential presupposition holds for the object that the topic expression refers to

-the content of the topic expression is enough for the identification of the object of reference

FOCUS:

-indicates where the new information lies

-occurs on the last appropriate syllable (prominent semantic unit)

An illustration

Let's imagine that a speaker (S) and some fellow-diners have ordered some dishes in a restaurant. The waiter has returned with the dishes for both S and S's fellow-diners. At this point S might say either

(a)Mine is the beef Wellington, or

(b)The beef Wellington is mine

Although they have the same sense, these two utterances would be approprirate to different contexts: (a) would be appropriate where the waiter was trying to remember which dish S had ordered (as contrasted with what others had ordered); (b) would be appropriate where the waiter was carrying the beef Wellington, and trying to remember to whom that dish should be given. More generally (a) would be appropriate where "mine" (the fact of identifying S as the recipient) was given information, and "the beef Wellington" was new information; whereas (b) would be appropriate where the given-new relations were reversed. One may assume that each utterance would be pronounced with the nucleus as indicated here:

(a)Mine is the beef WÈLLINGTON (b)The beef Wellington is MÌNE

2.2 SYNTACTIC STRATEGIES IN ASSIGNING FOCUS

(i)Inversion

reversal of subject and verb
reversal of subject and operator

The fronting of A and Cs in intensive patterns naturally carries V-S inversion so that there is no nuclear focus on the verb:

(3) Here's the post

(4) Never has it been cheaper to go to the Caribean Islands

(ii)fronting

the achievement of marked theme by moving into initial position an item which otherwise is unusual there.

(5) Fool Joe may be, but thief he is not

(iii)cleft and pseudo-cleft sentences

Division of a sentence into two with their own verbs:

(6) Serbian troops violated the cease-fire

(6a)It is the Servian troops that violated the cease-fire

(6b)It is the cease-fire that the Servian troops violated

(6c)What the Serbian troops violated is the ceased-fire

a) and b) are cleft sentences while c) is pseudo-cleft.

(iv)postponement

The passive, together with other lexical and grammatical devices, are other procedures to change the focus of a sentence:

(7)Without a prescription you cannot buy this drug

(7a)Without a prescription this drug is not sold

(v)extraposition

In extraposition we combine postponement with substitution. It operates almost exclusively on subordinate nominal clauses, especially with clausal subject:

(8) It is a nuIsance that banks are closed on Saturdays

Existential clauses are introduced by there followed by BE + NP (occasionally seem, appear, arise):

Syntactically, the NP is the notional subject which has been transferred to the position after the verb, a position usually occupied by a complement. The NP represents new information and for this reason it is usually indefinite.

THEMES (continuative, conjunctive, modal, relational, vocative) + REPRESENTATIONAL

[1] Mary invited me to her BÌRTHDAY party/ It was held in a West End HOTEL/ where I met her PARENTS/ The father is a retired DENTIST.

[2] Mr Fraser (1) sent for the doctor (2); he (1) listened anxiously for his (2) arrival; he (1) asked him (2) to examine his (1) throat.

[5]The 100metre race was run immediately after luch. This was followed by the 400metre relay. After a brief interlude with an acrobatic display, spectators...

CHAIN: definite links by direction may be curve, the course double back and the ultimate point unpredictable.

[6] The narrow bridges, slats missing, are considered by the natives hereabouts to be dangerous, fit only for carefree boys to fish off. They rarely catch any fish, according to Old Cash at the general store. What crackers he has!

STACK: Predetermined unit but no linear progression, instead we find like a vertical structure with a sound foundation (topic sentence), an accumulation of layers, finally capped by a roof.

[7] There is something very unsatisfactory about the maxim “Honesty is the best policy”. It seems to equate virtue with profit, yet our common experience denies this. We could all cite instances of where an honest and virtuous action has brought disappointment and even ruin.

[8] For a spring break, Cumbria is hard to beat. There is of course a strong risk of bad weather during the early months of the year. On the other hand, the early tourist is rewarded by empty roads and the feeling that he has the countryside to himself. Not all the hotels are open, it is true, and you may be obliged to drive on to the next village. But this is well offset by the welcome that awaits you...

Downing, A. & P.Locke (1992) A University Course in English Grammar, London: Prentice Hall

Quirk, R. et al. (1985) A Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language. London: Longman

TASK: Compare this features of pragmatic principles and consider their counterparts in grammatical rules.

e.g. passive: rules (sets of changes, how it is formed); principles (end-focus, preference)

# 2. RULES OF GRAMMAR ARE CONVENTIONAL - PRINCIPLES OF PRAGMATICS ARE NON-CONVENTIONAL

TASK: Examine the following piece of discourse and consider (i) How do we identify (A) as a question? and (ii) What is the background knowledge?

SENDER has THOUGHTS which are transformed into SIGNALS and TRANSMITTED to the intended recipient

INTENTIONS: referential information (propositional) + expressive, social information (non-propositional)

Schiffrin, D. (1994) Approaches to Discourse, Oxford (UK)/Cambridge (USA): Blackwell

text	focus	cognitive process
descriptive	phenomena in space	perceptions in space
narrative	factual/conceptual phenomena in time	perceptions in time
expository	analysis & synthesis of concepts	comprehension
argumentative	relations between concepts	judging
instructive	future behavior	planning

TEXT
coherence	external reference	internal relations	cohesion
top-down	direction of strategies		bottom-up
inference	product of strategies		integration

Text grammar v. discourse analysis

Descriptive text base:

REFERENCE

SUBSTITUTION

ELLIPSIS