Transcript UNIT 1

UNIT 1
SOME BASIC
CONCEPTS
BASED ON LOCK, Graham. Functional English
Grammar. USA. CUP. 1996. Pp 1-11
prof Cecilia Montorsi
FORMAL GRAMMAR
LANGUAGE = set of rules
FUNCTIONAL GRAMMAR
LANGUAGE = System of
which specify all the possible
grammatical structures.
communication. The study of how
language is organized to make and
exchange meanings  appropriate
vs. inappropriate forms for a
communicative purpose in a
particular context.
MAIN CONCERN = the
functions of structures and their
constituents and their meanings in
context.
 MATERIAL USED= Authentic
texts.
Grammatical =/= Ungrammatical
sentences
MAIN CONCERN = the forms of
the grammatical structure and their
relationship to one another rather
than with their meanings or uses in
different contexts
 MATERIAL USED= sentences
made up to illustrate different
grammatical rules
prof Cecilia Montorsi
FUNCTIONAL GRAMMAR
AND
LANGUAGE TEACHING
Why do most learners study a language?
Most learners study a language to acquire the ability to
communicate with other speakers or writers of the language.
How can grammar contribute to language learning?
Grammar needs not only to lay out the forms and structures of
the language, but also to show what they are for and how
they are used.
SYSTEMIC FUNCTIONAL GRAMMAR
prof Cecilia Montorsi
SYSTEMIC FUNCTIONAL
GRAMMAR
As said before, its primary aim is to understand
how the grammar of a language serves as a resource
for making and exchanging meanings.
It is, therefore, likely to have useful things to say to
language learners and teachers.
the theoretical and analytical framework adopted in
this course, as well as much of the terminology, is
drawn from the work of M.A.K. Halliday, who has had
great influence on mother tongue and second
language education.
prof Cecilia Montorsi
LEVELS OF ANALYSIS
PHONOLOGY
(sound system)
SEMANTICS
(systems of
meaning)
LANGUAGE
LEXIS
(words of the
language)
GRAMMAR
SYNTAX(arrangement of
words)
MORPHOLOGY
(internal structure
of words)
prof Cecilia Montorsi
Lexicogrammar
THE ORGANIZATION OF GRAMMAR
RANK
CLASS
different levels of
organization within
grammar
different classes of
units
prof Cecilia Montorsi
RANK
Different levels of organization within Grammar  Hierarchy
She’s great fun but her husband is rather dull.
She’s great fun
her husband is rather dull.
She
great fun
her husband
is
rather dull.
sentence
clauses
groups
prof Cecilia Montorsi
great
fun
her
is
dull.
words
The Rank Scale
S ENTENCE
C L A U S E .
GROUP/PHRASE
W
O
R
D
prof Cecilia Montorsi
.
The relationship between
the units is as follows:
each unit consists of one or
more units of the rank
below it.
prof Cecilia Montorsi
CLASS
CLASSES OF UNITS
• CLASSES OF WORDS:nouns, adjectives,
adverbs, verbs.
• CLASSES OF GROUPS: noun groups,
adjective groups, adverb groups, verb groups.
• CLASSES OF CLAUSES: independent and
dependent; finite and non-finite; elliptical and
non-elliptical; embedded; etc.
prof Cecilia Montorsi
WORDS: EXAMPLES
BEAUTY
STUDENTS
BEAUTIFUL
GOOD
BEAUTIFULLY
WORK
BE
WELL
SMILE
GOVERNMENT
HEAVY
NEVERTHELESS
VERBS
prof Cecilia Montorsi
NOUNS
ADJECTIVES
ADVERBS
GROUPS – PHRASES: EXAMPLES
THIS CONSTITUTES THE MOST DIFFICULT
ANSWER GIVEN BY THE GOVERNMENT. (NG)
THAT CHAPTER IS VERY INTERESTING TO
STUDY. (adjG)
THE FIREMEN CAME AS QUICKLY AS THEY
COULD . (advG)
NEXT WEEK, I WILL HAVE BEEN WORKING HERE
FOR 10 YEARS. (VG)
THIS ROAD GOES THROUGH THE FOREST. (pp)
prof Cecilia Montorsi
CLAUSES: EXAMPLES
He always gets angry about the students, when they
don’t study enough.- (independent – dependent)
To get to work easily, you should take the train.
Mary was absolutely happy and
(NF - F)
went celebrating.
(elliptical)
The answers given by the students have on the
whole been very good.
(embedding)
prof Cecilia Montorsi
MEANING
EXPERIENTIAL
TEXTUAL
(IDEATIONAL)
Language represents
our experience of the
world and of the inner
world of our feelings
and thoughts. It has
to do with how we talk
about actions,
feelings situations,
states, etc.
May
be
INTERPERSONAL
The way in which
language is
organized in
relation to its
context. It is
important in the
creation of
coherence in
spoken and written
text.
The way we act upon one another
through language, how we interact with
other people –giving and requesting
information, etc- and how we express
our judgment and attitudes