Part I : Summary of what I’ve leant (i) Difference between Traditional Grammar & Systemic Functional Grammar
Grammar is a subsystem of language for constructing meanings in the form of wordings. Traditional grammarians gradually developed accounts of word classes (part of speech) since words belonging to different classes have different sets of forms and of the grammatical categories associated with the forms of different word classes—e.g. number and case for nouns, and person and tense for verbs. It is the study of traditional grammar.
However, if we want to understand how grammar is organized and operates as a resource for making meaning, we should explore grammatical units in text —in written and spoken language functioning in context. Systemic Functional Grammar (SFG) is a linguistic theory developed by Michael Halliday that considers grammar to be the mechanism by which meaning is expressed in context via phonology. It proposed that social context for communication regulates the way the semantics of language are employed. SFL divides the language system into four strata: context, semantics, lexicogrammar, and phonology. As shown in Fig. 1, each stratum can be further divided into functional components or functions.
Fig. 1: SFG Model of Language in Context (ii) Classification of different parts of sentences
The words in a clause can often be grouped together into separate components of the clause, each consisting of more than one word. They can be classified into three groups: nominal groups, verbal groups and adverbial groups.
Nominal groups include determiners, adjectives and noun.
Verbal groups include verbs (auxiliary and lexical verbs).
Adverbial groups include adverbs and prepositional phrase, e.g. in Hong Kong.
Fig 2: Class of different parts of sentences
Fig 3: Adult structure: intermediate rank — groups
Fig 4: Syntactic word structure
(iii) Rank Scale
The theoretical concept of the rank scale is based on the assumption that we can normally split any meaningful unit at one rank, or level, into smaller units of a different kind at the rank below.
Fig 3: The rank scale
The rank scale consists of the above four ranks: clause, group, word, and morpheme. * Clause is the highest-ranking unit in the grammar. It is the point of origin of the systems of transitivity, mood and theme, realized by three simultaneous structural layers (transitivity structure, modal structure and thematic structure). * A group is in many respects a group of words or a word complex: words enter into logical structure to form a group. * Word is the rank between group and morpheme on the grammatical rank scale. In systemic theory, morphology is simply word grammar. * Morpheme is the smallest meaningful units of linguistic form and meaning, for example, in fig.3, “facilities” can be analyzed as the lexical morpheme “facility” plus the grammatical morpheme”-s”. * There is no ‘sentence’ rank above clause. Sentence is an idealization of the written language that it is often difficult to impose on spoken language. Instead, we use clause complexes to describe two or more clauses linked by co-ordination and subordination in a larger structural unit.
(iv) Rankshift
Rankshift is the semogenic process whereby a unit of one rank is moved down the rank scale to serve as if it were a unit of a lower rank as an element within another unit.
Fig 5: Rankshift: downranked clause
Embedding is a general principle that allows a unit to be expanded by the inclusion of another unit from a higher, or in some cases, the same rank. The term ‘ranking clause’ is used to distinguish non-embedded from embedded clauses. In Fig.5, the embedded part “who was kind to him at all” is originally a clause by itself, but then it has downranked to be a nominal group. It is called “Rankshift”.
Part II: Reflection and the difficulties encountered
Before taking this course ENGL 220, I thought that it would mainly cover the traditional grammar that we’ve learnt in secondary school, such as different tenses, articles, prepositions, singular and plural nouns, etc. Out of my expectation, this course is reviewing the linguistic analysis from a whole new perspective. Dr.Matthiessen suggested alternative ways of understanding or expressing the ideas of Systemic Functional Grammar.
To be honest, I was daunted not only by the seemingly abstruse explanations but simply by the amount of new terminology. The terms ‘lexicogrammar’, ‘nominal group’, ‘verbal group’ were strange to me and I felt relatively confused in the beginning.
Also, I found the considerable amount of reading materials on the WebCT quite baffling. I could not find a systematic way to read through all the materials. Considering that there were so many angles to look deeply into grammar analysis, I felt lost when I kept studying various readings materials from different linguists. Which angle or direction should I adopt to get the fundamental knowledge of grammar analysis? Is it enough for us to read only those materials that are uploaded on the WebCT? Or should we do some extra research in order to understand the intricate grammatical analysis better?
Despite the difficulties that I encountered during the studying process, I was astonished by how scientific and innovative the functional grammar is. It is totally different from what I had expected. After reading all the notes given, searching information on the Internet, and making some self-made diagrams, charts and examples, the idea of grammatical analysis was getting more comprehensible. After I paid huge efforts in finishing this learning journal, besides surfing extra information, I’ve also summarized the main ideas in some diagrams and highlighted the keywords in the content. This working process gradually helped me to know why the approach of systemic functional grammar is dominant and in preference to the others.
Frankly speaking, language functions as a system of human communication. There were different approaches to help analyze the generalized rules and grammatical terminology of language. On the whole, this course has successfully tempted me to go on to explore in greater depth the writings of Michael Halliday and his colleagues.
Part III: Application of learning content
Text 1: Global Warming
Global warming refers to the rising average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans and its related effects. II In the last 100 years, Earth's average surface temperature increased by about 0.8 °C (1.4 °F) with about two thirds of the increase over just the last three decades. II Warming of the climate system is unequivocal, II and most of it is caused by increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases. II These findings are recognized by the national science academies of all the major industrialized countries.
IIClimate model projections are summarized in the 2007 Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). II During the 21st century, the global surface temperature is likely to rise a further 1.5 to 1.9 °C (2.7 to 3.4 °F) for their lowest emissions scenario and 3.4 to 6.1 °C (6.1 to 11 °F) for their highest. II The ranges of these estimates arise from the use of models with differing sensitivity to greenhouse gas concentrations.
Number of clauses: 8
| Clause | Nominal Group | Verbal group | Prepositional phrase | 1. | Global warming refers to the rising average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans and its related effects. | Global warming, the rising average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans and its related effects | refers to | | 2. | In the last 100 years, Earth's average surface temperature increased by about 0.8 °C (1.4 °F) with about two thirds of the increase over just the last three decades. | Earth's average surface temperature | increased by | In the last 100 years,over just the last three decades | 3. | Warming of the climate system is unequivocal, | Warming of the climate system | is | | 4. | and most of it is caused by increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases. | most of it, increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases | is caused by | | 5. | These findings are recognized by the national science academies of all the major industrialized countries. | These findings,the national science academies | are recognized by | of all the major industrialized countries. | 6. | Climate model projections are summarized in the 2007 Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). | Climate model projections | are summarized | in the 2007 Fourth Assessment Report (AR4), by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) | 7. | During the 21st century, the global surface temperature is likely to rise a further 1.5 to 1.9 °C (2.7 to 3.4 °F) for their lowest emissions scenario and 3.4 to 6.1 °C (6.1 to 11 °F) for their highest. | the global surface temperature | is likely to rise | During the 21st century,for their lowest emissions scenario, for their highest | 8. | The ranges of these estimates arise from the use of models with differing sensitivity to greenhouse gas concentrations. | The ranges of these estimates, the use of models | arise from | with differing sensitivity, to greenhouse gas concentrations |
