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Файл:Теоретическая грамматика = THEORETICAL GRAMMAR. Учебное пособие
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Actual division of the sentence. Besides the nominative aspect of the
semantics of the sentence, which reects the situation named with its various
components, the sentence expresses predicative semantics, which reects
various relations between the nominative content of the sentence and reality.
The linguistic theory which is known as the functional analysis, the
communicative analysis, the actual division analysis, or the informative
perspective analysis is an attempt to analyze communicative semantics of
the sentence. The main components of the actual division of a sentence are
the theme and the rheme.
The theme is the starting point of communication, a thing or a
phenomenon about which something is reported in the sentence; it usually
contains some already known‖ information. The rheme is the basic
informative part of the sentence, its contextually relevant communicative
center, the information reported about the theme; so it usually contains some
new information. The rheme is the obligatory informative component of a
sentence, there may be sentences which include only the rheme; the theme
and the transition are optional.
When the actual division of the sentence reects the natural ow of
thinking directed from the starting point of communication to its semantic
core, from the logical subject to the logical predicate, the theme precedes
the rheme and this type of actual division is called direct, unspecialized or
unmarked. In English, which has xed word order, direct actual division
means that the theme coincides with the subject in the syntactic structure of
the sentence, while the rheme coincides with the predicate.
Actual division of the sentence nds its full expression only in a particular
context. Actual division is an active means of expressing various functional
meanings.
is a part of grammar which deals with phrases and sentences.
is a separate linguistic unit which must be considered on a
separate level of linguistic analysis. A phrase is dened as a combination
of two or more words which form a grammatical unit. According to this
denition the constituent elements of a phrase may belong to any part of
speech.
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But there is another interpretation of phrase given by V.V. Vinogradov.
According to him a phrase must contain at least two notional words. Though,
the inconvenience of this restriction for English grammar is that the group
“preposition + noun” remains outside the classication and is neglected in
the theory of syntax.
The number of constituents in a phrase is usually from two to ve,
although sometimes can be up to six or eight. Actually, this limit is set by
human mind capacities. There may be as many words in a phrase as can be
kept in mind and identied as a phrase.
The difference between a phrase and a sentence is a fundamental one.
A phrase is a means of naming some phenomena or process (just as a word
is). Each component of a phrase can undergo changes according to its
grammatical categories (write letters – wrote a letter – writes letters, etc).
A sentence, on the contrary, is a unit within which each word has its denite
form. And any formal change would produce a new sentence.
is a unit of communication. Intonation is one of its most
important features, which distinguishes it from a phrase.
The major syntactic relations between components of a phrase are
subordination and coordination.
Subordination is the syntactic relation of the constituents of a phrase one
of which is principal (a head-word) and the other is subordinate (a difcult
problem). Coordintion is the syntactic relation of the constituents of a phrase
characterized by their equality (ladies and gentlemen).
Among various denitions given to the sentence the most general one
is the following: Sentence is the minimal syntactic structure used in speech
communication, distinguished by predication and built up of words according
to a denite syntactic pattern. This denition focuses on three aspects of
the sentence: pragmatic, semantic and structural. The sentence is a means
of communication. And intonation is a specic feature of the sentence as a
unit of communication. In the semantic aspect, the sentence is characterized
by its specic category of predication which establishes the relation of the
named phenomena to actual life. The center of predication is a nite verb.
Predication is performed through the verbal categories of tense and mood.
The structural aspect is conned to the fact that every actual sentence is built
up according to a denite syntactic pattern.
Communicative Types of Sentences. According to the purpose of
communication three cardinal sentence-types have been recognized in
linguistic tradition: a) the declarative sentence, b) the imperative sentence,
c) the interrogative sentence.
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The declarative sentence expresses a statement (afrmative or negative),
has a direct word order (SVO…) and stands in syntagmatic correlation with
the listener’s responding signals of attention or appraisal.
The imperative (or inductive) sentence expresses a request or command,
features the initial position of the verb in its structure (V…) and urges the
listener to make an action response.
The interrogative sentence expresses a question, has an inverted word
order (vSVO…) and is connected with an answer (verbal response), forming
together with it a question-answer dialogue unity. ‘
Alongside with the three cardinal communicative sentence-types, one
more type of sentences is recognized – exclamatory sentence – What a
small house it was!
Sentence Structures. First, it is worth considering the relationship
between two notions: sentence and clause. A simple sentence consists of
one clause. A composite sentence consists of two or more clauses. In a
composite sentence we must distinguish main clause and subordinate clause.
The rst principle of classication of composite sentences is the way of
joining clauses: either by means of special words designed for this function
(syndetically), or without such words (asyndetically). In the syndetic way,
the joining word may be a conjunction, a pronoun, or an adverb. If it is
a conjunction, it has no other function in the sentence but that of joining
clauses together. If it is a relative pronoun or a relative adverb, it has a double
function: it serves to join the clauses together and at the same time, it makes
up a part of a subordinate clause: I do not know what has happened.
Compound sentences consist of clauses joined together by coordinating
conjunctions (and, or, but, yet, so). Clauses in compound sentences have
equal rights, they are coordinated.
Complex sentences consist of clauses which are not on an equal
importance. One of them is the main clause and the other (or others) –
subordinate. There is a great variety of conjunctions (after, before, though,
since, etc.), a number of phrases (as soon as, in order to, etc.). Besides, there
are relative pronouns (who, which, that, etc.) and relative adverbs (where,
how, why, etc.).
Complex sentence is a sentence containing at least one subordinate
clause. The structural classication of complex sentences is based on
the classication of subordinate clauses which includes subject clauses,
predicative clauses, object clauses, attributive clauses and various types of
adverbial clauses (subordinate clauses of place, time, result, purpose, cause,
condition, manner, etc.).
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Structural types of simple sentences. Simple sentences are subdivided
into two-member sentences (having both subject and predicate) and onemember sentences (nominative, innitive, imperative). Elliptical sentences
are sentences with either the subject or the predicate omitted, presented
implicitly (the information is not given verbally but suggested by some
elements of the context).
Simple sentences can be non-extended (consisting only of the main
parts) and extended (consisting of the subject, the predicate and one or more
secondary parts).
1. What is the origin of the term ‘grammar’. Try to nd some interesting
facts about the history of grammar.
2. What are two constituent parts of the discipline Theoretical Grammar?
What are the aims of Theoretical and Practical grammar? What is the nature
of these constituent parts of grammar? Find as many interesting facts about
Panini as you can. What was his input into theory of language in general?
3. What was the meaning of the word grammar in Ancient times?
4. Who was the author of Traditional Grammar in Ancient Rome? What
word classes did he distinguish?
5. In what sense was the word grammar used in the Middle Ages?
th
6. What Grammar did English schools use in the 16
century?
7. How did the Renaissance epoch change general approach to grammar?
8. What was the nature of the rst English grammar?
9. What main features of Prescriptive Grammar can you point out?
10. What are the basic characteristics of Descriptive Grammar? Who
was the main follower of this approach in England? How can you characterize
his point of view on linguistic facts?
11. What is the descriptivists’ point of view on language studying?
12. What scholars were the rst to study language as a system? What
are the advantages of systematic approach to grammar?
13. Be ready to nd and present any interesting facts about A.N.
Chomsky and his linguistic theory?
14. What is understood by Universal grammar? Is it possible, from your
point of view, to create such grammar? Why? Or why not?
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:
Grammar, theoretical grammar, practical grammar, prescriptive grammar,
descriptive grammar, synchronic grammar, diachronic grammar, structural
grammar, universal grammar.
(1) Language is the expression of thought by means of words, that
is, by means of signs of a particular sort made with the vocal organs.
(J.B. Greenbough)
(2) Language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols by means of which
a social group cooperates. (M.Y. Blokh)
(3) Language is not an assemblage of unconnected patterns but a system
which is integrated in a high degree. (H. Leason)
(4) Language is a purely human and non-instinctive method of communicating ideas, emotions and desires by means of a system of voluntary
produced symbols. (E. Sapir)
(5) Language is rst and foremost a means of transmitting information,
and its study is a branch of the study of the signs and objects that they symbolize. <...> Language is also a form of social behaviour. (J. Whatmough)
(a) human language is a verbal means of communication;
(b) language is a system of signs (meaningful units);
(c) language is a macrosystem (supersystem);
(d) language (in the narrow sense) is a system of means of expression;
(e) language is a hierarchy of levels of the segmental units;
(f) language is social by nature;
(g) language is a corpus of lingual units that give us access to the mental
structures of human knowledge/experience.
a) nominative lingual unit;
b) predicative lingual unit;
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c) the smallest material lingual unit, which has no meaning of its own;
d) the smallest meaningful lingual unit;
e) complicated nominations, consisted of two or more words;
f) lingual textual unit.
1. What is meant by a grammatical category? What types of categories
do you know?
2. How many elements does a grammatical category include?
3. What types of meaning do you know? In which way do they dif-
fer?4. What is meant by synthetic and analytical forms?
5. Are there categories of number and gender in English? How are they
expressed?
6. What are the two main types of word-form derivation?
7. What morphemes express Synthetic type of derivation?
8. What is understood by a sound alteration?
9. What does Analytical type of building word forms consist in?
10. What is meant by Suppletive Formation? What facts can you point
out to prove that this type is typical of English?
11. What is meant by grammatical oppositions? What features must
their members possess?
12. Which types of oppositions do you know? Give examples.
13. What is a morpheme? What is the role and function of a morpheme
in the language?
Category, grammatical category, grammatical form, grammatical
opposition, analytical form, synthetic form, sound alteration, suppletive
form, morpheme.
feed – feet, dog – dogs, man – men, least – list – lest, cat – cat’s, Pete –
pit – pet – pat, to take – to be taken, am – are – is, invites – is inviting, go –
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will go, leak – league, come – came, child – children, makes – has made,
lug – luck, liked – had liked, look – looked, men – men’s.
girl – girl’s, look – is looking, cat – cats, speak – will speak, small –
smaller, to build – to be built, go – went – gone, interesting – more
interesting – the most interesting.
is looking, more difcult, the man, has played, bigger, to go, goes, going.
leaves, lead, costs, y, rings, tears, water, rules, present, mine, left,
long, fast.
1. Why is it difcult to give a rigorous denition to the term ‘word’?
2. Analyze denition of the term ‘word’ given by L. Bloomeld.
3. How does traditional grammar dene a word?
4. What are the criteria the study of morphemic structure of a word is
based on in Traditional Grammar?
5. Give denition to a root morpheme and an afx. What are the differ-
ences between them?
6. What types of afxes can be pointed out from structural point of
view?
7. What types of afxes can be pointed out from semantic point of view?
8. Are some prexes in English of grammatical nature?
9. What is the inection?
10. What is the elementary component of the language?
57
Word, morpheme, morphemic structure, afx, root, derivation.
a) burned, burnt; b) working, worker; c) impossible, invisible, illegal,
irregular; d) ruthful, ruthless; e) learning, learnt; f) worked, played; g)
agreeable, invincible; h) cells, caps; i) formulas, formulae; j) inexperienced,
unexperienced; k) undisputable, indisputable; l) published, rimmed; m)
seams, seamless, seamy.
.
-s, -ed, -ing, -en, -s, -er, -est.
Make words with the help of the following afxes and think of
sentences to use them.
Inputs, components, elements, Indo-European, Persian, within,
another, notable, progressive, wooden, stony, relation, functional, caused,
considerable, applies, visible, serves, situation, delegation, appositively,
impersonal, everybody, compounds, notes, discussing, eighteenth, birthday,
intransitive, rumours, repeated, informally, wishes, something, happily,
endless.
1. Give denition to the term ‘part of speech’.
1. Comment on different approaches to the denition of a ‘part of
speech’. Discuss pluses and misuses of each approach.
58
2. What aspects should be taken into account when characterizing a part
of speech?
3. What is the main difference between notional and functional parts of
speech? Which units belong to each class?
4. What is the generalized meaning and the main categories of a noun?
5. What is the generalized meaning and the main categories of an
adjective?
6. What is the generalized meaning and the main categories of a
pronoun?
7. What is the generalized meaning and the main categories of a numeral?
8. What is the generalized meaning and the main categories of a verb?
9. What is the generalized meaning and the main categories of an adverb?
10. What is the meaning and functions of prepositions and conjunctions?
11. What is the meaning and functions of particles and interjections?
Part of speech, semantics, morphology, syntax, notional parts of speech,
functional parts of speech, noun, adjective, pronoun, numeral, verb, adverb,
preposition, conjunction, particle, interjection.
1. The categorical meaning of the Noun is …..
a) indication
b) action or process
c) substance or thingness
d) property of some substance
2. ….. is a part of speech which points out objects and their qualities
without naming them.
a) the Noun
b) the Pronoun
c) the Adjective
d) the Verb
3. Process presented dynamically is the general categorical meaning
of …….
a) the Noun
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b) the Pronoun
c) the Verb
d) the Numeral
4. Match the parts of speech and their categorical meanings.
1) The Noun
2) The Pronoun
3) The Adjective
4) The Verb
a) property or quality, b) process, c) thingness, d) pointing to things or
properties without naming them
5. Match the parts of speech and their grammatical categories:
1) The Noun
2) The Pronoun
3) The Adjective
4) The Verb
a) number, case, b) number, case, gender, c) mood, tense, aspect, number,
person, voice, d) degrees of comparison
At eighteen the young clerk realized there was little future for him in his
native Germany. Scraping up enough money for the passage, he made the
long journey across the Atlantic to America, where his two older brothers
had preceded him. He was disappointed to discover that his brothers were
peddlers, not millionaires in New York. But with no skill or trade, and only
a few words of English, he was forced to become a peddler as well. He
learned quickly and soon began to earn a decent living. Although his brothers
seemed content with their lives, he knew that America offered far greater
potential. When he heard that gold had been discovered in California, he
took his savings, bought all the merchandise he could, and sailed on a ship
to San Francisco. There was such a need of goods of all kinds that he sold
almost everything as soon as he arrived. He had nothing left to sell except
several rolls of light canvas with which he intended to make tents for the
miners. He bought a wagon, loaded it with his rolls of material, and set out
to sell it. But when one of the rst miners told him of a special problem,
he suddenly got an idea. It was then that one of the great success stories of
America was born.
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