The Thought Occurs

Friday 20 February 2015

How Are The Paradigmatic And Syntagmatic Axes Related?

System is more abstract than structure:

Halliday & Matthiessen (2004: 22):
It will be clear that [system] is a more abstract representation than that of structure, since it does not depend on how the categories are expressed.
so syntagmatic organisation realises paradigmatic organisation:

Halliday & Matthiessen (2004: 24):
Structural operations — inserting elements, ordering elements, and so on — are explained as realising systemic choices. … When we speak of structural features as ‘realising’ systemic choices, this is one manifestation of a general relationship that pervades every quarter of language. Realisation derives from the fact that a language is a stratified system.
Halliday & Matthiessen (1999: 13):
… on the one hand, syntagmatic organisation realises paradigmatic organisation; on the other hand, types in a network of paradigmatic organisation correspond to fragments of syntagmatic specification …

Wednesday 18 February 2015

Symposium

Origin
late 16th century (denoting a drinking party): via Latin from Greek sumposion, from sumpotēs ‘fellow drinker’, from sun- ‘together’ + potēs ‘drinker’.

Tuesday 17 February 2015

Nominal Groups: The Modifying Relation Is Inherently Ascriptive (Intensive, Possessive Or Circumstantial)

Halliday & Matthiessen (1999: 183):
Experientially, there is a ‘carrier’ — the Thing — and there are ‘attributes’ — Epithets and other modifiers. However, participants are construed not only experientially but also logically, which means that the Thing (typically) serves as a Head that can be modified by successive attributes and that this modifying relation is inherently ascriptive. […] There is the same range of types of ascription as are found in ascriptive figures, and these can be interpreted in terms of the different categories of expansion.


expansion of Thing
Deictic
Epithet
Classifier
Thing
Qualifier
elaboration (intensive)
these
nutritious

swedes

these

Mexican
mangoes




kitchens
of distinction
extension (possessive)
my aunt’s


teapot

the


stems
of the leek
the

table
leg

enhancement (circumstantial)
these

18th C
vases

some


mangoes
from Mexico
a
chicory-like

plant
  

Wednesday 11 February 2015

Workplace Psychopaths

We all know one.

Read this to learn what to do if you find yourself working with one...

Monday 9 February 2015

The Perils Of Grammaticalisation (Literally)

He literally wiped the floor with the opposition.

He literally exploded during the argument.

His head was literally spinning with ideas.

He literally eats like a pig.

He literally broke her heart.

He was literally on a roller coaster of emotions.



Thursday 5 February 2015

Facts Vs Reports

Halliday & Matthiessen (2004: 482):
Whereas any clause that is projected by another clause, verbal or mental, is either a quote (paratactic) or a report (hypotactic, or embedded if the process is a noun), any clause that has the status of ‘projected’ but without any projecting process is a fact and is embedded, either as a nominalisation serving as Head or as Postmodifier to a ‘fact’ noun serving as Head.

Tuesday 3 February 2015

Frequency Vs Usuality

Halliday & Matthiessen (2004: 264):
In the temporals there is an additional category of ‘frequency’, how many times?. This is related to the interpersonal category of usuality, but it is not identical to it; usuality is a modal assessment referring to position on a scale between positive and negative (always/never), whereas frequency is the extent of the repetition of the process. The categories of extent and usuality may, however, work together, as in a narrative where habitude is established.