Grammar Theory Minor thesis : Clauses in English

This paper focuses on a brief contrast of English clauses among different grammar theories. The author wishes to concentrate on the differences among three grammar schools about English clauses. The thesis is divided into five sections; the main content is presented in section two. The different viewpoints among some grammar theories about clauses have been analyzed and pointed out with an ambition to help learners have clear understanding about English clauses. The author also gives classifications and comparisons of English clauses so that learners will have a wide overview of clauses and improve their grammar knowledge. Practically, the author hopes that the lessons drawn from the study of this work could effectively assist learners in improving their English grammar, and becoming excellent English users.

ABTRACT This paper focuses on a brief contrast of English clauses among different grammar theories The author wishes to concentrate on the differences among three grammar schools about English clauses The thesis is divided into five sections; the main content is presented in section two The different viewpoints among some grammar theories about clauses have been analyzed and pointed out with an ambition to help learners have clear understanding about English clauses The author also gives classifications and comparisons of English clauses so that learners will have a wide overview of clauses and improve their grammar knowledge Practically, the author hopes that the lessons drawn from the study of this work could effectively assist learners in improving their English grammar, and becoming excellent English users ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First of all, I (the author) would like to express my hearty gratitude to Dr Hoàng Tuyết Minh, who has given us many interesting and useful lectures This work would never have been possible without the encouragement and support from her I feel extremely fortunate as my knowledge has been highly widened through her lectures, which have inspired me to this minor thesis I am also indebted to all my lecturers at Hanoi Open University for their precious knowledge, useful lectures in linguistics, which lay the foundation for this study Next, my thanks also go to my friends, who gave me documents and encouraged me much while the work was in process Last but not least, I would like to express how thankful I am to my beloved families, who always stand by me and help me overcome all the difficulties in studying and completing this thesis TABLE OF CONTENTS List of contents Abstract Page Acknowledgements Table of contents Section I: INTRODUCTION Rationale Aims of the study Scope of the study Methods of the study Design of the study Section II: LITERATURE REVIEW Definition and characteristic features Section III: DEVELOPMENT 7 Classification of clauses In terms of Traditional Grammar 1.1 Independent clauses 1.2 Dependent clauses In terms of Phrase-Structure Grammar 2.1 Finite and non-finite clauses 2.1.1 Finite clauses 10 2.1.2 Non-finite clauses 11 10 12 2.2 Verbless clauses In terms of Systematic Functional Grammar 3.1 Clauses as a message 3.1.1 Theme in declarative clauses 13 13 14 3.1.2 Theme in interrogative clauses 14 3.1.3 Theme in imperative clauses 14 3.2 Clauses as exchange 14 3.2.1 Structure of the Mood element 15 3.2.2 Structure of the Residue element 15 3.3 Clauses as Representation 16 3.3.1 Process 16 3.3.1.1 Material clauses 16 3.3.1.2 Mental clauses 3.3.1.3 Relational clauses 16 3.3.1.4 Behavioral clauses 17 3.3.1.5 Verbal clauses 17 3.3.1.6 Existential clauses 17 17 3.3.2 Participants 18 3.3.3 Circumstances 18 Section 4: FINDING AND DISCUSSION Comparisons 19 The Importance of Clauses 19 Some suggestions in learning clauses 20 19 Section V: CONCLUSION 21 REFERENCES 22 Section I: INTRODUCTION Rationale Over the last decades since English became the first language of many countries, there have been many works on English grammar The more widely English is used, the more researches on English grammar are done So far, there have been six grammar schools: Prescriptive and Descriptive Grammar, Traditional Grammar, Phrase-Structure Grammar, Transformational-Generative Grammar, Functional-Systematic Grammar, and Cognitive Grammar Each of the schools, in some ways, gives a different viewpoint on different grammar points However, no matter how different they are, all of them help learners have a better understanding about the language in various perspectives It is very necessary, therefore, to study English grammar in different grammar theories if learners want to master it As a teacher of English, I always try my best to help my students master English grammar Never would this aim be achieved if I did not master English first Therefore, I have chosen to study English grammar on different grammar theories for this thesis In such a short minor thesis, I can not work on many grammar points The only point I have chosen for this study is Clauses in English, which is a very important language point that students often get difficulties when learning English I present my work in terms of three different types of grammar theories: Traditional Grammar, Phrase – Structure Grammar and Functional – Systematic Grammar Aims of the study 2.1 Objectives - To help learners avoid mistakes when they make English sentences - To help learners have a wider knowledge about clauses according to three different grammar schools 2.2 Significance The author hopes that this study is useful for both English and Vietnamese learners, who want to consolidate their knowledge of English grammar in general, and of English clauses in particular, which can help them significantly improve their sentence grammar The result of this study should be meaningful for helping English students to pay more attention to the study of English clauses and eventually enrich their skills in using English language Scope of the study This is only a minor thesis, so the author can only deal with: Literature review, definition of clauses, classification and features, comparisons among the different viewpoints and some exercises to consolidate the knowledge Methods of the study To accomplish this study, some following methods have been used: + Library research: The author collected the documents from curriculums, the Internet and some valuable grammar books of foreign scholars The author thinks these are valuable sources to support the study effectively + Description: based on the collected knowledge, the author has withdrawn some helpful applications of using English clauses + Analysis: by giving examples, the author analyzed the characteristics of each kind of clauses according to the three grammar schools + Comparison and contrast: from the examples, analysis and descriptions, The author compares and contrasts clauses among the different viewpoints of the three grammar schools Design of the study The study consists of five sections: - Section I: Introduction - Section II: Literature review - Section III: Development - Section IV: Findings and discussion - Section V: Conclusion - References Section II: LITERATURE REVIEW Definition and characteristic features To research clauses, first of all, we must understand what a clause is It really is a complicated question There are various versions of clause’s definition In this research the author will provide some definitions which are the most useful and easiest to identify According to Traditional Grammar, “A clause is a group of words that contains a subject and a verb There are two major types: independent clauses and dependent clauses An independent clause can stand alone as a sentence, beginning with a capital letter and ending with terminal punctuation such as a period A dependent clause cannot stand alone as a sentence; instead it must be attached to an independent clause." (G Lutz and D Stevenson, The Writer's Digest Grammar Desk Reference, 2005) According to Phrase-Structure Grammar, “a clause is the smallest grammatical unit that can express a complete proposition A typical clause consists of a subject and a predicate, where the predicate is typically a verb phrase.” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clause) According to functional grammar, “the clause is the central processing unit in the lexical grammar – in the specific sense that it is in the clause that meanings of different kinds are mapped into an integrated grammar structure.” (M.A.K Halliday: An Introduction To Functional Grammar, P.10) Clauses are thus our basic vehicle for talking about the world and relating occurrences to our own circumstances (Ronald W Langacker (2008): Cognitive grammar New York: Oxford University Press) From the definitions above, it can be defined that a clause is a grammar unit at a level between a phrase and a sentence A clause is a part of a sentence that has its own subject and verb Also a clause is a significant semantic unit A sentence may/can consist of one clause or more than one clause To illustrate this, the author will show some examples: He is a good man (one clause) He is the man who always work very hard (2 clauses) I didn’t know that you won the prize, which made me surprised (3 clauses) Section III: DEVELOPMENT Classification of clauses In terms of Traditional Grammar According to Traditional Grammar, there are two major types of clauses: independent clauses (main clauses) and dependent clauses (subordinate clauses) 1.1 Independent clauses An independent clause can stand in a simple sentence, a compound sentence, a complex sentence or a compound complex sentence For examples: - "We cannot walk alone." "We cannot walk alone" is an independent clause- also known as a main clause This construction is a simple sentence - "All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others." This sentence contains two independent clauses joined by the conjunction "but." This combination is called a compound sentence - "A woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction." This sentence begins with an independent clause- "A woman must have money and a room of her own"- and ends with an adverb clause of condition This combination is called a complex sentence - "Life moves pretty fast If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it." "Life moves pretty fast" and "you could miss it" are independent clauses "If you don't stop and look around once in a while" is an adverb clause Therefore, the first sentence is simple; the second sentence is complex - "I was more independent than any farmer in Concord, for I was not anchored to a house or farm, but could follow the bent of my genius, which is a very crooked one, every moment." This sentence contains two independent clauses joined by the conjunction "for"; the second independent clause is interrupted by an adjective clause- "which is a very crooked one." This combination is called a compound-complex sentence 1.2 Dependent clauses A dependent clause (also called a subordinate clause) is a clause that cannot stand alone as a sentence Instead it must be attached to an independent clause, because something about it implies that there is more to come On its own, a dependent clause is left hanging, its meaning is incomplete It must be combined with an independent clause in order to form a complete sentence Ex: When I was young, I used to admire intelligent people; as I grow older, I admire kind people." When I was young can not make a meaningful sentence without I used to admire intelligent people Similarly, as I grow older can not be a complete sentence without I admire kind people More examples: "Whenever I get the urge to exercise, I lie down until the urge passes." "I am always ready to learn although I not always like being taught." In terms of Phrase-Structure Grammar According to Phrase – structure Grammar, Clauses are divided into three kinds: Finite clauses, Non-finite clauses, and Verbless clauses In the 2002 revision of the Cambridge Grammar of the English Language, finite verbs were renamed primary verbs, non-finite verbs were renamed secondary verbs The words finite and nonfinite were reinterpreted as a syntactic category of the clause In this thesis, the author would like to use the traditional namesFinite & Non-finite, as they seem still more popular for most English learners nowadays 2.1 Finite and non-finite clauses Verbs, words that belong to the verb word class, have five syntactic forms: the base form, the -s form, the -ing participle, the past form and the -ed participle (often called the “past participle”) The -s form and the past form are finite The -ing participle and the past participle are non-finite The base form is sometimes finite and sometimes non-finite A verb phrase containing just one word is finite if that word is a finite verb and non-finite if that word is a non-finite verb Verb phrases containing more than one word are finite if their first word is a finite verb and non-finite if their first word is a non-finite verb When the base form is the first word in a verb phrase, i.e when it occupies the position that determines whether the phrase is finite or non-finite, it is finite It appears in its non-finite form when it is preceded by an auxiliary (in a finite phrase) For example, “Harry does not love Jill.” A clause is finite if its verb phrase is finite and non-finite if its verb phrase is non-finite (The clause that constitutes a simple sentence always has a finite verb phrase; the main clause of a complex sentence always has a finite verb phrase; all the independent clauses of a compound sentence always have finite verb phrases.) 2.1.1 Finite clauses: In finite clauses, primary (finite) verbs can be inflected for tense, person and number That is to say, they are marked by tense (usually -ed in past) and number (usually -s in present simple for the 3rd person) Some examples: Dick lives with Jane While going to university, Dick had been living with Jane Dick found a job for Jane in Harry’s company Dick and Jane work for Harry From the examples above, we can see that: 10 (i) the verb phrases in the four finite clauses - lives, had been living, found, and work - all begin with a finite verb (ii) in each of these cases “tense contrast” is possible — i.e the first and fourth examples could be put into the past tense, and the second and third could be put into the present (iii) in the first and fourth examples, singular/plural contrast is possible, i.e in the first example if a plural subject such as Tom and Dick were substituted, there would be a resulting change in the verb (from lives to live) and likewise if, in the fourth example, a singular subject such as Dick were substituted, there would be a comparable change in the verb (from work to works); 2.1.2 Non-finite clauses: Independent clauses are always finite Therefore, nonfinite clauses can be only in subordinate clauses Secondary or nonfinite verbs are not marked for tense, aspect, mood, number or person Subordinate clauses may be either finite or nonfinite Within this broad classification, we can make many further distinctions We will begin by looking at subordinate clauses which are distinguished by their formal characteristics Examples: Harry had always wanted to raise a big family They made the professor forget his notes His hobby is collecting old photographs Although raised on a farm, Harry had no interest in animals In the case of these four examples of non-finite clauses, we can see typically that: no “tense” or “number” contrasts are possible in the verb phrases And we can conclude that non-finite clauses appear in four forms: 11 - To-infinitive clauses - Bare-infinitive clauses - Present(-ing) participle clauses - Past(-ed) participle clauses 2.2 Verbless clauses "Verbless clauses are clauses which contain no verb element, and often also no subject They are regarded as clauses because they function in ways which make them equivalent to finite and non-finite clauses, and because they can be analyzed in terms of one or more clause elements." (Geoffroy Leech and Jan Svartvik, A Communicative Grammar of English, 1975) Verbless clauses are clauses in which the verb (usually a form of to be) and sometimes other elements have been deleted For examples: “Generic drugs must be chosen when available or an additional expense will be incurred.” “Although not unfriendly toward strangers, this dog will protect its family in times of danger.” “He considered the girl a good student.” “Whenever in trouble, Bill rang his girl-friend.” “As a child, I used to sell lottery to earn money.” "A verbless clause is considered a clause because it is dealing with a separate piece of information in relation to the main clause For example, in the sentence, In the interests of the local children, the council should reconsider its decision, there are two separate pieces of information: the main clause-the council should reconsider its decision; and a dependent clause that deals with issues that interest local children In this clause, however, the verb has been nominallized resulting in a verbless clause Verbless clauses are different from adverbial phrases The latter provide some information to with the time, place, or manner in which something happens within an existing clause Verbless clauses, on the other hand, provide a separate piece of information outside of an existing clause 12 In terms of Systematic Functional Grammar According to functional grammar, a clause is the unit where meanings of different kinds, experiential, interpersonal and textual, are integrated into a single syntax According to Halliday(2004), there are three lines of meanings in the clause: Clauses as a message, Clauses as an exchange and Clauses as a representation Three lines of meanings in the clause: The theme functions in the structure of the clause as a message A clause has meaning as a message, a quantum of information; the theme is the point of departure for the message It is the element the speaker selects for ‘grounding’ what he is going on to say The Subject functions in the structure of the clause as an exchange A clause has meaning as an exchange, a transaction between speaker and listener; the Subject is the warranty of the exchange It is the element the speaker makes responsible for the validity of what he is saying The Actor functions in the structure of the clause as a representation A clause has meaning as a representation of some process in ongoing human experience; the Actor is the active participant in that process It is the element the speaker portrays as the one that does the deed These three headings – clause as a message, clause as an exchange, clause as a representation – refer to three distinct kinds of meaning that are embodied in the structure of a clause 3.1 Clauses as a message: The clause is organized as a message by having a distinct status assigned to one part of it The Theme is the element which serves as the point of departure of the message; it is that which locates and orients the clause within its context The theme locates in three kinds of clauses: 13 3.1.1 Theme in declarative clauses In a declarative clause, the typical pattern is one in which theme is conflated with Subject For example: Dr Hoang Tuyet Minh is a kind teacher  a kind teacher is conflated with Dr Hoang Tuyet Minh 3.1.2 Theme in interrogative clauses The typical function of an interrogative clause is to ask a question; and from the speaker’s point of view, asking a question is an indication that he wants to be told something For examples: Are you free on Monday morning? What did you last night? 3.1.3 Theme in imperative clauses The basic message of an imperative clause is either ‘I want you to something’ or ‘I want us to something’ Examples: Please me a favor Sign your name here, please The guiding principles of thematic structure is this: the Theme contains one, and only one, of these experiential elements This means that the Theme of a clause ends with the first constituent that is either participant, circumstance or process We refer to this constituent, in its textual function, as the topical Theme For example: Past tense in English is usually realized as “-ed”, in so-called ‘weak’ verbs; Second, there may be a change of vowels, in ‘strong’ verbs; some have change of vowels plus final –d/t For example: think  thought,  did, mean  meant 3.2 Clauses as exchange The clause is organized as an interactive event involving speaker or writer and audience For example, in asking a question, a speaker is taking on the role of seeker of information and the listener takes on the role of supplier of the information demand 14 Clauses as exchanges conclude two kinds of components: Mood and Residue elements 3.2.1 Structure of the Mood element: * Structure of the Mood element consists of two parts: - The subject, which is a nominal group It is a noun phrase or a personal pronoun - The Finite operator, which is a part of verbal group expressing the tense Example: Mrs Minh seems very strict, doesn’t she? Subject: Mrs Minh, she Finite operator: seems, doesn’t * Function of the Mood element: It has a clearly defined semantic function It carries the burden of the clause as an interactive event 3.2.2 Structure of the Residue element: The Residue consists of functional elements of three kinds: - Predicator - Complement - Adjunct 3.2.2.1 Predicator: is presented in all major clauses It’s realized by a verbal group minus the temporal or modal operator, which as we have seen, functions as Finite in the Mood element 3.2.2.2 Complement: is an element within the Residue that has the potential of being Subject but is not It is realized by a nominal group 3.2.2.3 Adjunct: is an element that has not got the potential being Subject, it can’t be elevated to the interpersonal status of modal responsibility Example: My son is playing games with his friends Subject Finite Predicator Complement Residue Adjunct Mood 3.3 Clauses as Representation: 15 In clauses as representation, we deal with ideational functional Speaker’ experience of the real World including his own inner world of consciousness is represented or conceptualized Structure of clauses as representation consists of process, participants and circumstances Process: verbal group; participants: nominal group; circumstances: adverbial group Example: Hoa bought me a present at the supermarket yesterday - Process: bought - Participants: Hoa, me, a present - Circumstances: at the supermarket, yesterday 3.3.1 Process: Process is centrally important in clauses because it is process that largely determines the types of participants that are possible Halliday refers it as the system of transitivity Process consists of six types: Material, Mental, Relational, Behavioral, Verbal, and Existential clause 3.3.1.1 Material clauses Material clauses are processes of doing and happening A material clause construes a quantum of change in the flow of events as taking place through some input of energy Material process concludes six participant roles: the Actor, the Goal, Scope, Recipient, Client, and Attribute Examples: The lion caught the tourist  The lion: the Actor; the tourist: the Goal They crossed Hyde Park and the Domain to the Art Gallary of NSW  Hyde Park and the Domain: Scope Did Kerry give you those files there?  You: Recipient 3.3.1.2 Mental clauses Mental clauses are clauses of sensing which construe a quantum of change in the flow of events taking place in our consciousness For examples: Tom: “I hate cockroaches more than rats” 16 Peter: “I don’t like cockroaches either” 3.3.1.3 Relational clauses Relational clauses are processes of being and having, which serve to characterize and to identify For examples: It wasn’t one nation at that point; it was a large number of independent political entities (Characterization) The three major groups in the nation are the Yoruba in the southwest, the Ibo in the southeast, and the Hausa, finally, in the north (identification) 3.3.1.4 Behavioral clauses Behavioral clauses are processes of physiological and psychological behavior, like breathing, coughing, smiling, dreaming and staring For examples: Why are you laughing?  laugh: behavioral process Be quiet! I’m thinking  think: behavioral process 3.3.1.5 Verbal clauses Verbal clauses are clauses of saying which contribute to the creation of narrative by making it possible to set up dialogic passages Verbal clauses are often used to develop accounts of dialogue For examples: What did you say? – I said it’s noisy in here  with you, I functions as Sayer Ba said: “Oh, can you this?” and I said: “Look! You’re at the end of a very long line; be prepared to wait.” 3.3.1.6 Existential clauses Existential clauses represent that something exists or happens For examples: There On the wall Circumstance 3.3.2 Participants: was process there hangs Process a storm Existent: event a picture Existent: entity - These present the persons, things and abstract entities involved in the process 17 - Types of participants: actor, sensor, carrier, behavior, sayer, existent, goal, phenomenon, attribute/identifier, receiver Example: The boy broke the glass Participants: The boy (actor), the glass (goal) Process: broke 3.3.3 Circumstances: Circumstances are clauses of adverbial group, which are usually terms of time, place, manner, cause, accompaniment, role, matter or angle - Types of Circumstantial elements: * Extent: distance, duration, frequency Ex: for hours * Location: place, time Ex: at midnight, in June * Manner: means, quality, comparison, degree Ex: by bus, in a good way, very much, like/ unlike… * Cause : reason, purpose, behalf Ex: because of, for the sake of, on behalf of… * Contingency: condition, default, concession: Ex: in case of, without, in default of, in spite of … * Accompaniment: comitative, additive Ex: with, as well as, instead of… * Role: guise, product Ex: as, in the shape of, into… * Matter Ex: about, concerning, with reference to… * Angle: source, viewpoint Ex: according to, in the view/ opinion of… More example: She beats her son with a ruler with a ruler : manner circumstance: Section 4: FINDING AND DISCUSSION 18 Comparisons According to Traditional Grammar, a clause is a part of a sentence There are two main types: independent (main clauses), and dependent (subordinate clauses) According to Phrase – structure Grammar, Clauses are divided into three kinds: Finite clauses, Non-finite clauses, and Verbless clauses According to functional grammar, a clause is the unit where meanings of different kinds, experiential, interpersonal and textual, are integrated into a single syntax According to Halliday(2004), there are three lines of meanings in the clause: Clauses as a message, Clauses as exchanges and Clauses as Representations According to Halliday, a language evolves in response to the specific demands of the society in which it is used The nature of language is closely related to the functions it has to serve It reflects aspects of the situation in which it occurs Therefore, we can see that Functional Grammar looks at clauses in a wider range than Traditional and Phrase-Structure Grammar Functional Grammar classifies clauses not only based on sentence elements or structures but also on their fundamental components of meanings Functional Grammar makes clear the interaction between the syntax, semantics, and pragmatics of the clause The Importance of Clauses By using clauses correctly, students can quickly and easily improve the quality of their writing and their ability to communicate with their readers With a clause, students can direct the attention of the readers so that their sentence is understood They will also avoid incorrectly using dependent clauses as sentence fragments Some suggestions in learning clauses 19 When learners study English sentences, it is worth spending much time studying clauses, as clauses are indispensable components to form sentences They should this by looking at different grammar schools which can help them understand clauses clearer and in a wider range When studying clauses, they should focus not only on what to form the clause and sentence but also on the interaction between the syntax, semantics, and pragmatics of the clause Section V: CONCLUSION 20 According to Traditional Grammar, there are two major types of clauses: independent clauses (main clauses) and dependent clauses (subordinate clauses) An independent clause can stand alone as a simple sentence, while a dependent clause cannot stand alone as a sentence Instead it must be combined with an independent clause in order to form a complete sentence According to Phrase – structure Grammar, Clauses are divided into three kinds: Finite clauses, Non-finite clauses, and Verbless clauses Independent clauses are always finite Only dependent clauses can be finite or non-finite In finite clauses, finite verbs can be inflected for tense, person, aspect, mood and number Whereas, nonfinite verbs are not marked for tense, aspect, mood, number or person Verbless clauses are clauses which contain no verb element, and often also no subject They are regarded as clauses because they function in ways which make them equivalent to finite and non-finite clauses, and because they can be analyzed in terms of one or more clause elements In terms of Functional Systematic grammar, there are three lines of meanings in the clause A clause has meaning as a message The clause is organized as a message by having a distinct status assigned to one part of it A clause has meaning as an exchange The clause is organized as an interactive event involving speaker or writer and audience Clauses as an exchange consist of components: Mood elements and Residue elements A clause has meaning as a representation In clauses as representation, we deal with ideational functional structure The structure of clauses as representation consists of process, participants and circumstances Consequently, by providing some Classification and characteristic features of clauses in terms of the three grammar schools, the author hopes that students can have useful materials to strengthen their knowledge about clauses in English REFERENCES 21 • Geoffroy Leech and Jan Svartvik, A Communicative Grammar of English, 1975 • Halliday, M.A.K Explorations in the Functions of Language London: Edward Arnold, 1973 • Halliday, M.A.K., and C.M.I.M Matthiessen An Introduction to Functional Grammar 3d ed London: Arnold, 2004 • Peter Knapp and Megan Watkins, Genre, Text, Grammar: Technologies for Teaching and Assessing Writing UNSW Press, 2005 • Randolph Quirk Sydney Greenbaum Geoffrey Leech Jan Svartvik A Comprehensive Grammar of the English language: David Crystal • Ronald W Langacker (2008) Cognitive grammar New York: Oxford University Press Websites: • (Richard Nordquist: http://grammar.about.com/od/il/g/independterm.htm) • (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clause) 22