Due to this subject, I know more and more grammar, sentence structure, role of verb in sentence, and so on.. I can know the way of using other kinds of grammar.[r]
(1)Reflection
Syntax is the part of grammar that concerns itself with the structure of sentences Thus, studying English syntax is studying about its grammar so that this first chapter mainly focuses on Grammar and its types
Firstly, the term of grammar itself can be ambiguous In a narrow sense, the term grammar may be construed as being similar to the term of syntax That is talking about grammar, we can think about structure of sentences However, there are also some other definitions of grammar: “A grammar of a language is a coherent system of rules and principles that are at the basis of the grammatical sentences of a language.”(Haegeman); “Grammar deals with language forms and meanings and the ways they are interconnected”(Jacobs) and “A grammar of a language is a model of the linguistic competence of the fluent native speaker of the language.”(Radfrord) Secondly, grammar can be viewed differently depending on the perspective one is taking These ways of viewing grammar have led to the ways that grammar has been categorized as types of grammar There are three types of grammar: mental grammar, descriptive grammar and prescriptive grammar Specifically, mental grammar refers to native speakers’ linguistic competence in using the rules and principles to produce and understand their language Otherwise, descriptive grammar provides visible analogs to the invisible mental grammars of native speakers Besides, prescriptive grammar states rules for what is considered the best or most correct usage It is based on the grammarian’s views of what is best
From the first chapter, definitions of syntax and grammar concern with structure of sentences in So, what is sentence structure? This problem will be interpreted in chapter “Sentences structure” It is divided into parts: the units of syntactic analysis, constituent structure and some properties of sentence structure First of all, that’s constituent structure A constituent is a part of some unit higher in the hierarchy More specifically, complementary to the concept of constituent is that of construction
(2)-Constructions are made up of units lower in the hierarchy The sentence is the largest unit of syntax and the word the smallest By contrast, the words are not syntactic constructions because they are the minimal units of syntax, and the sentence is not a constituent Accordingly, there are three ways that represent the constituents in a sentence: labeled brackets, phrase structure and tree diagram Moreover, there are some properties of sentence structure such as linearity, hierarchy, and categoriality Linearity is word order in a sentence All of the words in a sentence cannot be uttered at a same time; they are produced in a time sequence Hierarchy is that different ways of grouping words may result in different meanings And categoriality is that words have different distributions based on their categories
In English, some verbs don’t take a noun phrase, but others require a noun phrase to follow So what is the role of the verb in a sentence? The verb plays a significant part in most English sentences: it determines the meaning of a sentence The verb and its noun phrase make up not only a syntactic unit but also a semantic unit According, every verb has its argument structure – required noun phrase, and the participants minimally involved in the activity or state expressed by verb called the predicate The predicate determines the number of arguments, the status of arguments, and the forms of arguments However, verbs are not the only grammatical category that can function as predicates Actually, there is a semantic relationship between the predicate and its arguments The predicate can assign semantic roles to its arguments The specific roles that arguments semantically receive from predicates are now to as thematic roles The thematic roles which are generally distinguished in current linguistic descriptions: agent, patient, theme, experiencer, goal, benefactive, source, instrument, locative Thematic roles show a partial correlation with grammatical relationship
In syntax, subcategorization refers the occurrence or non – occurrence of the internal arguments Another thing, subcategorization is used to show the tight bond between the head and its complement And grammatical relations in a phrase consist of a head, complements, adjuncts, and specifiers The complements are used to denote
(3)-any constituent whose presence is required by another element, a predicate or head and are obligatory A constituent just adds some meaning having to with time, place, manner, etc, that is called an adjunct, which is optional phrase
There is internal hierarchy between the constituents of a verb That’s, all VP – internal constituents can not be treated on an equal footing As a result, substitution affects constituent Therefore, the flat layered structure can not represent internal structure, but the layered structure can so Lastly, X-bar is the part of grammar that regulates the structure of phrases
After studying English syntax, I have something in my mind Syntax brings me many benefits and necessary knowledge of English linguistics First of all, I found it a very great chance to have this subject in my studying project This is a really useful and interesting subject, which helps me a great deal in studying and mastering English, my favorite subject of all time Due to this subject, I know more and more grammar, sentence structure, role of verb in sentence, and so on I can know the way of using other kinds of grammar Moreover, I can understand more clearly about how a sentence made up so that I can comprehend a sentence in many meanings and more exactly Therefore, I can prevent myself from misunderstanding others, especially native speakers, in many cases The predicate and its argument help me how to use correct verb, how many phrases or clauses which the verb requires So I can make right sentences, use English as well as native speakers In addition, this subject can help me analyze a sentence as a “doctor” – scientist of language I feel that my English language is more and more accurate and professional Actually, it is not easy to understand the items in this subject; I have ever been confused when attending my class But if I know the way to study it, it is not such difficult as I thought I myself found some effective ways to help me learn this subject such as reading materials as many as possible, doing exercises and doing research everywhere in every books or materials written in English that related to Syntax Besides that, syntax provides me many advantages Syntax has close relationship with many other subjects such as Introduction to language, grammar and semantic It is also an opportunity for me to
(4)-consolidate my knowledge Day by day, the more I studied about syntax, the more I liked it I think that I made a right decision when having this course in this semester However, I still want to have a better way of learning this rather difficult subject I have to try all my best and take time self-studying more and more so that I can learn things effectively and accurately, at least, not being confused whenever attending in class