syntactical level

• syntax - a branch of linguistics whose main object of research is a sentence
• syntax is interested in external relationships between words
• syntax is concerned with the analysis of structures and regular patterns of sentences
• each language can produce an unlimited number of sentences with a limited number of words
• when analyzing sentences we divide them into smaller units call - the immediate constituents
• IC analysis - by Bloomfield
• in IC analysis each sentence can be split into 2 parts - 2 constituents and each of them can be lather split into other 2 constituents until we will reach the ultimate constituents = further undivisible constituents
• immediate constituents are those who appear next to each other on the same layer in the sentence hierarchy
• advantages of IC analysis

  • most effective way of showing the inner layering of sentences : great many sentences contain a subject and predicate
  • can help us find out what are the units that compose utterances so that we can decide what we mean by such words as a sentence, clause, phrase
  • it reveals the constituents of an utterance and can tell us something about the relationship among them - it enables us to make som description of the grammatical system of language
• disadvantages of IC analysis :

  • one and the same sentence sometime admits two different alternative structures
  • it is aimed at the surface structure and does not analyze the deep structure
• Lyons distinguishes 5 units of grammatical description:

  • morpheme - lowest unit
  • word
  • phrase
  • clause
  • sentence - highest unit

  Composition - is the relation between them, units of higher rank are composed of units of smaller rank
• sentence - is the largest unit of grammatical description
• clause - is a group of words which has its own subject and predicate but cannot stand alone as a complete sentence
• word - is the smallest unit of grammar
• classification of sentences by function:

  • statements
  • questions
  • exclamations
  • commands
• classification of sentences by structural complexity :

  • simple - consists of a single independent clause
  • multiple - consists of one or more clauses as its IC
  • compound - the IC are two or more coordinate clauses
  • couples - one or more of its elements such as D object or adverbial are realized by subordinate clauses
• classification of sentences by syntagmatic relationships:

  • subject
  • complement
  • object
  • indirect object
  • intransitive verb - can stand alone and still make sense
  • transitive verb - needs a direct object
  • adverbial group
• classification of subordinate clauses:

  • nominal
  • adjectival
  • adverbial
  • temporal
  • conditional
  • relative
• clause - is a syntactic unit that consists of a subject and a predicate
• clause is a sentence-like segment of a sentence
• nominal clause - can function as the : subject, complement, object, indirect object, apposition
• adjectival clause - functions mostly as postmodifiers of the head of nominal segments
• adverbial clause: functions as adjuncts to verbs, like adjectives and adverbs can function as sentence adverbs
• phrase - a syntactic unit grammatically equivalent to a single word and does not have its own subject and predicate
• the dominant word is called the head - if the sentence has only one word it is the head
• we have noun, adjective, adverb and verb phrases
• elements which precede the head = modifiers
• elements which follow the head = qualifiers
• construction - is grouping and combining of words in a sentence

  • endocentric-group is syntactically equivalent to one or more of its component words
  • subordinative
  • coordinative
  • exocentric
• subject - represents a person or a thing of which something is said
• meaning of subject:

  • logical subject
  • psychological subject
  • grammatical subject
• predicate - must contain a verb and it modifies the subject
• FSP - functional sentence perspective : the sentence can be divided into 2 parts :

  • theme - the basis, the starting point, known information
  • rheme - brings new information, the nucleus
• communicative dynamism - communication has a dynamic nature and the speaker strategically organizes information based on the listener expectations and context
• rheme has the highest degree of communication dynamism
• FSP is affected by these factors:

  • context - the extralinguistic circumstance under which a particular expression is uttered
  • semantics- the field of linguistic studying the meaning of lexical units
  • sentence linearity - word order affected by: grammatical principle, rhythm, FSP, emphasis - a prosodic feature resulting from force modulation of the air stream, emotive utterances emphasis the most important piece of information first
  • prosodic features - intonations: it has a formal, content function
• word order affected by : the grammatical principle:

  • the position of a particular sentence element is determined by its grammatical function - by being the subject, object ...
• word order affected by - rhythm:

  • a prosodic feature based on a regular repetition of stressed syllables
• word order affected by - FSP:

  • objective order : theme first, rheme second (focuses on the hearer)
  • subjective order: the one that is started with what is the most important from the POV of the speaker
• prosodic features: intonation has a :

  • content function - expresses possibility, probability, politeness, indifference, known or unknown
  • formal function - specifies the mood of an utterance