On Functional Grammar and Discourse Analysis

齐 岩

(黑龙江生态工程职业学院，哈尔滨 150025)

1 Definitions

Narrowly defined, “Discourseanalysis” is referred to detailed analysis of language-in-use whether this takes the form of speech or text. Roughly speaking, it refers to attempts to study the organization of language above the sentence or above the clause, even larger linguistic units, such as conversational exchanges or written texts. Discourse analysis is also concerned with language use in social contexts, and in particular with interaction or dialogue between speakers. Therefore, discourse analysis covers a multitude of rather different approaches.

Among them,FunctionalGrammarhas made important contributions. Functional grammar is a general theory of the organization of natural language. It sets out to investigate what the range of relevant choices are, both in the kinds of meanings that we might want to express (to functions that we might want to perform) and in the kinds of wordings that we can use to express these meanings; and to match these two sets of choices. AndHalliday’s systemic functional grammar mainly focused on relations between sentences and discourse or cohesion.

According to Halliday, the unit of analysis forSFlinguists is the text because the functional meaning potential of language is realized in units no smaller than texts. Of course, the study of texts is typically performed by examining elements of the lexicogrammar and phonology, but these smaller units must be viewed from the perspective of their contribution to the meanings expressed by the total text in context. “For a linguist, to describe language without accounting for text is sterile; to describe text without relating it to language is vacuous”. (Halliday, 1985a, p. 10). And Halliday proposes a theory of met functions of language, that is, language has IDEATIONAL, INTERPRESONAL and TEXTUAL functions. Ideational function constructs a model of experience and constructs logical relations, interpersonal function enacts social relationships and textual function creates relevance to context (Halliday, 1994)

Modern functionalist approaches to syntax were pioneered in the 1920s by the scholars associated with the Linguistic Circle ofPragueand Prague-based functionalism is a dynamic force today. Inspired by the ideas of the Prague School, the theory of functional sentence perspective (FSP) is concerned with the distribution of information as determined by all meaningful elements, from intonation (for speech) to context. A central feature of FSP is communicative dynamism. The theory of functional sentence perspective (FSP) examines how language functions in the act of communication. It pays special attention to the study of context and questions related to thetheme-rheme(topic-focus) structure of a sentence.

2 The Analysis on Theme-Rheme

The hallmarks of the Prague school are the division of the communicative structure of the sentence into two areas (theme-rheme) or into three (theme-transitional zone-rheme) and the simultaneous assumption that this is the basic order if there is no co(n)textual reason for changing it. The division of the sentence into three segments of structure-grammatical (subject-predicator-object), semantic (agent-action-patient) and communicative (theme-transitional zone-rheme)-has been a feature of the research conducted by this linguistic school since Mathesius. However, there is still no agreement about the definition of theme (/ rheme) in a sentence. Some authors try to determine the theme and rheme by means of the information value for the discourse of the various parts of the sentence. According to this theory, the theme is what is known/ given in the text, and the rheme is the unknown/ new. Others assess the theme and rheme according to the contribution of parts of the sentence to the (further) development of a discourse. If the contribution is slight, then the relevant part of the sentence is described as the theme, and if it is considerable, it is called the rheme. Grammatical, lexical and contextual factors work together here to allow the contribution of a part of a sentence towards the development of the discourse to be established.

For Halliday, the theme is obviously the starting point that a speaker chooses for his message. Theme is the point of departure of the clause and Rheme where the presentation moves after the point of departure is the goal of discourse. Progression of Themes then structures the discourse as message. In English, theme is realized by initial position in the clause and then rheme follows. Halliday says that many but not all languages realize theme through initial position. In English the theme is in initial position and is unmarked when it coincides with Subject, and marked otherwise. The theme begins at the beginning of the clause and runs up to an including either the first participant, process or circumstance constituent of the clause, and thus may include conjunctions, modal adjuncts etc. Marked themes usually either express some kind of setting for the clause or express a feature of contrast.

Theme is a resource for organizing the interpersonal and ideational meanings of each clause in the form of a message. Each clause will occur at some particular point in the unfolding of the text; this is its textual environment. The system of theme sets up a local environment, providing a point of departure by reference to which the listener interprets the message. With this system the speaker specifies the place in the listener's network of meanings where the message is to be incorporated as relevant. The local environment, serving as point of departure, is the Theme; what is presented in this local environment is the rheme. The clause as a message is thus a configuration of two thematic statuses, Theme + Rheme. Examples of Theme + Rheme structure are shown below:

You(1)Lastnight(2)Friendslikethat(3)There(4)Whatuse(5)Didhe(6)Lets(7)probablyhaventheardoftheSOUbefore．amanwashelpingpoliceinquiries．Icandowithout．isthetin⁃opener．isasecond？tellyouwhereIwas？goforawalk，shallwe？ThemeRheme

We can see the Theme of a clause consists of only one structural element and we call it aSimpleTheme. The simple theme is not dependent on how long it is, but on the only function (i.e. the ideational function in most cases) it plays no matter it is Subject as Theme in sentence (1), or Adjunct as Theme in (2), Complement as Theme in (3), Circumstantial attributive Complement as Theme in (4),or Theme in WH-question in(5),Theme in yes/no question in (6), Theme in imperative clauses in(7),etc.

As noted earlier, a topical theme can appear together with the interpersonal or textual theme, If this happens, then we have what is known as amultipletheme. A multiple theme can be composed of textual, interpersonal and experiential elements. A useful example of a clause with a multiple theme is found on p. 55 of Halliday's Introduction (see p. 81 for a slightly different version):

wellbutthenAnnsurelywouldntthebestideabetojointhegroup？continuativestructuralconjunctivevocativemodalfinitetopicaltextualinterpersonalexperientialThemeRheme

However, when deciding exactly what to label as Theme in any analysis of real text, you will almost certainly run up againstproblems. For example, the problem with existential ‘there’ is that it is Subject and therefore ought out be Theme, but in experiential terms it has ‘no representational function’ (Halliday, 1994:142). Another difficulty in analyzing Theme is how to treat reported clauses. In the case of quotes, the analysis is usually straightforward: the reporter makes a Theme choice in the projecting (reporting) clause and also re-cycles the original speaker’s Theme choice in the quote. With indirect speech, on the other hand, it is difficult to decide whether to treat the projected (reported) clause as forming a T-unit with its projecting clause, or as a separate message on a different ‘level’.

In the discussing of how to identify Theme, mention has been made at various points of different reasons for choosing constituents as theme and for choosing certain structures to express theme choices. Now lets look at theme in a slightly broader perspective, and to explore how theme choices work together to signal its underlying coherence. There are four mainfunctionswe should consider: 1.Signaling the maintenance or progression of what the text is about at that point. This is especially done through the choice of Subject as unmarked theme; 2. Specifying or changing the framework for the interpretation of the following clause (or clauses). This is mostly done by the choice of marked theme; 3. Signaling the boundaries of sections in the text. This is often done by changing from one type of Theme choice to another; 4. Signaling what the speaker thinks is a viable/useful/ important starting point. This is done by repeatedly choosing the same element to appear in Theme. (Tompson, 2000)

3 Coincidence between Function Grammar and Discourse Analysis

For language users, meaning is the central fact about language, and meaning emerges from a seamless union of wording and context. Functional Grammar attempts to face that uncomfortable fact head-on and to establish a unified model of language which in principle allows the links to be made within the same description. And as an approach,functionalgrammarisclearlyinharmonywiththeaimsofdiscourseanalysis. Halliday(1994:xvi)argues forcefully that ‘a discourse analysis that is not >based on grammar is not an analysis at all’; and this view has become increasingly accepted. Not all discourse analysts use Functional Grammar as set out here, but the vast majority rely on recognizably similar models of language. As probably the most fully developed version of a text-oriented functional approach, Functional Grammar has the great advantage that it is there ready for use by analysts whose main focus may be on different aspects.

With the development of FG, the most recent editionFunctionalDiscourseGrammar(FDG) appears. Its main developers are Kees Hengeveld and J. Lachlan Mackenzie, but members of the Amsterdam-based Functional Grammar Colloquium were actively involved from its inception. Being more suitable for the analysis of phenomena that exceed the level of the clause than it predecessor, while retaining most of its merits, Functional Discourse Grammar has gradually come to replace the use of Functional Grammar, although the two coexist quite happily.

[1]Yang Yuchen. Introducing Discourse Analysis: from Theory to Practice[M].Northeast of Normal University，2004.

[2]Geoff Thompson. Introducing Functional Grammar[M].Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press，2000.

[3]Halliday. An Introduction to Functional Grammar[M].London: Edward Arnold，1985.

[4]Coulthard .An Introduction to Discourse Analysis[M].London: Longman，1977.

[5]http://minerva.ling. mq. edu.au/resource/VirtuallLibrary.