Syntax in Functional Grammar: An Introduction to Lexicogrammar in Systemic Linguistics

Description

This manual outlines a framework for the analysis of syntactic grammar from a perspective of a systemic functional grammar. In part, the book goes back to the grammar's "scale and category" roots, but now with the aim of presenting a descriptive framework which shows how the analysis of the syntactic structure can reflect the meaning structure. The contents are divided into four sections. The first gives a brief overview of systemic grammar, including the linguistic system, context of situation, and language functions. Developing the lexicogrammar, the second section considers formal units and their classes, but the principal focus is in Section Three, which covers the role of units as elements of structure. The argumentation also takes on board some approaches by other grammarians. The text is illustrated with examples throughout, and the fuller analytical frameworks are also shown in summary chapters. Section Four discusses areas of structural complexity and concludes with several refinements to the analysis format.

G. David Morley is a lecturer in modern languages at the University of Strathclyde, Scotland.