Unit II

1. Unit II The experiential meta-function and the transitivity of the clause [Based on Gerot & Wignell, chapter 3, pp. 52-79; Bloor & Bloor, chapter 6, pp. 106-126; Martin, Matthiessen & Painter, chapter 4, pp. 100-164]

2. The verb (transitivity) in traditional grammar – classes of verbs and structure of the clause – Verb determines structure of the clause (how many and what type of complements the clause has)

3. The verb (transitivity) in traditional grammar – classes of verbs and structure of the clause

4. Transitivity in traditional grammar – concern with form rather than meaning Traditional grammar is mainly concerned with form, and, in the case of the verb, with the number and type of complements associated with each type of verb and the clause structure resulting from the choice of one or the other verb. A functional approach to grammar, and more specifically to the verb or to transitivity, is concerned with meaning, though in both approaches the verb has a key role in determining the structure of the clause, as we will see.

5. Transitivity in Systemic Functional Grammar TRANSITIVITY is the system or resource for construing experiential meaning, i. e. meaning about the world outside and inside the speaker. It is the resource for construing (= interpreting and expressing) events, happenings, goings-on, mental states, sayings, behaviour and relations of different kinds.

6. Transitivity in Functional Grammar: nuclear and peripheral transitivity • Nuclear transitivity: resources that are central to the representation of events, happenings, states, relations, more specifically: The Process The Participant(s) involved in the Process • Peripheral transitivity: resources that are not so central to the representation of events, happenings, states, more specifically: Circumstances

7. Transitivity in Functional Grammar: nuclear transitivity (Process and participants) Process: the resource for sorting out/ classifying/ categorizing our experience of events and goings-on in general into a small number of types. The process is realized by verbs (lexical verb). There are 6 to 7 process types that are generally recognized and these are on the next two slides. Participants: people, things, etc. involved in a given process (action, going-on, happening, state). The participants are generally realized by NGps.

8. Nuclear transitivity (Basic process types: meaning and examples)

9. Nuclear transitivity (Basic process types and associated participants)

10. Nuclear transitivity (Basic process types and associated participants) Basic process types are distinguishable from each other in: • Meaning • Number and kind of participants • Subtypes • Distinctive features and reactances In what follows we will look at the 7 basic types presented before and analyse them paying attention to the four critwria above:

11. Nuclear transitivity: different process types described and illustrated in more detail - Material

12. Participants in material processes explained Actor: doer of the action; participant who carries out the action; Range: participant that represents the scope of application of the action, but that is not affected by it Goal: participant being affected or receiving the impact of the action. Beneficiary (Recipient): participant that receives the goal being exchanged in a process of giving (to+ Ngp) Beneficiary (Client): participant on behalf of whom sth is done (for + Ngp)

13. Participants in material processes analyzed He ran. The window broke. Actor Process Actor Process He climbed the tree. He made a mistake Actor Process Range Actor Process Range He broke the window. He cooked the meal Actor Process Goal Actor Process Goal He gave/brought me flowers. Actor Process Recipient/Client Goal

14. Material processes as “doing-words” Material processes: the only processes that can confidently be called “doing-words” (term used in traditional school-grammar to refer to verbs in general). This is seen in the fact that they are the only ones (except maybe for some behavioural ones) that can be substituted by “do”. One can say “What he did yesterday was go/run/walk to the park”; or “What he did to the poor man was kill him/kick him/punch him” or “What he did with the book was tear it into pieces”. But one cannot say “What he did was see a bird/ hear a strange sound” or “What he did was know the answer/understand the question” or “What he did was want a cake/fear the outcome”. These last sentences would appear illogical because the verbs in them do not express a “doing”, a material process.

15. Material processes: distinguishing between Range and Goal

16. Material processes: distinguishing between Range and Goal

17. Material processes: distinguishing between Range and Goal

18. Material processes: distinguishing between Range and Goal

19. Nuclear transitivity: different process types described and illustrated in more detail - Mental

20. Participants in mental processes explained • Senser: an entity endowed with higher or lower consciousness, like a human being and, for some processes, an animal. It can be Subject (I like fruit) or Complement (Fruit appeals to/pleases me); • Phenomenon: a thing (person, object, place, etc.) that can be perceived, known or that can be the object of an emotion of some kind. It is a participant in the mental clause and it is always a Ngp (He saw the animal; he knew the animal; He loves animals); • Macrophenomenon: an event or happening or doing in the material world that can be perceived; only used with processes of perception. It is an embedded clause that is a participant in the mental clause (he saw [[him help the old lady/him helping the old lady]]; he heard [[him shout his name/him shouting his name]]).

21. Participants in mental processes explained • Metaphenomenon:fact: an abstract, non-material, semiotic entity that preexists the emotions it triggers; only used with processes of emotion and an embedded participant element in the clause. I regretted (the fact) [[that I had not had the courage to speak to her]]. I liked (the fact) [[that she was black]]. [[That she was so young]] surprised me. • Metaphenomenon: idea: abstract but not preexisting the process; rather brought into existence by it. Not really a participant in the clause but a separate clause: I understood that it was futile. I knew that it was of no use.

22. Participants in mental processes analyzed He saw a bird. (perception) Senser Process Phenomenon I saw [[him cross/crossing the street]].(perception) Senser Process Phenomenon (Macrophenomenon: act - Embedded ) He knows all the answers. (cognition) Senser Process Phenomenon He believes || that you are to blame. (cognition) Senser Process Metaphenomenon (idea – dependent clause)

23. Participants in mental processes analyzed I like/fear him. Senser Process Phenomenon bidirectional He pleases/scares me. Phenomenon Process Senser He regrets (the fact ) [[that he was unable to help]]. Senser Process Phenomenon (metaphenomenon: fact) [[That he was unable to help]] surprises me. Phenomenon (metaphenomenon: fact) Process Senser

24. Nuclear transitivity: different process types described and illustrated - Behavioral

25. Participants in behavioral processes explained • Behaver:person or animal having the behavior, usually endowed with consciousness. Most behavioral processes ONLY have a single participant, and that’s the Behaver. • Behavior: found in very few cases in which the behavior usually repeats the behavioural process with some added attribute (he breathed a deep breath; he dreamt a strange dream) • Range: in very few cases in which the the process takes a second participant that is not a behavior and that is different in nature from the process itself: he watched a movie; they observed the stranger; they discussed/debated the problem.

26. Participants in behavioral processes explained • Matter: used with verbal behavioral and mental behavioral processes (They talked about the problem; They reflected/pondered over the problem). • Target: used with verbal behavioral processes expressing insult, offence, criticism (They criticized his manners. He insulted him.) Both “his manners” and “him” in these sentences are the Target of the insult or the criticism.

27. Behavioral processes: a transition category Behavioral processes are said to be located between material processes, on the one hand, and mental or verbal processes, on the other. This is particularly true of the verbal behavioral and the mental behavioral processes. They are not properly verbal or mental because THEY CANNOT PROJECT and, in the case of mental ones, because THEY INVOLVE VOLITION. So they are more “saying” and “thinking” or “perceiving” as BEHAVIOUR.

28. Behavioral processes: a transition category Their transitional character can be perceived in the following examples: He said that he was ill He thought that he was ill are properly verbal and mental because they can project (a locution and an idea respectively). He talked about his illness He reflected on/over his illness are not properly verbal or mental because thereis no saying in the first one and no idea being brought into existence in the second one. They are saying and thinking as behaviour.

29. Nuclear transitivity: different process types described and illustrated - Verbal

30. Participants in verbal processes explained • Sayer: The person or thing (dictionary, sign, article, newspaper, etc.) that says sth. • Verbiage: the content of what is said, always expressed by a Ngp • Receiver: the adressee; the person to whom sth is said Processes of saying or verbal processes can project another clause that expresses the content of what was said (locution). It can project it verbatim (quotation) or parapharse it in line with the here and now of the speaker (report). The “locution” IS NOT a Participant in the verbal clause but a separate clause projected by it

31. Participants in verbal processes analyzed He told (us) a lie/a story. Sayer Process Verbiage He said a few words to us. Sayer Process Verbiage “I’m tired” he said/answered. Locution: Quotation Sayer Process He said (to me) (that) he was tired. Sayer Process Receiver Locution: Report

32. Nuclear transitivity: different process types described and illustrated - Existential

33. Participants in verbal processes explained Existent: it is the participant that the process introduces as existing, as having existence. For some, the non-stressed “there” has no experiential role in the clause. It is just a dummy Subject, a place-holder for Subject. For others, it encodes the process together with “be”. When the clause starts with a Circumsatance it can be omitted. It can be marked together with the verb “be”

34. Participants in verbal processes analyzed There are different species of whales. Process Existent On the sofa (there) wasa cat. Circ. of place Process Existent Through the window (there) came the sounds of Sydney. Circ. of place Process Existent

35. Nuclear transitivity: different process types described and illustrated - Relational

36. Relational processes further described

37. Relational processes further described

38. Participants in relational processes explained Carrier: The entity that is assigned to a class (She is a teacher; This is a chair) or that is assigned an attribute or quality (She is tall; This table is long) Attribute: The class an entity belongs to (She is a teacher; this is a chair) or the quality an entity is assigned (She is tall; This table is long) Token: The concrete entity that embodies/ represents/ symbolizes a value (Susan is the kindest salesperson in the shop; He is the leader). Value: A more abstract entity that can be perceived only if represented by a more concrete entity (Susan is the kindest salesperson in the shop; He is the leader).

39. Participants in verbal processes analyzed – Attributive processes She is famous. (intensive) Carrier Process Attribute She is a (famous) scientist. (intensive) Carrier Process Attribute She has blue eyes/a car/two siblings. (possessive) Carrier Process Attribute She is in high school/in the States. (circumstantial) Carrier Process Attribute

40. Participants in verbal processes analyzed – Identifying processes America is the beacon of democracy. (intensive) Token Process Value The beacon of democracy is America. Value Process Token The Aconcagua is the highest peak in America. (intensive) Token Process Value The highest peak in America is the Aconcagua. Value Process Token

41. Participants in verbal processes analyzed – Identifying processes This is Neil’s. Neil’s is this. (possessive) Token Process Value Value Process Token This belongs to Neil. (possessive) Token Process Value The time of the meeting is Friday. (circumstantial) Value Process Token The cause for his illness is stress (circumstantial) Value Process Token

42. Reversibility of identifying processes- problems and criteria for identifying Value and Token Because Identifying processes are reversible, it is sometimes difficult to distinguish between Token and Value. There are some criteria/tests we can apply to identify between the two:

43. Transitivity in Functional Grammar – its relation to context and meaning

44. Where is transitivity to be placed in the model of language? In which level or stratum?

45. Causation and Different Process types • Causation + Material The devil made me do it. I got the kids to tidy up their room.

46. Causation and Different Process types • Causation + Material Actor The devil made me do it Initiator Material Goal Actor I got the kids to tidy up their room Initiator Material Goal

47. Causation and Different Process types • Causation + Mental/Verbal She made me rethink my attitude You make me say things I don’t mean to

48. Causation and Different Process types • Causation + Mental/Verbal Senser She made me rethink my attitude Inducer Mental Phenomenon Sayer You make me say things I don’t mean to • Inducer Verbal Verbiage

49. Causation and Different Process types • Causation + Relational She drives me crazy. They consider him lazy. They call me Bruce. They made him their leader

50. Causation and Different Process types • Causation + Relational She drives me crazy. Attributor Process Carrier Attribute They consider him lazy. Attributor Process Carrier Attribute They call me Bruce. Assigner Process Value Token They made him their leader Assigner Process Token Value