ENG 4339 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Error Function, Inq Mobile, Lead
Syntax ¡s one of the discipline w¡th in the field of linguistics, in add¡t¡on to:
- sociolinguistics ) use ofranguage accord¡ng to sociar criteria, how the peopre use the ranguage
- Pragmatics ) stud¡es the role of the context {intention of the speaker) from a semantic po¡nt of
view. Pragmat¡cs focuses on discourse and speech texts
- Grammar ) There are two types: prescr¡ptive (how language has to be used, the rules) and
descriptive (concentrates on how grammar is used)
Example: I can't get no satisfaction (double negatioi:) ) From a descriptive point of view could be
fine but from a prescriptive point of view it would be incorrect.
There are also two main branches in grammar: morphology and syntax
- semantics ) The role of semantics is study¡ng the meaning of words. words are un¡ts that have a
form and a meaning. semant¡cs is one of the parts of lexicology together w¡th the creation of
words.
- Forensic linguisücs ) An ethical and moral application of the l¡nguistics field. For example, criminal
cases or plagiarism
- Diachronicar ringuistics ) Etymorogy prays a rore here. Diachrony means studying someth¡ng from
all throughout time and synchrony means studying current ranguage of a .p..ifiJpoiniot tir".
- Phonetics / phonology ) They study the sounds of language.
Sociol¡nguist¡cs and forensic linguistics are branches of a superior sub d¡scipl¡ne of linguistics called applied
Iinguistics.
syntax deals with inter-word relationship. The definit¡on of syntax could be that how words are combined.
From a etymo¡ogical po¡nt ofv¡ew syntax means arrangement or organ¡zation. we have to take inTo account
that these words are not combined randomry, this means that when we comb¡ne words they have to be
ordered in a specific way (word order), which in Engrish is svo (subject - verb - object). rnis svo oroer ¡s
not the only woid order ¡n English but it's the basic one. There are some words or complements thar can oe
more flexible but there are some arrangements that break the svo order that are not expected.
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Example: I sang a song yesterdav in the shower
* sang a yesterday I in the shower sone
words are arranged ¡nto units called constituents. we determine constituents by ¡ntuit¡on but there are
some syntactic rules.
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constituents are defined as groups of words which behave and function as a singre unit.
ln the example,
My brother sings a song in the shower vs. He sings it there
Pronom¡nal¡zation or substitution by pro-form will be used as a test to identify syntactic constituents (also
called replacement criter¡on). The difference between pronoun and pro-form is that the pro-form is a
generic word that is used to substitute complex constituents.
Other criteria:
- Syntact¡c function won't help us to define constituents because every single const¡tuent will have a
syntactic funct¡on within the major unit (sentence) where ¡t berongs and every constituent wirl
belong to a specific category (form)
For example, my b rother w r be the sublect of th e sentence and the category is Noun phrase (Np)
Notice that syntactic functions are rerationar or dependent, thi,rn".n, f- exampre my brother wirl
be the subject ¡n that phrase but in another phrase like
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I saw my brother in the pork my brother will be a d¡rect object
A syntactic funct¡on has to be assigned w¡thin the context the const¡tuent appears. A constituent as
my brother can have lots of function depen ding on the context: subject, Direct object, Indirecr
Ob ject...
But, notice that my brother will always be a Noun Phrase, this means categories are an absolute or
¡ndependent feature as opposed to syntactic functions that are relational or dependent.
- Fronting: This cr¡ter¡on is also called movement criterion. lhe possibil¡ty of moving a sequence of
words fiom one place to the other in the sentence for reasons offocus (fronting, top¡calization)
indicates that the sequence is a constituent.
For example, movin g o song to the front of the phrase (A song is what my brother sings ¡n the
shower) will show us that o song is a constituent.
- Postponing: Movement towards the end of the sequence.
For example, He singsa soninthe shower, my brofáei: wehavemovedthe subject (my brother)to
a fin al oosition.
- Question: The answer to quest¡ons such as who sings in the shower? or whot does my brother sing?
Will also be constituents
- Passivization: Th¡s method is more restr¡cted because it can't be applied to every single constituent.
We can only applied to the subject, the verb and the objects
- omission cr¡terion: lf a group of words can be omitted from a sentence, leaving another good
sentence, th¡s is a good indication that the sequence is a phrase functioning as a constituent in the
structure of the sentences, such as in the showel: The resultant phrase: My brother sings a song s
perfectly correct but not every s¡ngle const¡tuent can be omitted such as mv brother.
- clefting: Elements that can be made the focus of a cleft or pseudo-cleft constructions are
constituents. Clefts are syntactic structures that are made with pragmatic purposes to emphasize
constituents or elements of discourse.
It ¡s my brother that s¡ngs o song in the shower H ere we can see that mv brother is a
constituent of the clause.
This method fits with every constituent ofa given clause.
Pseudo-cleft sentences will work as in th¡s exampje:
what my brother s¡ngs ¡n the shower is a mng. Here we can see that o song ¡s a constiruent
of the phrase
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Document Summary
Syntax s one of the discipline w th in the field of linguistics, in add t on to: Sociolinguistics ) use ofranguage accord ng to sociar criteria, how the peopre use the ranguage. Pragmatics ) stud es the role of the context {intention of the speaker) from a semantic po nt of. Grammar ) there are two types: prescr ptive (how language has to be used, the rules) and view. Pragmat cs focuses on discourse and speech texts descriptive (concentrates on how grammar is used) Example: i can"t get no satisfaction (double negatioi:) ) from a descriptive point of view could be fine but from a prescriptive point of view it would be incorrect. There are also two main branches in grammar: morphology and syntax. Forensic linguis cs ) an ethical and moral application of the l nguistics field. Diachronicar ringuistics ) etymorogy prays a rore here.
