English Grammar

A University Course

Third Edition

Chapter 6

Chapter 6  Organising the Message (Explanatory material)

  • 6.28.1 Say whether the following two statements are true or false.
  • 6.28.2 Underline the Theme in each of the following examples and say which syntactic element of the clause it conflates with.
  • 6.28.3 Reorganise sentences a and b so that the Theme is ‘No longer’, ‘Only rarely’ and ‘The weather’, respectively.
  • 6.28.4 Which are Themes and which are Topics in the following? Are any both Theme and Topic?
  • 6.28.5 Fill in the blanks, choosing from Absolute Theme, Left-dislocated element, Right-dislocated element.
  • 6.28.6 ! Brain-teaser 1: What is the distinguishing feature between Absolute Theme and the two types of dislocation?
  • 6.29.1 Given and New information. Complete these definitions.
  • 6.29.2 Capitalise the syllable containing the highest point of the New information.
  • 6.29.3 Ellipt (by bracketing) the recoverable information in each of the following.
  • 6.29.4 Provide regular substitutes to avoid repeating information in the following.
  • 6.29.4(2) ! Brain-teaser 2: Didn’t we say that a subject is obligatory in a clause, except for the imperative? How about this:  Can’t resist chocolate Easter eggs.
  • 6.30.1 Revise the section on the types of thematic progression and see if you can detect which is exemplified in each of the following.
  • 6.30.2 Cleft sentences. Fill in the blanks in the following statements.
  • 6.30.3 For instance, cleft the following simple sentence: We have a squirrel in the attic.
  • 6.30.4 Where does the strong focus fall in each type?
  • 6.30.5 Which type of cleft sentence can be reversed? For example:
  • 6.30.5(2) ! Brain-teaser 3: Why can’t we say: ‘*Who told me your name was the porter’? What must we say instead?
  • 6.30.6 The active-passive alternative. Which type of clauses can take the passive construction, transitive or intransitive?
  • 6.30.7 Write the passive version of the following.
  • 6.30.8 The get-passive versus the be-passive. Mark as either true or false.
  • 6.30.9 There-clauses as presentative devices.
  • 6.30.10 For which of the following sentences is there a corresponding plain form?
  • 6.30.10(2) ! Brain-teaser:  Why do we need to distinguish between stressed there and unstressed there when talking about there-clauses?

Chapter 6 Essay Subject: ‘Why are end-focus and end-weight so often connected?’

I Prepare the material

  • a) Consider the concepts of Given and New information.
  • b) Consider the usual position of each of these in a sentence and what they mean.
  • c) Consider the different structures that have been examined, not only in Chapter 6 but also in Chapters 2 to 5.
  • d) Make a list of those structures.
  • e) Take note of those structures that enable parts of the sentence to be moved around from one position to another. Some of these appear quite early in the course, for instance in the realisations of the subject.
  • f) Note that they are repeated at the end of Chapter 6, though perhaps in different words.
  • g) Work out how parts of a sentence are enabled to be moved either to the front of a sentence (they are ‘fronted’) while others are moved to the end of a sentence (they may be ‘extraposed’ or moved by other strategies (postposition)).
  • h) What is the purpose of these movements and strategies?

II What is FOCUS in this context?

  • i) Read about ‘marked’ and ‘unmarked Focus’, with regard to position in the clause. Carefully revise the meaning of ‘Focus’. [Focus of what?]
  • j) Remember that in the illustrations Focus is marked by capital letters to show the highest point of the Focus.  Where does this occur a) when it is unmarked, and b) when it is marked? (Remember that, in English, Focus is marked in speech prosodically. In written or printed English it is not usually marked at all, except by position, and readers, we suppose, mentally follow the spoken intonation and stresses as a guide.

III Now consider WEIGHT

  • k) What is weight? We might say that ‘weight’ is the amount of information contained in a grammatical unit within a tone unit or a sentence. A long nominal group, for instance, can carry a lot of weight.
  • l) Using examples from English Grammar (3rd edition) as well as others that you will select from other sources, or even invent, you should now realise how important end-focus and end-weight are for the mutual understanding of what people say and write.

IV The draft

  • m) After the necessary preparation and note-taking, prepare a schema or outline  showing how you are going to lay out your material in headed and numbered sections.
    • n) Then write a draft of the essay.
    • o) Finally write it up, inserting your illustrations appropriately.
    • p) Provide a Conclusion!