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Discourse Grammar

1) Discourse grammar views grammar in relation to context and language use rather than as an isolated system. It acknowledges how grammatical choices relate to interpersonal factors. 2) Texts have a unity of structure from patterns that create information flow, and a unity of texture from language ties between meanings and to the social context. 3) Cohesion, the relationships between items in a text, is highly integrated with grammar and discourse. Main cohesive patterns include reference, lexical cohesion through repetition and semantic relations, and conjunctions.

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1K views6 pages

Discourse Grammar

1) Discourse grammar views grammar in relation to context and language use rather than as an isolated system. It acknowledges how grammatical choices relate to interpersonal factors. 2) Texts have a unity of structure from patterns that create information flow, and a unity of texture from language ties between meanings and to the social context. 3) Cohesion, the relationships between items in a text, is highly integrated with grammar and discourse. Main cohesive patterns include reference, lexical cohesion through repetition and semantic relations, and conjunctions.

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Danica Besa
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© © All Rights Reserved
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SULTAN KUDARAT STATE UNIVERSITY

College of Teacher Education


ACCESS Campus, EJC Montilla, Tacurong City

Besa, Danica Joy C. BSED 2 - English


ENG 213
Stylistic and Discourse Analysis
Title of Report: Discourse Grammar (Grammar from a Discourse Perspective,
The Texture of Text and Cohesion and Discourse)
Reporter No. 31

Discourse Grammar

Grammar from a Discourse Perspective

 Hughes and McCarthy ( 1998 ) argue that, a discourse-based grammar, makes a


strong connection between form, function and context and aims to place
appropriateness and use at the centre of its descriptions.
 Larsen-Freeman ( 2003 ) makes a similar argument in her view that form, meaning
and use need to be at the basis of all grammatical descriptions.
 A discourse based grammar, Hughes and McCarthy continue, acknowledges
language choice, promotes awareness of interpersonal factors in grammatical
choice and can provide insights into areas of grammar that, previously, lacked a
satisfactory explanation.

The Texture of Text


Hasan ( 1989a , 1989b ) discusses two crucial attributes of texts and which are
important for the analysis of discourse. These are unity of structure and unity of texture .

 Unity of structure refers to patterns which combine together to create information


structure, focus and flow in a text, including the schematic structure of the text.
 Unity of texture refers to the way in which resources such as patterns of cohesion
create both cohesive and coherent texts. Texture results where there are language
items that tie meanings together in the text as well as tie meanings in the text to the
social context in which the text occurs.

Cohesion and Discourse


An area of language in which grammar and discourse are highly integrated is in
patterns of cohesion in texts. The main patterns of cohesion are reference , lexical
cohesion , conjunction , substitution and ellipsis.
SULTAN KUDARAT STATE UNIVERSITY
College of Teacher Education
ACCESS Campus, EJC Montilla, Tacurong City

Cohesion refers to the relationship between items in a text such as words, phrases and
clauses and other items such as pronouns, nouns and conjunctions.

Main Patterns of Cohesion


 Reference
Reference refers to the situation where the identity of an item can be retrieved from
either within or outside the text. The main reference patterns are anaphoric ,
cataphoric , exophoric and homophoric reference.
 Anaphoric reference is where a word or phrase refers back to another word or
phrase used earlier in a text. It occurs when a word or phrase refers to something
mentioned earlier in discourse.
 For example:
1. Michael went to the bank. He was annoyed because it was closed.
> He refers to Michael.
it refers to the bank.
 Cataphoric reference describes an item which refers forward to another word or
phrase which is used later in the text. It occurs when a word or phrase refers to
something mentioned later in the discourse.
 For example:
1. Although I phone her every week, my mother still complains that I don’t keep
in touch often enough.
> Her refers to my mother.

 Exophoric reference looks outside the text to the situation in which the text occurs
for the identity of the item being referred to. It occurs when a word or phrase refers
to something outside the discourse. The use of exophoric reference requires some
shared knowledge between two speakers or between writer and reader.
 For example:
1. “They‘re late again, can you believe it?”
“I know! Well, they’d better get here soon or it‘ll get cold.”
> They refers to some people outside the discourse known to both speakers.
It also refers to something that both speakers know about (perhaps the dinner) .

 Homophoric reference is where the identity of the item can be retrieved by


reference to cultural knowledge, in general, rather than the specific context of the
text.
 For example:
“The president is trying his best to develop our education system”. From that
example, we can see that the identity of The president is retrieved through
homophora cultural knowledge since if we talk about a country, the existence of a
SULTAN KUDARAT STATE UNIVERSITY
College of Teacher Education
ACCESS Campus, EJC Montilla, Tacurong City

president the head of a country is understood if the country is led by a president


(Gerot and Wignell, 1994).

 Comparative and bridging reference. Further types of reference include


comparative and bridging reference. Each of these forms of reference makes a
contribution to the texture of a text and the ways in which we interpret the text as we
read it.
 Comparative reference, ‘the identity of the presumed item is retrieved not
because it has already been mentioned or will be mentioned in the text, but because an
item with which it is being compared has been mentioned’ (Eggins 2004 : 35).
 A bridging reference (Martin 1992 , Martin and Rose 2007 ) is where an item
refers to something that has to be inferentially derived from the text or situation; that is,
something that has to be presumed indirectly.

 Lexical cohesion refers to relationships in meaning between lexical items in a text


and, in particular, content words and the relationship between them. The main kinds
of lexical cohesion are repetition , synonymy , antonymy , hyponymy , meronomy
and collocation.

 Repetition refers to words that are repeated in a text. This includes words which
are inflected for tense or number and words which are derived from particular items.
 For example:
1. Algy met a bear. The bear was ugly.
>In this example, the second occurrence of the bear refers back to the first.
Also, there is the referential link signaling that the same bear is intended.
Repetition therefore establishes a cohesive tie between at least two identical
lexical items.

 Synonymy, the lexical cohesion that involves the use of lexical items which are in
some sense synonymous.
 For example: sound with noise, cavalry with horses in
“He was just wondering which road to take when he was startled by a noise
from behind him. It was the noise of trotting horses… He dismounted and led his
horse as quickly as he could along the right-hand road. The sound of the cavalry
grew rapidly nearer…(Halliday, 1985:310).”

 Antonymy describes a relationship between lexical items that have opposite


meanings.
SULTAN KUDARAT STATE UNIVERSITY
College of Teacher Education
ACCESS Campus, EJC Montilla, Tacurong City

 For example:
1. He fell asleep. What woke him up was a loud crash.
>asleep and woke are antonyms, therefore it form a cohesive relationship.

 Hyponymy describes a “specific-general” relationship between lexical items.


 For example:
1. Then they began to meet vegetation -- prickly cactus-like plants and coarse
grass…
>plants and grass are specific part of vegetation, therefore altogether form a
cohesive relationship.

 Meronymy describes “part-whole” relationship between lexical items.


 For example:
1. She knelt down and looked along the passage into the loveliest garden you ever
saw. How she longed to […] wander about among those beds of bright flowers and
those cool fountains, […].
>flowers and fountain are typical parts of garden, therefore altogether form a
cohesive relationship.
SULTAN KUDARAT STATE UNIVERSITY
College of Teacher Education
ACCESS Campus, EJC Montilla, Tacurong City

A WRITTEN REPORT BY

BESA, DANICA JOY C.


BSED ENGLISH 2

In partial fulfillment for the requirements in ENG


213
SULTAN KUDARAT STATE UNIVERSITY
College of Teacher Education
ACCESS Campus, EJC Montilla, Tacurong City

(STYLISTICS AND DISCOURSE ANALYSIS)

Discourse Grammar (Grammar from a Discourse Perspective,


The Texture of Text and Cohesion and Discourse)

REPORTER NO. 31

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