语言学主位述位

1、Organiazing the message: the textual metafunction - Theme6.1 IntroductionThere are three main ways in which textual meanings are constructed in a text: repetition, conjunction and thematization.Repetition clearly includes repetition of the same word or a synonym(lexical repetition and meaning repeti

2、tion).The function of repetition is typically to show that parts of a text (not necessarily adjacent to each other) are related in some way. By repeating a wording or a meaning speakers signal that they are keeping to the same topic.Conjunction mainly shows how texts are related, such as because. Co

3、njunctive Adjuncts, such as therefore, and certain unspecific nouns, such as the reason, can also preform the same kind of funciton.Thematization is mainly related to the structing of the clause itself - the order in which elements appear in the clause.6.2 Theme Theme: the first constituent of the c

4、lause Rheme: all the rest of the clause Theme can be defined as the point of departure of the message or that which locates and orients the clause within its context (Halliday and Matthiessen, 2004: 64) The different choice of Theme has contributed to making a different meaning.6.3 Identifying Theme

5、6.3.1 Theme in a declarative clauses1. Theme and Subject are the same (they are said to be conflated), which also be regarded as the unmarked Theme choice. e.g. You probably havent heard of the SOU before. Theme/Subject Rheme2. The nominal group acting as Subject includes a long Post-modifier.e.g. T

6、he language that Eskimo people speak aroune the top of th eworld, in places as far apart as Siberia, Alaska and Greenland, differ quite a lot in details of vocaulary. Theme/Subject Rheme 3. The Subject may also be a nominal group complex, where, for example, two co-ordinated nominal groups function

7、together as Subject.e.g. A keen interest in the environment, familiarity with the working of Government and/or the town and country planning systems would be a strong advantage. Theme/Subject Rheme4. The Subject may be an embedded clause.e.g. Sending the final result through to Faculty before all th

8、e required documents have arrived Theme/Subject will probably just confuse matters. RhemeMarked Theme choice1. The position of Adjuncts is fairly flexible, which can be placed in Theme. When an Adjunct is used as Theme, it is somewhere in the middle on the scale of markedness. Thus Adjuncts can be l

9、abelled as marked Theme. e.g. Last night a man was helping police enquiries. Theme Rheme 2. When the constituent in Theme position is being contrasted with something else in the text, the constituent functioning as the Complement is labelled as marked Theme. The purpose is often to highlight a contr

10、ast between the thematized element and something in the preceding text. e.g. All the rest well do for you. Theme Rheme6.3.2 Theme in non-declarative clauses1. Interrogative: In questions the natural starting point is the thing that the questioner wants to know about, and therefore it is the Wh-word

11、or group that almost invariably appears in Theme position. e.g. What happened to her? Theme RhemeA marked Theme choice in a WH-question occurs when the Wh-word or group does not come in the first position, whereas this case is relatively rare with questions.e.g. After the party, where did you go? Th

12、eme Rheme2. Yes/no interrogatives: the missing information in these cases is polarity (yes or no).e.g. Have you finished your meal, sir? Theme Rheme3. Imperative: With most imperatives, it is the addressee that is understood as the person who will carry out the action that can be represented by the

13、Predicator. However, in lets imperatives, both addressee and the speaker are involved.In fact, it is possible to make the addressee explicit by using you as a marked Theme choice. In addition, an imperative clause may start from an Adjunct, which often gives an explanation of why the command should

14、be carried out. Leave the lamp here.Dont cry about it.Lets go for a walk, shall we?ThemeRhemeYoujust shut up, will you?On arrival in Livepooltake a taxi to the University.ThemeRheme4. Exclamative: Generally, only major clauses (those which have a Predicator) have thematic structure, and thus minor c

15、lauses (without a Predicator) are not analysed for Theme or Rheme.e.g. What a nice plant youve got! Theme Rheme5. Elliptical clauses: Either the Theme or Rheme may be missing from a clause. The part of the message may be carried over from an earlier message, or may be undersaood from the general con

16、text.e.g. Who (would you most like to meet)? Theme Rheme (That s an) Amazing discovery! Theme Rheme6.4 Special thematic strustures6.4.1 Thematic equativesThe speaker can group more than one element of the message as a single constituent, and then use that multi-element constituent as Theme (and Subj

17、ect). This structure is traditionally called a pseudo-cleft, but which Halliday and Matthiessen prefer to call a thematic equative. They use this term because the Theme-Rheme structure here is expressed in the form Theme = Rheme, with the = expressed by the Predicator be.e.g. What Im going to do now

18、 is to whisk these all together. Theme RhemeIn a sense, the starting point in a thematic equative is often a question that the speaker imagines the hearer might want to ask at this stage in the text. e.g. What one will not learn here is anything about the Enlightment.In other cases, particularly in

19、speech, the thematic equative seems to serve more as a way of staging the message: splitting it into two chunks that the hearer will find easier to process. e.g. What I want to talk about Theme is the nature of certain kinds of evidence used in the courts. RhemeIn the WH-clause, it is possible to st

20、art from the other end, and to put the WH-clause in Rheme, which is called marked version of thematic equatives. e.g. That s not what I meant. Theme Rheme6.4.2 Predicated ThemePredicated theme: The speaker picks out a single element and give it emphatic thematic status, which is traditionally called

21、 a cleft sentence, but which Halliday and Matthiessen prefer to call predicated Theme.e.g. Its not the technology which is wrong. Theme RhemeThe function of predicated Theme is to single out the predicated constituent as particularly noteworthy in some way, often because it contrasts with something

22、in another part of the text, or because it is represented as selected from a number of alternatives.6.4.3 Thematized commentThematized comment: It allows speakers to start their message with their own comment on the value or validity of what they are about to say.These structures are considered as w

23、ays of expressing explicit objective modality and appraisal. e.g. It is true that it took five years to do so. Theme RhemeThe main feature is that the comment in the it- clause is not a maning component of the second clause, and it is not possible to rewrite them.The alternative (where Theme and tru

24、e Subject, i.e. the embedded clause, are conflated) is possible, but it is regarded as the marked one. e.g. That he should hit back in the only way the seems to know Theme/Subject was grimly inevitable. Rheme6.4.4 Preposed Theme Preposed Theme: It occurs almost exclusively in impromptu speech or in

25、writing that imitates speech. In such cases, speakers announce their Theme as a separate constituent, and then substitute a pronoun in the appropriate place. e.g. People like us, in the middle, Theme we have to be careful about the children we have. Rheme6.4.5 Passive clauses and Theme Passivization

26、: It means to move a particular constituent into Theme. This is clearest where the Agent (the doer of the action) is explicitly mentioned in a prepositional phrase with by, since in these cases both potential Subjects are present. e.g. Theyd managed to get themselves on the wrong coach at Exeter. Th

27、ey were rescued by a soldier who spotted them both crying. He took them back to Exeter on another bus.6.5 Theme in clause complexesClause complex: consisting of more than one clauseFries argued that the most useful unit for analysing Theme in a text is the T-unit; that is, an independent clause toge

28、ther with all the clauses that are depend on it. Thus, if a sentence has more than one independent (or main) clause, there will be two two T-units, each with is own Theme. e.g. My dad died when I was five. Theme RhemeAs the universeexpanded,the temperature of the radiationdecreased.Theme1Rheme1Theme

29、2Rheme2Theme3Rheme36.6 Multiple Theme6.6.1 Conjunctions in Theme Conjunctions must come in first position. Their function is to signal that the coming clause forms part of a larger structural unit, the clause complex, and also to signal how it relates to the other clause in the complex. e.g. But all

30、 rooms look out the secluded garden. Theme Rheme6.6.2 Conjunctive and modal Adjuncts in Theme Conjunctive Adjuncts such as however, alternatively and as a result, signal how the clause as a whole fits in with the preceding text. However, unlike conjunctions, they do not link the clause into a larger

31、 structural unit (in over-simple terms, they show how two sentences relate to each other, whereas conjunctions join two two clauses into one sentence). e.g. Nevertheless, we can reflect on our own ativities. Theme Rheme Modal Adjuncts, such as probably, surprisingly and frankly, convey the speakers

32、judgement of the relevance or truth value of their message. They may be seen as a comment on the content of the message rather than as part of the content itself. e.g. Certainly his wife June was a very odd woman. Theme Rheme Unlike conjunctions, Conjunctive and modal Adjuncts do not have to be them

33、atic: the speaker can choose whether or not to put them in Theme.They frequently occur in second position in the clause. e.g. The little station, however, had not changed at all. Theme Rheme Then they would certainly have to send you home. Theme Rheme6.6.3 Textual, interpersonal and experiental elem

34、ents in ThemeTextual & interpersonal Theme: Its meaning can be expressed by lexical elements, such as conjunctive and modal Adjuncts, which have the function of placing the content, of signalling how it fits coherently with the content around it.Experiental Theme: Halliday and Matthiessen label

35、the thematic experiential constituent the topic Theme, arguing that it corresponds cosely to what is called topic in topic-comment anaysis.Multiple Theme: If anything precedes the experiential element in Theme - textual or interpersonal elements - it is also part of the Theme.Well,certainly,sanityis

36、 a precarious state.My God, Harrietweve been dealt a bad hand!textualinterpersonalexperientialRhemeTheme6.6.4 Interrogative as multiple Themes Yes/no interrogatives are in fact simply a kind of multiple Theme, with the finite as an interpersonal element. Similarly, imperative clauses in which the ne

37、gative or emphatic operator (dont or do ) is present have a multiple Theme with the opeator constituting an interpersonal thematic element.Well,Mrs Lovatt, wouldyousay it is untrue?Dohaveone of these eclairs.textualinterpersonalexperientialRhemeTheme6.7.1 Existential there in Theme The existence is

38、signalled not just by there but also by there plus the existential process (typically realized by the verb be). Thus it seems to make sense to include the process in Theme - and, in addition, this means that the Theme includes experiential content. It is clear that existential there in Theme functio

39、ns as a pass option: it typically points forward to the content of the Rheme as signalling the topic of the clause, and, in many cases, of the following stretch of the text. e.g. There was no question of Kates marrying Ted. Theme Rheme6.7.2 Theme in reported clauses In the case of quotes, the analys

40、is is usually straightforward: the reporer makes a Theme choice in the projecting (reporting ) clause and also recycles the original speakers Theme chice in the quote. e.g. He said: Some people wont like it. Theme Rheme Theme Rheme In many cases, the Theme of the projected clause links in with the topic of the text, while