Download Systemic Grammar

Systemic Grammar
or
English as a
Hierarchical System
Analysing Text : Hierarchical
Structure
Novel
Newspap
er
articles
chapters
paragraphs
sentences
clauses
groups / phrases
words
morpheme
s
phonemes
Word Class/ Classification of
Words
table, chair,
love, Stalin, Eiffel Tower
Nouns
Verbs
have, be, do, jump, swim, seem
Prepositions
in, of, with, between, on top of
Determiners
the, a, an, my, your, this, those
Conjunctions and, but, so, as, because
Pronouns
this, those, whose, mine
Adjectives
big, blue, smart, tall, brick-built
Adverbs
fast, quickly, successfully
Word Class/ Classification of
Words
Number
two, five, seven
interjections
ugh, ouch, ow
Elements of the Noun Phrase
Noun Phrases
What is a noun?
Places, people, concepts and things
e.g.
Blackburn, Tom Jones, Stalinism, thoughts, ideas, books,
Noun Categories
Make 2 columns and place the words appropriately
happiness
love
truth
table wall
banana
hate drawers
window
mirror
plug
man
bravery
friendship
Noun Categories
Note the difference
Coal is found underground
You can travel in london on the underground
The kindest person I know is sister theresa
My eldest sister is sharon
The princess was locked in a tower
The eiffel tower is in france
Capital Letters: Names
This is
avid
He is married to
Also known as
They have two sons.
The new baby is called
eckham.
ictoria.
osh
pice.
One is called
omeo.
rooklyn
Noun Categories: Count Nouns
biscuit
a
shoe
book
+
s
glass
some
Match
box
+es
To quantify we ask ‘how many?’
Noun Categories: Non-Count
Have no definite boundaries
Unable to count, or too many to count
To quantify we ask ‘how much’?
Noun Categories
Non-Count Nouns (or mass nouns)
water
countable
units
some
a
tea
butter
gold
coffee
glass
can’t pluralise
Noun Categories
Sort according to count or non-count
information
bottle
butter
grass
chair
apple
electricity
Noun Categories: Collective Nouns (or Group Nouns)
A collective noun is a single word to
describe a lot of one particular thing
A shoal of …
A bouquet of …
A pride of …
A flock of …
bees
crows
ships
yachts
Noun Categories: Compound Nouns
green+fly
blue+bottle
butter+fly
Determiners
Let’s look for
?
book
Adjectives
Adjectives describe the noun
They are placed between the
the determiner and the noun
We are currently selling a property
determiner
a
noun
property
large, Victorian, three-bedroomed,
Pronouns replace nouns
Pronouns
My car is a black, Volkswagen Golf
It is a black, Volkswagen Golf
Sue and Mandie are presenting to the rest of the
group
Sue and Mandie are presenting to us
Is this your black, leather coat?
Is this yours?
Prepositions
Prepositions PRE position noun phrases
poke
pay
lie
stand
the sheets
Elements of the Verb Phrase
Verbs
Verbs are having, being and doing words
There are 2 verb tenses - past & present
In addition there are a number of verb aspects
Verb phrases can also have ‘voices’
Types of Verb
Main verbs:
swim, jump, study
Auxiliary verbs:
be, have, do
(can also be main verbs)
Modal auxiliary verbs:
will/would, can/could, may/might,
shall/should,
ought to, used to
Identify the Verb Type
The boy was crying
(aux, main)
The bell was rung
I may be coming later
Liverpool could have been playing in Europe
Jane has a son
Verbs Tenses
Present Simple
Verb
Mary walks her dog
Verb +s
Past Simple/ Past Historic/
Preterite
Verb +ed
Mary walked her dog
Note: in each sentence, the verb walk is the main verb
Verbs Aspects
Present Perfect
present of to have + Verb + ed
Mary has walked her
dog
Past Perfect/ Pluperfect
Mary had walked her dog
past of to have + Verb + ed
Note: in each sentence, the verb to have acts as an auxiliary
or helping verb
Verbs Aspects
Present Continuous/Present
Progressive
Mary is walking her dog
present of to be + Verb + ing
Past Continuous/ Past Progressive
Mary was walking her dog
past of to be + Verb + ing
Note: in each sentence, the verb to be acts as the auxiliary
verb
Verbs Aspects
Future
Mary will walk her dog
will + Verb
Future hypothetical/conditional
will + have + Verb + ed
Mary will have walked her dog
Note: in each sentence, the verb will is a modal auxiliary verb
Active and Passive Voice
Active Voice
The policeman chases the thief
Passive Voice
The thief is chased by the policeman
Note: the main verb takes the ‘ed’ form
The verb to be is inserted, taking the tense/form of
the main verb in the active version
Active and Passive Voice
Active Voice
The policeman chased the thief
Passive Voice
The thief was chased by the policeman
Active and Passive Voice
Active Voice
The policeman is chasing the thief
The policeman has chased the thief
The policeman will chase the thief
Passive Voice
The thief is being chased by the policeman
The thief has been chased by the policeman
The thief will be chased by the policeman
Note: the auxiliary verb remains unchanged
Verbs Aspects
Note: verb aspect can be combined
subject
verb phrase
By next week, (the boy) (will have been being bullied) for six months
passive future perfect
continuous
Adverbs
Answer the questions
How, where, when & why
The car was fast (i.e. a fast car)
determiner, noun, verb, adjective
He drove the car fast
Pronoun, verb, determiner, noun, adverb
Conjunctions
Simple, Compound, Complex
Simple
sentences
Is a single clause expressing a single
idea
e.g. The sun rises in the east.
Compound
Sentences
2 or more clauses of equal weight joined by coordinating
conjunctions
e.g. The sun rises in the east and it sets in the
west.
Complex
Sentences
2 or more clauses joined be subordinating conjunctions
e.g. if you see the sun rise, you must be looking
east.
Adapted from ‘Billy’
by Pamela Stephenson
The exterior of the buildings were pleasant enough but
the interiors were thoroughly depressing. A dingy
staircase spiralled upwards to the flats. It stank of
cabbage and cat’s piss. Two poky apartments were
squeezed onto each floor. Some families were
lumbered with the ‘coffin end’ or corner apartment, which
was even smaller than the rest.
Adapted from ‘Billy’
by Pamela Stephenson
•The exterior of the buildings were pleasant enough but
the interiors were thoroughly depressing.
• A dingy staircase spiralled upwards to the flats.
•It stunk of cabbage and cat’s piss.
•Two poky apartments were squeezed onto each floor.
•Some families were lumbered with the ‘coffin end’ or
corner apartment, which was even smaller than the rest.
Transitive, Intransitive & Copula Verbs
The teacher praised the student
John drove the car
The girl cried real tears
The bells rang/ The sun shone/ The baby cried
The house seems safe
George Bush is the American President
Richard is hungry
7 forms of the Simple Sentence
SV
SVO
SVC
SVA
SVOC
SVOA
SVOiOd
*Optional adverbials can be added to all these basic forms
SV
Subject + Verb
The bells were ringing.
If the verb phrase does not need any additional
information to follow it, the verb is intransitive
SVO
Subject + Verb + Object
The dog chased the cat.
If the action of the verb transmits an effect
onto an object, the verb said to be transitive.
SVC
Subject + Verb + Complement
Michael Caine is an actor
Some verbs, such as be, become, looks and seems
are linking verbs (or copula verbs). Noun or
adjective phrases that follow these verbs are
obligatory and relate back to the subject
SVA
Subject + Verb + Adverbial
The miners stood outside
Adverbials are words or phrases that answer the
questions how, when, where and why
SVOC
Subject + Verb + Object + Complement
The sun turned the milk sour
In this instance the word ‘sour’ complements, or
relates to the object.
SVOA
Subject + Verb + Object + Adverbial
Owen placed the ball in the net
“in the net” is an adverbial phrase because it
answers the ‘wh’ question - where was the ball
placed?
SVOiOd
Subject + Verb + Indirect Object + Direct Object
Paul bought me a book
The book is the direct object because it is the
item that was bought. i.e. directly influenced by
the verb
‘Me’ is the indirect object - the person for whom
it was bought.
Clause Analysis
2. Identify the
subject. Ask who
or what made the
action. Mark it
with an S
1. Find the
verb. Mark it
with a V
4. Is there an
adverbial? Ask
how, when, where
or why the action
took place Mark
it with an A
3. Find the
object. Ask who
or what received
the action. Mark
it with an O
Analyse the Following
I declared the meeting open
The cat swallowed the fish
My furniture is being repaired
The guests drank the champagne
You have made me happy
He stuck his hands in his pockets
The team built a racing car
Analyse the Following
This book is rubbish
I am teaching you grammar
Sharon is my sister
My parents are living in America
Dave sent his wife an anniversary card
London is in the south
I have eaten
Analyse the Following
The bells rang at 5p.m.
Tom got his shoes wet
Tony Blair is the Prime Minister
Mark opened the door quickly
The dogs barked
Peter gave Jane a ring
The Prime Minister met the President for talks
Glossary
Participles
Infinitive
Regular
Irregular