Download a. Attributive Relational Processes

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BEING AND HAVING: THE TRANSITIVITY OF
RELATIONAL AND EXISTENTIAL PROCESSES
Introduction
Relational processes are processes about what things are, what they are like, and
what they possess (Lock, 1996: 126). This category expresses the notion of being
something or somewhere (Downing and Locke, 2002: 131). There are three types
of relational processes.
They are attributive, identifying, and possessive
processes (Lock, 1996: 128). We will look at each of these relational processes in
turn. Then we will turn our attention to existential processes.
Relational Processes
a. Attributive Relational Processes
In a clause containing attributive relational process, there is a participant to which
an Attributive is assigned. This participant is known as the Carrier of the
Attribute. The relationship between the Carrier and the Attribute is such that the
Carrier is in some way the Attribute. The contribution of the Attribute is to
characterise the Carrier. Study the following examples:
Carrier
Linking
Attribute
Verb
1.
John
is
generous.
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2.
They
are
world-class footballers.
3. …the boy,
who
is
the thief.
In (1), the Attribute is a kind of quality of the Carrier, while in numbers (2) and
(3), the Carriers belong to particular classes of entities. Carrier and Attribute are
linked by a linking verb and in the above examples, the verbs are the various
forms of the verb be.
Types of Attribute
The first type of Attribute is the quality type which is usually expressed by an
adjective or adjective group (generous in (1)), while the class type of Attribute is
expressed by a noun or noun group (world-class footballers, the thief in (2) and
(3) above) (Lock, 1996: 127). The process can be expressed as a state using state
verbs such as be, keep, remain, stay, seem and appear; or as a transition using
verbs of transition like become, get, turn, turn out, grow, run, and end up. In the
former type of process, the Attribute is seen as existing at the same time as the
process described by the verb and is sometimes called the current Attribute. In
the latter type of process, the Attribute exists as the result of the process and can
be called the resulting Attribute (Downing and Locke, 2002: 132).
Current Attribute
Resulting Attribute
4a. She was quiet.
4b. She fell silent.
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Task 1
(15 minutes)
Which of the following sentences have current Attributes and which have
resulting Attributes?
1.
She became the Prime Minister.
2.
She remained the Prime Minister.
3.
The charcoal turned into ash.
4.
The charcoal is red.
5.
The surface is rough.
6.
The surface has become rough.
7.
The child gets tired easily.
8.
The child looks tired.
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The third type of Attribute represents circumstances. These are processes of
being in which the circumstantial element is essential to the situation (Downing
and Locke, 2002:133).
Circumstance Attributes are typically expressed by
prepositional phrases as shown in the following examples:
Location in space
Carrier
Circumstance
. The football pitch is
over there.
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3rd
Location in time
6. The final examination will on
the
be
September.
of
Extent in space
7. The national park stretches
from the north of the
island to the south
west.
xtent in time
8. The musical lasted
two hours
minutes
forty-five
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Expansion of Attributes
Attributes are expressed mainly by Adjective Groups. Attributes represented by
adjectives can be expanded into adjective groups and these Attributes can be
premodified by adverbs, nouns and other adjectives. In an adjective group, there
can be three structural elements – head (adjective:), premodifier (adverb, noun,
adjective) and qualifier (phrases and clauses) (Dowing and Locke, 2002: 512).
The following are three examples of Adjective Groups.
Premodifier
Attribute (Head)
Qualifier
Adverbs
very
easy
to solve this problem
Nouns
cardinal
red
gown
Adjectives
light
blue
sash and ribbon
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Many adjective groups are realised only by the head element. Syntactically, these
groups function typically as modifiers in Noun Groups and Subject complements
in clauses. Semantically, they can express a state (lonely), a process (increasing),
space (southern), time (ancient), activity (creative), emotion (odious), evaluation
(true), specification (main), etc. (Downing and Locke, 2002: 512).
b. Identifying Relational Processes
In some clauses, one participant is identified by equating it with another
participant in the same clause.
Such clauses are called identifying process
clauses. Examples of such clauses are as follows:
Identified
Identifier
9. The musical
is
Les Miserables.
10. The river linking the north to the south
is
the Klang river.
11. John
is
my brother.
The first participant in the clause, known as the Identified equals the second
participant which is known as the Identifier.
Since they are ‘equals’, such
clauses can therefore be reversed or they are reversible (Les Miserables is the
musical, The Klang river is the river linking the north to the south, My brother is
John). This is the main difference between them and the Atrributive relational
clauses.
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c. Possessive Relational Processes
The following are three examples of clauses containing possessive relational
processes.
Possessor
Possessed
12. The infant
has
brown eyes
13. The king
owns
the castle
14. Those bottles
contain
cooking oil
In such clauses, the relationship between the two participants is one of possession:
one being the Possessor and the other, the Possessed. The linking verb is usually
have but as you can see in the above examples, the verbs own and contain are also
used.
Existential Processes
These are processes of existing or happening and they consist of only one
participant known as the Existent.
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Existent
15. There
is
a lady
at the door
16. There
‘s
roast chicken
for dinner
17. There
was
a parade
in town.
18. There
has been
an explosion
at the port.
The Existent can be an object or an event or situation, usually represented by a
noun phrase (a lady, roast chicken, a parade, an explosion).
Verbs other than be are also used in existential clauses. They include intransitive
words such as remain and stand which express positonal states and verbs such as
occur and follow which express the notion of ‘occurring’, ‘coming into view’ or
‘arrival on the scene’ (Downing and Locke, 2002: 139). Now complete Task 4.
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
Task 2
(20 minutes)
Below are examples of clauses containing existential processes. Identify the verb
in each clause and state whether it expresses positional states or notions of
‘occurring’, ‘coming into view’ or ‘arrival on the scene’.
1.
Below the monastry there stretches a sandy beach.
2.
On the wall of the prison there hangs a mural.
3.
There appeared on the screen twenty-two skillful football players.
4.
There emerged from the balcony the queen of England.
5.
Out of the fog there loomed an apparition.
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Summary
Basically, there are three types of relational processes – namely attribute,
identifying and possessive. In attributive relational clauses, there is a participant
known as the Carrier. The Carrier is assigned an Attribute and the former is
mapped onto the Subject of the clause while the latter is mapped onto the
Complement of the clause. In Identifying relational clauses, one participant is
equated to another. The participant which is identified is the Identified and the
participant that identifies the Identified is known as the Identifier. Possessive
relational clauses have two participants – the Possessor and the Possessed –
usually linked by the verb have.
Existential process clauses comprise a
participant (the Existent), the word there and usually the verb be.
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