Functional Perspective

Linguistics and Functional Grammar

Linguistic perspective
-study of the workings of language as a system
-syntax, morphology, semantics, pragmatics, phonology, phonetics, etc.
Relevance to rhetoric?
-rhetorical arguments made through language
-“language speaks through speakers” (Burke)

Grammar
-syntax (structure and order of sentences/clauses/phrases)
-inflection morphology (structure of words relating to their role in phrases)

-All language follows grammar

-All communication follows patterns

Prescriptive Grammar
-Rules to follow
-Is the language used correct or incorrect?
-Used in formal education

Descriptive Grammar
-Observations to make
-Is the language used functional or not functional?
-Used in linguistics research

Formal Grammar
-Prescriptive, used extensively in education
-Parts of speech and rules
-e.g. verb, noun, adjective, adverb, preposition, conjunction etc.
-e.g. subject, verb, direct and indirect object, qualifier, etc.
-e.g. don't end sentence with a preposition

-No formal English grammar existed until late 16^th century
-No widespread standards of English grammar until late 18^th century
-e.g. Shakespeare “ungrammatical”
-Emerged from increased demand for education for urban middle class
-reflects dominant norms in some sense
-But how else can we effectively teach grammar?
-universal rules necessary and facilitate education, business, politics, socialization

Grammar: a set of rules for how to express yourself correctly and clearly

Generative Grammar

Noam Chomsky (b. 1928)
-American linguist, political activist
-'father' of modern linguistics

Language as a brain structure
-we must be born with not only capacity for language, but a built-in system of principles
-children learn language rapidly by simply listening
-even languages without any formal grammar are remarkably systematic
-although features in languages are different (and even backwards) from each other, the underlying logic of all languages is identical

(Chomskian) Linguistics
-branch of psychology, closely tied to biology (of the brain)
-looks for universal language principles and examines how they are realized in actual use
-descriptive
-sees all functioning languages and dialects as equal
-sees social conditions as determining how we realize our language potential (but not the potential itself)
-has little to say about rhetoric as such, but suggests that all people are equally disposed to being persuaded through communication

Grammar: hidden brain structure responsible for all language(s)

Functional Grammar
Michael Halliday (b. 1925)
-British linguist
-systemic functional grammar

Language as a social structure
-language may be built into us, but more importantly...
-language shapes and is shaped by the role it performs in society: “eco-social”
-language is always used for a reason; we only have grammatical categories because we need them to accomplish communicative goals: “functional”
-language in all its parts is a system of choice (just like terministic screens)
-we choose to say some things and not others; we choose to structure our words in some ways and not others
-languages are organized by necessity, convenience and power: “systemic”
-the systems of language parallel other systems in society: economic and political power; moral and social norms
-all language is rhetorical in its origin; if we did not need other people to act or respond, we would not have language at all

Grammar: system of choices made for social and rhetorical reasons

-Functional grammar less interested in what grammar is (e.g. a set of rules, or a brain structure) and more in what it does (e.g. not nouns, verbs, adjectives but participants, processes, circumstances)

Systemic Functional Grammar

All communication accomplishes three functions:

Ideational
-language is always 'about' something
-language refers to content: real world or imaginary ideas
-any language is ultimately a reflection of the world its speakers live in

Realized in grammar by
-transitivity
-processes, participants, circumstances

Interpersonal
-language always reflects attitudes
-language refers to norms, expectations of any situation
-language establishes/confirms relationships between speakers and listeners

Realized in grammar by
-mood
-modality

Textual
-language is always structured
-language doesn't come in isolated sentences, but as part of larger ongoing communication
-language makes sense because we are all part of that ongoing communication

Realized in grammar by
-thematic structure
-patterns of reference
-(many other structures; not discussed)

Analyzing Grammar

Transitivity
-in traditional grammar: subject, verb, object (direct or indirect), qualifiers, etc.
-in functional grammar: processes, participants, circumstances

e.g. John brought the book home on monday

-John (subject) brought (verb) the book (direct object) home (indirect object) on monday (prepositional phrase)

-John (participant: actor) brought (process: material) the book (participant: goal) home (circumstance: location) on monday (circumstance: time)

Textual Meaning: Theme

Theme is the topic of a sentence
-the element that readers' attention is drawn to, by default or by design
-what the sentence is 'about'
-in English, the theme is always at the start of sentences

Two types of theme:

Unmarked
-if the sentence starts with the subject, then subject = theme
-the 'default' option in English – does not draw too much attention to the theme, easy to read

-e.g. John went to school (this sentence is about John)
-e.g. Terrorists attacked the soldiers (this sentence is about terrorists)

-if the sentence is passive, then object (which in passive sentences comes before the verb) = theme

-e.g. The soldiers were attacked by terrorists (this sentence is about soldiers)

Marked

-if the sentence starts with something other than subject or passive object, then everything before subject = theme
-topicalization – emphasizing something other than the normal subject of the sentence, draws attention strategically
-alerts the reader that something is unusual or important about the element brought to the front

-e.g. As for the soldiers, they were attacked by terrorists (the sentence emphasizes soldiers)
-e.g. However much you try, you will not get it (the sentence emphasizes 'however much you try' = futility)
-e.g. In the afternoon, I went to the library (the sentence emphasizes the time as the most important information)

Rheme
-everything else in a sentence besides the theme
-if theme is the topic of the sentence, then rheme is additional information that the sentence wants you to learn about the theme

-e.g. John went to school (sentence is about John; we learn that John went to school)
-e.g. Terrorists attacked the soldiers (sentence about terrorists; we learn that they attacked the soldiers)
-e.g. The soldiers were attacked by terrorists (sentence is about soldiers; we learn that they were attacked by terrorists)
-e.g. In the afternoon, I went to the library (sentence is about the events of the afternoon; we learn that I went to the library)

Themes at higher levels

Paragraph
-topic sentence = theme

Song
-chorus = theme

Essay
-introduction = theme

Picture
-most visible element=theme

etc.

Theme and Rhetoric
-since theme determines what the sentence/paragraph/story/artifact/picture is about...
-choice of theme can be used to focus or divert the audience's attention
-choice of theme can affect interpretation of text
-choice of theme can be used to assign blame or present facts as taken-for-granted (through unmarked themes)
-choice of theme can be used to hide responsibility for actions (through unmarked passive themes or topicalized circumstances)
-choice of theme can set the terms of debate (if the theme says the argument is about x, responses to the argument will also be about x, not y)
-choice of theme can create false expectations and 'softly' deliver messages (the theme states that the artifact is about x, but the rest of the artifact is actually completely about y)

Ideational Meaning

Processes
-words/phrases that indicate what's happening
-realized by verbs/verb phrases
-carried out by participants, or take place on their own

Participants
-words/phrases indicate who is involved in the events happening
-realized by nouns/noun phrases
-cause and carry out processes, are affected by processes

Circumstances
-words/phrases that indicate where, when, how, etc.
-realized by prepositional and adverb phrases, qualifiers
-describe the context in which processes take place

Process Types:

1. Material: actions that change the world in some concrete manner
-e.g. do, bring, walk, arrive, kill, fix, create, etc.
-because these can only take place in the material world, they must be caused by something/someone, take place in some sort of circumstances and affect the state of affairs
-always has actual, implied or assumed participants and circumstances

Participants of Material Processes
Actor/Agent: the person/entity causing/carrying out the material process
Recepient: the person/entity being affected/changed by the material process
Goal: the person/entity for which the action was carried out

Rhetorical Examples:
-Aircraft struck targets in Libya tonight
-American bombers attacked the city from the air
-Civilians were killed in the raid
-Terrorists attacked allied soldiers
-Freedom fighters defended their country

2. Mental: processes that involve no material actions – thoughts or perceptions
-e.g. think, see, hear, feel, imagine, consider, invent, etc.
-only sentient beings can think or perceive (whether actual or believed, e.g. humans, God, aliens, computers, dogs)
-mental processes are always assumed to be conscious; usualy intentional

Participants of Mental Processes
Senser: the person/entity thinking or sensing something
Phenomenon: relating to senses – the thing being observed or perceived
Goal: relating to thinking – the thing being thought about

Rhetorical examples:
-Terrorists planned their attack
-The air strikes were planned in advance
-The allies thought about helping the freedom fighters
-I saw the person in front of me get killed
-Collateral damage was observed

3. Behavioural: processes of habitually doing something
-e.g. behave, carry out, act on, engage, commit, deploy
-Behavioural processes are in a 'grey area' between material and mental
-only sentient beings can engage in behaviour
-however behaviour is things that are taken-for-granted/normal: not necessarily done by will
-associated with actions that are normal, expected, prescribed, routine

Participants of Behavioural Processes
Behaver: who is engaging in behaviour
Behaviour: what behaviour is being engaged in

Rhetorical examples:
-Terrorists carried out their plans
-Airplanes engaged in combat
-I acted on my suspicions
-I was not able to fulfill my wishes

4. Verbal: processes of communicating
-e.g. say, write, speak, relate, state, explain
-only sentient beings can communicate
-messages are often taken as proof of intention
-the power to speak requires authority, or breaking a rule to speak when not asked to
-speaking always brings to question credibility: is the source trustworthy and well-intentioned?

Participants of Verbal Processes
Sayer: who is communicating
Verbiage: what is being communicated

Rhetorical examples:
-Terrorists claimed that they will attack America
-The president stated that he had reliable information
-I said that this simply wasn't true
-He argued about it

5. Relational: processes of being/having something
-e.g. be, have, possess, belong, exist
-state existence of something
OR
-identify the parts or attributes of something
OR
-give some sort of value or ownership rights to something/someone over something else

Participants of Relational Processes
Existent: something which exists
OR
Carrier: something that has a particular quality
Attribute: the quality possessed by something
OR
Token: something which possesses another thing or value
Value: the thing or value being possessed

Rhetorical Examples:
-Terrorists are out there
-We are not cowards
-This land is ours
-We must be right
-Freedom is not free

Processes, Participants and Rhetoric

Processes: What is taking place?
-is it actions (material) or abstract/sensory events (mental, verbal, relational)?
-is it one-off occurences or taken-for-granted routines (behavioural)?
-are the verbs chosen to describe processes neutral, or loaded with evaluations?
-good, bad, or neutral?
-are the neutralizations or evaluations of processes strategic?
-are the processes intentional or unintentional?

Who/what are the participants?
-are they human or non-human? Are they conscious and responsible?
-are they specific (real, individual people/things) or distributed ('people', entities)?
-are they “I”, “you”, “we”? (deceptively vague!)
-are they real (material, observable) or abstract (theoretical, imagined)?
-are they passive or active?
-are they men or women?
-are they powerful or disempowered?
-are they presented neutrally or with evaluations?
-good, bad, or neutral?

Interpersonal Meaning

Mood

What type of sentence is it? What is its intention?

1. Declarative
-statements
-most common type of sentence
-presents information as matter-of-fact – factual, but not emphasized
-central to appeal through logos – facts must be declared in order to be trusted
-neutral in regard to power relationships, except giving speaker a role as information-provider

For example:
John went to school.
Freedom is not free.
The president stated that he had reliable information.

2. Imperative
-command
-requests action from the audience in response
-central to establishing ethos and power
-speaker assumes authority – must have some power over listeners to give commands or make suggestions for action

For example:
Go to school.
Defend your freedom.
Listen to what I have to say.

3. Exclamative
-exclamation
-emphasizes information or underlines urgency
-can be used for conveying pathos, or adding element of pathos to logos
-speaker presented as emotionally-engaged – can be a good or bad thing

For example:
I won't go to school!
We must stand up and fight!
They will not stop us!

4. Interrogative
-question
-engages the audience, assumes an answer or response
-can be used to request information or imply a pre-existing answer
-speaker assumes less authority and initiative than audience – implies audience responsibility

For example:
Will you go to school?
Will you fight for freedom?
Will you listen to what I have to say?

Choice of mood
-important to effectiveness of argument
-frequency of non-declarative sentences often indicates highly rhetorical texts
-can be used to implicitly establish authority of speaker, or responsibility of audience

Modality

1) Modal verbs: could, should, might, will, may, etc.

2) Modal adverbs: possibly, definitely, unlikely, certainly, etc.

Sentences can be unmodalized (normal) or modalized (marked)
Highly modalized sentences usually indicate highly rhetorical texts

Can be HIGH or LOW
e.g. will vs. might; must vs. should; definitely vs. maybe

Types of Modality

1. Certainty
This must happen
I can't do it
They will not stop us

2. Usuality
This always happens
I am usually right
This shouldn't be happening

3. Possibility
This might happen
I should be able to do it
They may try to stop us

4. Obligation
I must do this
You shouldn't do it
We must defend our freedom

5. Inclination
I might do it
Why would you do that?
They couldn't be bothered

Choices of Modality
-used to establish evaluations and relationships between speaker and audience
-used to emphasize or divert conscious choice and responsibility
-can be used to seek consideration for even poorly-supported facts

Summary: Linguistic Analysis

Ideational

-Transitivity: Processes, Participants, Circumstances

Interpersonal

-Mood, Modality

Textual

-Theme/Rheme

However, this does not only apply to grammar (of language!)

Theme: Salience

What stands out in an image?

What is (meant to be) seen first?

Visual marking

Unmarked: subject of an image (by default)

Does not specifically stand out; simply there

Marked: unusual, striking element

Exaggarated colour, size, shape

Marked through contrast, clarity, sharpness

Unusual subject (appears out of place)

Angle/Perspective

Privileged vs. Unprivileged

We are used to seeing the world from eye level

We are used to seeing media in coherent ‘windows’

Deviations from these norms are often strategic

Politics of height: who occupies top-floor offices?

Politics of angle: widescreen cinematics

Politics of speed/information: we cannot be everywhere at once (or can we?)

Politics of distance:

close = friendly OR impressive/threatening;

distant = distant, foreign, not important

Priviliged Perspectives: suggest power over the subject/content of the image

High angle

Wide perspective

Information at-a-glance

View from places we wouldn’t normally be

Disadvantaged Perspectives: suggest that the subject/content of the image is powerful or threatening

Low angle

Limited (or confined) perspective

Incoherent/unexplained content

Vs. Ordinary perspective (eye level, ordinary, medium angle, coherent but without explanations)

Male Gaze – a type of privileged perspective

Maps – a type of privileged, safe perspective

Monuments – a type of strategically unprivileged perspective (meant to be seen from below)

Video games – often used privileged perspectives (strategy, cinematics) and disadvantaged perspectives (horror, realism) for strategic effect

Images can articulate a number of modalities for strategic effect

Similar to modals in language (obligation, usuality, inclination, etc.)

Colour (saturation, variety), contrast/brightness, sharpness, focus, texture, detail, etc.

Similar to ‘Illusion of Life’

Emotional/sensory (rather than discursive) content

Can suggest Intensity/Release patterns

Relative – varies by situation and genre

Levels of Articulation

(1) Low Articulation

Suggests bleak, colourless, uninteresting images

Emphasizes distance, otherness, release

(2) Naturalistic Images

‘Realistic’ look – attempts to look normal

Suggests taken-for-granted imagery, ordinariness

(3) High Articulation

Sharp, colourful, stylized images

Suggests positive impressions, aesthetic value

(4) Excessive Articulation

Jarring, extreme images; suggests intensity

Participants

Simple enough – entities shown acting in images

Who are the participants?

How are they portrayed?

Circumstances

Background

Peripheral entities, not involved in actions

Rich vs. sparse backgrounds: strategic?

Busy backgrounds can deemphasize actions, participants (e.g. Where’s Waldo?)

Sparse backgrounds draw attention away from context, towards actions/participants

Processes

What is taking place in the image?

Causes, progress, results

Shown or implied?

Processes (especially Material) have all three

But often only parts of these are show

Vectors

Graphic or implicit lines/shapes that direct the viewer’s gaze

Indicate direction, order, causality

Can be used to suggest processes in static images

Diagrams and signs

Labeled or symbolic

Realistic imagery

Pointing

Direction of movement (real or implied)

Shapes and angles (sharp angles point)

Comics

Speech bubbles = verbal processes

Thought bubbles = mental processes

Sound effects, lines = material processes

Summary: Functional Analysis

Ideational Meaning

-Transitivity: Processes, Participants, Circumstances

In visuals: Vectors

Interpersonal Meaning

-Mood, Modality

In visuals: Perspective, Modality

Textual Meaning

-Theme/Rheme

Communication as choice

Why is something expressed one way and not other?

Choices and communicative devices exist for purposes

What is present/expressed in communication?

What is absent/implied?

Look for patterns

Choices can be incidental to medium used

Or, choices can be strategic

Describe patterns systematically