Textual Metafunction

and
Theme System

Group Members:
Dian Mardiana (2223170059)
Dina Agnia S (2223170050)
Eka Dyana (2223170098)
Intan Puspita S (2223170077)
Muchibbati (2223170110)
Nida Ul-Husna (2223170062)
Vina Agustina (2223170056)
Definition of Textual Metafunction
✢ Textual Metafunction is about the verbal world,
especially the flow of information in a text, and is
concerned with clauses as message.
✢ Focuses on the function of language to compose
clauses of sentences into one unified text.
✢ (Halliday and Matthiessen, 2004), The textual
metafunction helps organise the message within
and between caluses, and is closely linked to
theories of cohesion.
✢ Textual metafunction concerned with the ordering
of information, with what come first, last and in the
middle, with what links the parts of a piece of
writing to each other so as to create a coherent
discourse.
Theme System
✢ The organization of information within
individual clauses, and through this,
with the organization of larger text.
✢ Theme system is linguistic system that
used to analyze the textual
metafunction meaning.
Relation between Textual
Metafunction and Theme System
Theme system is linguistic
system/linguistic tool to analyze the
meaning in Textual Metafunction

The meaning in Textual Metafunction will

be realized from the result of the analysis
of the Theme System.
Element of Theme System
Theme
System

Theme Rheme
1. Element of Theme System
Theme
✢ Theme is the element which come first in
the clauses
✢ Theme is the point of departure of the
message
✢ Theme is the starting point for the
message, what clauses is going to be
about.
✢ Theme is used to signal what a message is
about and in written language, the writer’s
angle on the message, and to signpost the
development of a text.
2. Elements of Theme System
Rheme
✢ Rheme is the part of the clauses in
which the theme is developed
✢ Rheme is everything that is not the
theme.
 Example “Theme-Rheme”
1. Seojun has finished his study

Seojun has finished his study

Theme Rheme

2. The television has done a lot of good thinfs to people in every aspect of life.

The television has done a lot of good thinfs to people in every aspect of life
Theme Rheme

3. It helps educate young children.

It helps educate young children

Theme Rheme
Theme and Rheme – Given
Information and New Information
✢ In English, New Information/ unfamiliar
content usually presented in the
second clauses (Rheme)
✢ Where the Theme is developed as the
speaker’s tipically depart from the
familiar to head towards unfamiliar.

Given Information = Theme

New Information = Rheme
 Example
Theme and Rheme - Given and New
Information
Theme – Given Information Rheme – New Information

Jukyung has two friend, Suho and Seojun

Suho is nineteen years old

And Seojun Is twenty years old

Seojun and Suho Are handsome

Types of Theme

Theme

Topical Theme Interpersonal Theme Textual Theme

Relevant to
Relevant to Experiental Relevant to Textual
Interpersonal
Metafunction Metafunction
Metafunction
Topical Theme
✢ Topical theme is the first elemen in the
clause that expresses some kind of
“representational meaning”.
✢ Topical themes of clauses signal what
the text is about (the gist of the text).
✢ Topical theme realised in Transitivity
structure, as: a Pasticipant, a
Circumstance or a Process.
 Example – Topical Theme

Participant as a Unmarked (Subject as Smoking Is dangerous for health.

Theme a theme) Causes many diseases
It

Circumstance as a Marked Yesterday I went to the zoo with my

Theme family

Process as a Theme Marked Come to me!

Topical Theme Rheme

Interpersonal Theme
✢ Interpersonal theme is often used to
indicate the writer’s or speaker’s
personal judgement on the meaning or
to foreground the writer’s viewpoint
Example – Interpersonal Theme
Unfused Finite Can We Have lunch now?
as a Theme Have You Need Laskar
Pelangi?
Mood Adjunct I think (I believe) English Is important for
success in
education.
Comment Obviously Family Is useful for
Adjunct planning prosperity of a
country.
Voative Adjunct Sinta, You Should read The
Secret of Angel
Webtoon?
Polarity Adjunct Yes
No
Interpersonal Topical Rheme
Theme Theme
Textual Theme
✢ Textual theme is the one of the types of the
theme which do not express any
interpersonal/experiental meaning, but
which are doing important cohesive work in
relating the clause to its context.
✢ Textual themes serve the purpose of most
clearly indicating the “linking function” to
highlight the unfolding or logical structure
of a text.
✢ Textual Themes can also be realised in
structural conjunctions (Coordinating and
subordinating conjunctions, relatives and
conjunctives)
Example – Textual Theme
Coordination Rina Works very hard, but her
classmates seem to waste too much
time chatting.
Subordination Many students did not pass the final
test of Functional Grammar because
they were not prepared for it.
Relative Some lecturers do not seem to
welcome the newer policy of the
department, which is [[classroom
observation]].
Conjunctive Besides, the argument [[which is
launched by the U.S government of
attacking Iraq]] is not making any
sense.