Ririn Rohmani 08420348

TAKING A DEFINITE STAND

Sometimes speakers take a definite stand in what they say. They take a position or assert a proposition, and are prepared to defend it in argument.

METALANGUAGE FOR DISCUSSING THE SPEAKERS POSITION IN A TEXT In any discussion, argument, or quarrel, it is the contents of the Mood block with are at stake. Example Mice can fly in the sky ( Speaker 1 )

If we want to disagree about their proposition, we simply add a negative such as not or nt into the Mood block after the Finite. This gives the clause NEGATIVE POLARITY ( yes / no question ). Example Mice Mice

can cant

fly fly

( Speaker 1 ) ( speaker disagreeing)

Analysis

In most cases, the speaker would also substitute an appropriate pronoun for the nominal group filling the subject slot as in :

Meanings that are not available for argument or discussion

If a clause does not have a Mood block, there is nothing on which to base an argument.

In the following clauses the verbal groups which include a finite are underlined and those which are non finite are in bold: 1. 2. 3. Going upstairs, I discovered my two cats, who had been missing for some time desembowelling my lace cushion. the city having been well and truly sacked, the Visigoths retired to their own territory. To err is human, to forgive divine.

Finding ground between positive and negative

By expressing the time, polarity and modality from the speakers vantage point, the finite indicates how to place an event in the speakers time and how the speaker judges the definiteness or certainty of the preposition expressed by the clause. we use the term MODALITY to refer to all signs of the speakers opinion in a text, so a finite expressing modality becomes a Modal Finite.

Metalanguage for discussing opinion

Modality is the general term for all signs of speakers opinion. Where the opinion is about probability or usuality it is known as MODALISATION. Where the opinion expresses obligation it is known as MODULATION. The metalanguage of opinion :
 modality  modal finite  mood adjunct  comment adjunct  modalisation  modulation  modal grammatical metaphor

The Modal Finite is not the only resource modality available to speakers of English. We may also use adverbial groups or prepositional phrases to express degrees of certainty or usuality. They encode speakers opinions about the probability, obligation, usuality, presumption, inclination, degrre, and intensity, or even time of the activiity in the clause.

Modal Grammatical Methapor

We are using the grammar metaphorcally when we say, for example, I think, when we mean - probably ; or, I believe, when we mean almost certainly; -- or, dont you think, when we mean definitely. There is modal grammatical metaphor in the last line of cheries text earlier in this chapter where she says:

We can suggest two differet analyses by slightly rewording this statement as either: This is [[what(I think) a good teacher should be like]]probably Where the modality stays in the embedded clause, or I think probably (that) this is what a good teacher should be like Where the modality applies to the whole clause.

Metalanguage for discussing attitude

Comment adjuncts allow speakers to show their attitude to the experiences encoded in a clause. Example:

Many other lexical choices in a clause also show a speakers attitudes and values. Most of the properly fit into our experiential analysis, but there are some Epithet, like silly, awful, wonderful, appalling, or fantastic which do not. Poor harry has lost his keys. This is a terrific offer! My mum went to Perth and all I got was this lousy T-shirt.

MAPPING EXPERIENTIAL AND INTERPERSONAL MEANING ON THE SAME CLAUSE

The metalanguage for the description of the experiential function focuses on the various possible combinations of Processes, Participants and Circumstances, while the metalanguage for the description of interpersonal meanings focuses on the subject Finite relationship and Mood Adjuncts in the Mood block, and the Predicator, Complement and ordinary Adjunct that make up the Residue.

Not every word in a clause will be relevant to the description of each function.