UNITS 31-39
While studying these units you probably have noticed that they all have the first part in common. In this post I am going to write a summary that can work for all of them.
These are their titles and numbers following Secondary list. (For EOI the numbering is from 10 to 15 and the 64)
31. Text & context. Text typology. Criteria for their classification. Register.
32. Narrative Text. Structure & Characteristics.
33. Descriptive Text.Structure & Characteristics.
34. Argumentative Text. Structure & Characteristics.
35. Expository Text. Structure & Characteristics.
*36. Dialogical Text. Structure & Characteristics.
*37. Literary Language. Literary Genres. Literary Criticism.
*38. Scientific & Technological, Commercial & Administrative English Language.
39. Strategies in the Text Analysis.
In this post I've written the contents that you can applied to all of them with the exception of the *Unit 36, where there are some major variations, and the *Unit 37 and *38.
My recommendation: write always each title with the index on the first page of your answers with the bibliography. If possible, in some moment of your exposition include a quotation that inspires you and some definitions (of text, context, text type, genre, register) mentioning the authors from the bibliography.
1- Introduction.
(Say briefly what the unit is about, and its parts.)
The emphasis in the construction of sentences has recently changed towards an increasing interest in analysing the sentences work in sequence to produce coherent stretches of language. This interest has developed into two main approaches in the discourse analysis:
- Spoken: Conversational discourse analysis.
- Written: Text analysis.
2- Tex definition
Text is used in linguistics to refer to any passage, spoken or written of whatever length, that does form a unified whole. A text may be spoken or written, prose or verse, dialogue or monologue. A text is a unit of language in use. It is not a grammatical unit, like a clause or sentence; and it is not defined by its size.
3- The Seven Standards of textuality of De Beaugrande & Dressler:
They define text as "a communicative occurrence which meets seven standards of textuality".
If a stretch of language does not satisfy any of these standards, it will not be communicative and therefore it will not be a text. However, we must be aware of a certain tolerance in human language towards minor flouting of these standards if we uphold the remainder. The seven standards of textuality are:
1)Cohesion: concerns the way in which the components of the surface text, i.e. (=Latin "id est", or "that is") the actual words we hear and see, are mutually connected within a sequence.
Hallyday & Hassan (1976)
distinguish: 5 types of cohesive relationships linking sentences:
I.Reference: a semantic link between the reference item and that which it presupposes; but this does not mean that both have the same referent, i.e. "Ann was here today. She said that..." This reference may be exophoric (to the situational context), endophoric (inside the text), anaphoric (to the preceding text) or cataphoric (to the following text).
II.Substitution. Substitution is a replacement of an item by another. Since substitution is a grammatical relation, the different types of substitution are defined grammatically rather than semantically. The criterion is the grammatical function of the substitute item. In English, the substitute may function as a noun, as a verb, or as a clause.
III.Ellipsis: use if what would be called "deletion" in transformational terms, i.e. when speaker leaves out a sound, a morpheme or a words when they are speaking. A part of subsequent sentence which would repeat a phrase or idea explicitly stated on a preceding sentence is omitted, making the second sentence depend for its completeness on the first. Ellipsis is a very important cohesive device in dialogue, a guarantee that speakers are concentrating together on a single topic and on the background knowledge relevant to the topic. In fictional dialogue, ellipsis suggest intimacy, intensity.
IV.Lexical Cohesion: refers to the cohesive effect achieved by the selection of vocabulary. There are two types: Collocation, which is the association of two items frequently appearing together, i.e. "strong tea"; and Reiteration, that is the repetition of one lexical item, not necessarily the same, but also a synonym, partial synonym or superordinate.
V.Conjunction: here we talk about sequences of sentences which cohere and progress by various semantic relationships between them. Hallyday & Hassan distinguish 4 types:
- Temporal: first, second, later...
- Additive: and, besides, moreover...
- Adversative: yet, but, on the other hand
- Casual: because, as a result, since
2)Coherence: concerns with the ways in which the components of the textual world, i.e. the configuration of concepts and relations which underlie the surface text, are mutually accessible and relevant.
3)Intentionality: concerns the text producer's attitude that the set of occurrences should constitute a cohesive and coherent text instrumental in fulfilling the producer's intentions.
4)Acceptability: concerns the text receiver's attitude that set of occurrences should constitute a cohesive and coherent text having some use or relevance for the receiver.
5)Informativity: concerns the extent to which the occurrences of the presented text are expected vs unexpected or known vs unknown.
6)Situationality: concerns the factors which make a text relevant to a situation of occurrence.
7)Intertextuality: concerns the factors which make the utilisation of one text dependent upon knowledge of one or more previously encountered texts.
De Beaugrande & Dessler, following Searle, think that these standards of textuality are constitutive principles, i.e they define and create the form of behaviour identifiable as textual communication, and if they are defied, that form of behaviour will break down. But there must also be some regulative principles that control textual communication rather than define it:
A) Efficiency. It will depend on its use in communicating with a minimum expenditure of effort by the participants.
B) Effectiveness. It depends on its leaving a strong impression and creating favourable conditions for attaining a goal.
C) Appropriateness. The appropriateness of a text is the agreement between its setting and the ways in which the standards of textuality are upheld.
D) And Grice's Cooperative principle can also be considered a regulative principle because:
- Its maxims serve to create the right conditions to communicate effortless.
- It maxims serve to attain the communication goal.
- Its maxims serve to uphold the text variety being used.
This principle has *4 maxims*, each of them has been defined more strictly by means of a series of imperatives sentences, a real list of do's and don'ts in communication. The list is as follows:
*1*. QUANTITY
- make a contribution as informative as is required.
- do not make your contribution more informative that is required.
*2*. QUALITY
Try to make your contribution one that is true.
- Do not say what you believe to be false
- Do not say that for which you lack adequate.
*3*. RELATION
Be relevant.
*4*. MANNER
Be perspicuous.
- Avoid obscurity of expression
- Avoid ambiguity
- Be brief.
These standards of textuality occur in all types of texts. In this topic they are going to be seen connected to__(choose: narrative/descriptive/ argumentative/expository/dialogic)___ texts.
Firstly, as__(choose:narrative/ descriptive/argumentative/expository/dialogic)__is a literary genre. There will be a brief account of what a genre is and different types of text.
4- Text typology based on functions
(I'm going to give you three different criteria for their classification: from the point of view of rhetoricians, teachers and linguists, so you can adapt to your needs the day of the exam.
And I am adding some forms, structures and linguistic characteristics in each genre so you can use that info in the next point number 6 whenever you write the topic at home or the day of the exam.)
We will now describe the different types of texts or genres: (and 3 different ways to explain them).
1] The genres that appear in the classical literature on rhetoric, from Aristotle to modern day rhetoricians, are those of narrative, descriptive, procedural (expository) and suasive discourse (argumentative).
2] Language teachers have always followed this model, at the following types rhetorical organisation:
- This is what happened: narrative, temporal organisation.
- This is the look/size/smell of something: description.
- This is like/ unlike something else: comparison, contrast.
- This may have probably/certainly caused this: casual and evaluative.
- This is what ought to be done: problem solving including effects, causes, possible solutions, the assessment of solutions, the prediction of side effects, and the suggestion of one or some combination of elements as the best solution.
3] Linguists have also found this issue of some interest, but mainly in terms of the link between rhetorical mode and syntactic structure, i.e., the way syntax reflects the different rhetorical structures.
Most of the recent models developed in text linguistics use a multi-level approach for the classification of texts.
The following classification is to be regarded as a practical means of producing, predicting and processing texts and not hard and fast rules for the distinction of text types:
De Beaugrande & Dressler say:
"the conditions for communicating are simply too diverse to allow such a rigorous categorisation".
The approach rest upon two important assumptions:
First: Linguistic communication is an interactive process.
Second: Observation of linguistic communication can be carried out at different levels. These can be grouped as follows, therefore constituting criteria for text classification:
- The various functions that language serves in human communication (referential, expressive, conative, phatic, metalingual, poetic)
- On the lower levels, the different kinds of texts. These types can be successively distinguished according to types of situation, types of strategy, types of structure and patterns of expression.
NARRATIVE: to inform about actions and events. e.g. oral narrations, novels, tales, fables, comic books, news, chronicles, news reports, films, etc.
Typical linguistic resources of narrative texts are:
* They have to do with real-world events.
* They display a very characteristic sequencing of events in which dynamic verbs occur in their simple forms
* and in which sequencing adverbials such as as "then" or "first" provide the basic narrative structure.
* In order to inform listeners or readers about the world of the story, narratives usually display "orientation". This include the time of the narrative, "time orientation", e.g. "once upon a time...", and the spatial setting, "place orientation", e.g. "in a very far country...". In addition to the setting of the story world, the characters and their roles must also be set up, character/role identification, e.g."there lived an old lady called....".
DESCRIPTIVE: to inform about the state of things, facts, processes, or events. e.g. descriptions in literary style texts, travel guides, catalogues, advertising, etc.
They are in contrast, concern with the location of persons and things in space. That is why they will tell what lies to the right or left, in the background or foreground, or they will provide the information that perhaps sets the stage for narration.
Typical linguistic resources of descriptive texts are:
*State of positional verbs plus adverbial expressions:
The shutter button of a digital camera is located on the right hand on top.
* Perfect and progressive forms typically give background information:
He was painting the ceiling when the wind tore up the shutters.
According to the topic, it is also possible to establish a sub-categorisation of descriptive texts. There are different ways to describe something, but always a pre-established organisation:
a) External description: it will normally follow a logical direction, i.e. if you describe a house you will start from the bottom upwards or vice-versa, but you want start by the entrance, then the window, and then the garage. The important thing in this kind of descriptions is that the writer guides the reader's mind to a holistic view of the object, giving of good account of all its parts and organisation.
b) Functional description: They are often used with instruments, and they are based on the tasks they may perform, and their parts are usually described in this fashion. For example, if you describe a car and you are talking about the tyres, apart from the shape, size, etc. you will mention their function in the system.
c) Psychological description: They describe the feelings that something gives us. They could have any topic: nature, a house, an animal, or a person. Notice that most descriptions will make reference to the psychological effect of the object on the writer.
EXPOSITORY: (or explanatory or explicatory) to inform about ideas and concepts, normally with a didactic stance. e.g. brochures, lectures, scientific articles, academic papers, handbooks, textbooks, manuals, etc.
They identify and characterise phenomena. As such they include text forms such as definitions, explications, summaries and many types of essay. They may be subjective (essay) or objective (summary, explication, definition.)
They may also be divided into:
Analytical, starting from the concept and then analysing its parts.
Or
Synthetic, recounting characteristics and ending with an appropriate conclusion.
Typical syntactic constructions which may be appropriately expanded in forming expository texts are:
a) Identifying statements with state verbs or epistemic modals:
- Genre is a style, especially in the arts, that involves a particular set of characteristics
- Sentences may consist of more than one clause.
b) Verbs indicating characteristic, activities or qualities:
- Most English teachers are philologists.
- Historians write about real events.
DIRECTIVE: (or procedural) are concern with concrete future activity. They can also be considered somehow expository texts as they instruct the audience on how to complete a specific task. The purpose of a directive text is to provide sequence information or direction so that people can successfully perform activities in safe, efficient and appropriate ways. Its forms are: directions, instructions, recipes, rules for games, manuals, agendas.
Its structure has 3 stages:
1. An introductory statement that gives the goal or the aim of the activity and stages what the procedure is aiming to achieve. Sometimes the goal is indicated in the main heading for example: "Building a model Romanic Church", which may be added by a diagram or a map.
2. The listing of materials or equipment to be used for the procedure.
3. The method or sequence of steps written in which they should be completed.
Central to such texts are the following linguistic features:
* Nouns or noun groups are used in the listed material or equipment. e.g. screws, nuts, bolts, screwdriver, wood...
* Other name of an item is omitted, instead of being constantly repeated and ellipsis is used. The person following the instructions may not be referred to or may be referred to in a general way as "one" or "you". There is little of personal pronouns.
* Conjunctions are used to show chronological order: e.g. before, while, then, after, when.
* Action verbs start most sentences, e.g. take, put, link.
* Commands are used. e.g. Pick them up
* Vocabulary ranges from technical to everyday language according to the target audience.
* Emphasis is often given to important information by underlying it or writing it in bold.
* Prepositions and adverbial phrases give detailed information about "how", "where" and "when".
* Use of imperatives or substitutes for them, e.g. Bring the table here. Would you give me the ticket?
* Use of the simple present, for example in stage directions, e.g. the butler enters, opens the door and admits a visitor.
* Sequences of imperatives in, for example, assembly or operation instructions:
e.g. Shake well before using
* Forms such as "in order to", "to", and "so as to", which reflect the aim with which something is done: unpack the computer carefully in order not to damage the system.
DIALOGIC: (or conversational) to question, to promise, to apologise to present ideas to socialise, etc. e.g. conversations, interviews, debates, interrogations, etc.
It is made up by an exchange or a series of verbal exchanges between speakers. When written, they try to reproduce the situation of a real conversation. These types of texts have singular characteristics, since they tend to be colloquial and are affected by the specific circumstances of oral communication.
In many instances the terms and discourse are used interchangeably. According to Edmonson, however, both words constitute two different approaches to the analysis of supra-sentential stretches of language. Nonetheless, they are not opposite terms:
- A text can be defined as a structured sequence of linguistic expressions forming a unitary whole.
- Discourse is a structured event manifest in linguistic (but also other) behaviour.
- Conversation can be used loosely and non-technically to refer to any interactional stretch or talk having the following features:
* it involves at least two participants.
* it takes pace in a non-formalised setting, such that no special rules or conventions may be said to operate. Thus a debate in the House of Commons is hardly a conversation, while an interview conducted on television may approximate to conversation if interviewer and interviewee "relax" so far as to forget their respective roles in front of the cameras.
*Conversation is then a particular type of multiple source spoken discourse.
Discourse analysis have established proposed rules for opening, closing and sequencing that we are supposed to follow when dialoguing. Let's mention some linguistic features of dialogic text in literature:
* Free direct speech. In direct we show evidence of narrator by using quotation marks and the introductory reporting clause. If we remove one or both these two features, we get free direct speech. ( most found in modern novels)
* Narrative report of speech act. We can also find sentences in which we merely report that a speech act has occurred but do not say what was said, or the form of the words that were used. ( most found in standard narration)
* Free indirect speech. In typical free indirect speech, the reporting clause is omitted, but the tense and pronoun selection are those of indirect speech. (found in between modern novels & standard narration)
We can finally establish a scale of interference of the narrator on reporting dialogue:
- Narrator is in total control: format 2
- Narrator is apparently in partial control: format 3 or combination of 2 & 3
- Narrator has apparently no control: format 1, i.e. "Virginia Woolf, Faulkner...)
ARGUMENTATIVE: to support and refute opinions and ideas, to convince, to persuade. e.g. essays, political and judiciary texts, speeches, advertising opinion articles, editorial boards, newspapers columns, debates, etc.
They depart from the assumption that the receiver's belief must be changed.
In their structure, we can highlight the following 6 steps:
1- Introduction: "the purpose of my speech.."
2- Explanation of the case under consideration: "There are two different approaches to this issue..."
3- Outline of the argument: "the difficult points are the following...."
4- Proofs supporting the argument: "as a matter of fact"...
We can find 6 different patterns of argumentative texts:
a) A frequent pattern would therefore be to start with the negation of a statement which attributes a quality or characteristic activity to someone or something. Even when a scholarly text provides positive support for a particular hypothesis there is always at least an implicit negation of previous assumptions.
b) The second pattern we can differentiate is when the argumentative discourse is mainly formed of the superposition of zigzagging elements giving "pro and cons" to the discussion. The difference is that if the author favours the idea the structure would be pro-con-pro-con; but if the author rejects the proposal, the structure would be con-pro-con-pro. In this kind of structure the author must demonstrate the opposite views to his/her own are unacceptable.
c) A third pattern is the so called "one-sided argument" In this kind of argumentative pattern the author decides to present only one part of the discussion with no counterarguments, with the purpose of making the reader follow his/her ideas.
d) A fourth pattern is the "eclectic approach". With this pattern the author selects for the reader some of the views on the subject, normally the most outstanding ones, so that the reader has an easier access to the main trends in a particular issue.
e) A fifth pattern contains the opposition's argument first, followed by the author's arguments. By means of the organisation, the author presents the arguments which he considers erroneous and subsequently, the author's reason are presented in such a way that they solve the shortcomings of the opposite arguments. Some of the typical formulae of this pattern are for example: "traditionally it has been believed"...; "it seems to be the fact..."
f) A sixth pattern is the "other side questioned" pattern. This involves the questioning, but not direct refutation, of the opposition's argument. By doing so, the reader will have the freedom to choose the most sensible idea in his/her opinion although the doubts presented by the author will probably make him/her adopt the author's view.
All these patterns show the intricate internal organisation that argumentative discourse has, a fact which implies the tremendous importance of this variety of discourse for the management of social and intellectual relationships. Advertising texts, often are the extreme opposite pole of scholarly argumentative texts in terms of style, also try to persuade their readers that a particular product is somehow better than others.
Typical linguistic resources of argumentative texts are:
* Evaluative words and sentences, e.g opinion verbs: affirm, argue, assert, claim, conclude, confirm, consider, contend, deny, describe, explain, examine, insists, maintain, present and report.
* Use of connectors since they reflect cohesion within the discourse and show a logical development of the discussion by establishing different relationships between the presented ideas:
- summative (i.e. in addition, moreover)
- restrictive (i.e specially, in particular)
- opposition (i.e however, although, though)
- insistence (i.e furthermore, similarly)
- explanatory(i.e as we can see)
- previous (anaphora: as stated before)
- conclusive (i.e. in conclusion, to sum up)
* Presence of conditional sentences, to state what should or shouldn't have been done and justify the author's position by showing the result an alternative course of action:
- Real or Generally True: (1st Cond.)
- Unreal /hypothetical Present: (2nd Cond.)
- Unreal /Hypothetical Past: (3rd Cond.)
* Grammatical categories: qualifying adjectives (outstanding fact, relevant research); abstract nouns to expose ideas, real facts or anecdotes (imagination, knowledge, opposition); concrete nouns, technical definitions to express once more the formality of the text; adverbs, which enable the writer/speaker to get an effect with great economy but fusing the quality of a thing with its action (clearly, briefly); specific syntactic structures such as subordinate, impersonal & passive sentences (it is said that..../ something is said to be...) causal consequence sentences (this is the reason why/ as a result)
5- Language Functions and its presence in texts:
It is pertinent to review here the main functions of language.
A definition of function in its simplest sense can be a synonym of the word "use" and Roman Jakobson classifies the Language functions according to the 6 factors of his own model of communication: (I) REFERENTIAL context, (II) EMOTIVE addresser (sender), (III) CONATIVE addressee (receiver), (IV) PHATIC contact, (V) METALINGUAL common code and (VI) POETIC message.
(In this part better draw a graphic and then explain each part, below I leave you mine:)
I. Representative or informative or REFERENTIAL function, the author refers to a common context or reality, normally shared with the reader. The descriptive statements of the referential function can consist of both definite descriptions and deictic words, e.g. "The roses bushes are blooming during these weeks." (focused on the context)
II. Expressive or EMOTIVE function, means using discourse to emphasise some subjective view on the reality, or maybe an emotion experienced by the writer. It is best exemplified by interjections and other sound changes that do not alter the denotative meaning of an utterance but do add information about the Addresser's (speaker's) internal state, e.g. "Wow, what a view!" Whether a person is experiencing feelings of happiness, sadness, grief or otherwise, they use this function to express themselves. (focused on the addresser of the message)
III. Directive or Vocative or CONATIVE function, engages the Addressee (receiver) directly and is best illustrated by vocatives and imperatives, e.g. "John! Come here and say something!" (focused on the addressee)
IV PHATIC function, it refers to the social function of language, which arises out of the basic human needs to signal friendship, or, at east, lack of enmity. It is language for the sake of interaction and is therefore associated with the Contact/Channel factor. The Phatic Function can be observed in greetings and casual discussions of the weather, particularly with strangers. It also provides the keys to open, maintain, verify or close the communication channel, e.g: "Hello?", "Ok?", "Hmm", "Bye". (focused on the contact)
VI. METALINGUAL function (alternatively called "metalinguistic" or "reflexive"), is the use of language (what Jakobson calls "Code") to discuss or describe itself. (focused on the code itself)
VI. POETIC function, tends to predominate in literature and is used in order to explore its own expressive qualities. (focused on the message itself)
.........................
And from this point you should develop the specific contents of each unit with something like:
6- Structure & Linguistic Characteristics.
(For this part study the Structures and Characteristics of each unit mentioned at the beginning of the post)
Then continue with a...
7- Conclusion. (make reference to the R.D 217/2022 or CAM Decrees and how to teach some of this knowledge in the classroom)
Give a sample of how to apply language functions in a text, for example in this advertisement:
The poster advertisement: [If you drink, then drive, you’re a bloody idiot] is part of a series of advertising campaigns based on the same slogan and launched in 1989 by the Australian Transport Accident Commission (TAC).)
8- Bibliography. (you don't need to write them all, select depending on the topic and those that you are mentioning in your exposition.)
- Adams, Jean Michael (1987) Types de séquences textuelles élémentaires. PRATIQUES
- Aristotle 4th Century BC. Rhetoric.
- Baldick, C (2015) The Oxford dictionary of literary terms. OUP Oxford.
- Bakhtin, Mikhail Mikhailovich. (1986) Speech Genres and Other Late Essays. Trans. Vern W. McGee. Austin, Tx: University of Texas Press.
- Bloom, Harold ( 1994) The Western Canon.The books and the schools of the ages. Harcourt Brace.
- Bloom, Harold (1973) The Anxiety of Influence: A Theory of Poetry. New York: Oxford University Press.
- Briton, B.K (2014) Models of understanding text. Psychology Press.
- Crystal D (2011) The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language. Cambridge. CUP.
- Crystal D and Davy, D (1969) Investigating english Style. London Longman.
- De Beaugrande, R & Dressler, W (1981) Introduction to Text Linguistic. London. Longman.
- Edmondson, Willis (1981) Spoken Discourse: A model for analysis. London. Longman
- Halliday, Mak & Hasan, R (1989) Language, Context and Text: Aspect of Language in a Social Semiotic Perspective. OUP.
- Jakobson, Roman (1960) Linguistics and Poetics. Style in Language. Cambridge Press.
- Leech & Shorts (1981) Style in Fiction. London. Longman.
- Siahaan J. (2013) An Analysis of Students' ability and difficulties in writing descriptive texts. Journal of English and Education. I (1) 114-121.
- Silvia, P (2009) How to write a Lot: A practical Guide to Productive Academic Writing. (Lifetools; Books for the General Public) Washington D.D: American Psychological Association.
- Toolan Michael.J 2nd Ed. (2012) Narrative, a critical linguistic introduction. Routledge.
- Toolan Michael.J (2016) Language, text and context: essays in stylistics. Routledge.
Webpages:
And finally, some charts you may find useful at the time of studying and training for the writing of the units 37 & 39:
CONTINUE READING MORE in these posts:
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