THE THEORY OF THE SIMPLE

The Definition of a Sentence
a polyfunctional unit
many aspects (facets): - - a grammatical structure
- a certain distribution of communicative dynamism
- modality
- predicativity
- intonation, etc.

The Definition of a Sentence
absolutely differing types of sentences:
one-word sentences
E.g. Help! Fire! Women! Magnificent! Eighty-five!

The Definition of a Sentence
50 page-long sentences:
Molly Bloom’s unpunctuated monologue from J. Joyce’s “Ulysses”

The Definition of a Sentence
prof. Khaimovich:
- a communicative unit
- made up of words and word-morphemes - in accordance with their combinability
- structurally united by intonation and predicativity

The Definition of a Sentence
M.Y. Bloch in his definition attempts to cover all aspects of a sentence:
- structure, nominative quality, - intonation, predicativity,
- modality, pragmaticity,
-communicative dynamism

The Definition of a Sentence: M.Y. Bloch
a unit of speech, built of words
unlike a word, a sentence doesn’t exist in the system of a language as a ready-made unit
it’s created by the speaker in the course of communication

The Definition of a Sentence: M.Y. Bloch
intonationally coloured
characterized by predicativity
possesses a nominative aspect
has a contextually relevant communicative purpose

Syntactic Modelling of the Sentence
representing infinite living structures as a finite set of basic structures,
of the models:
E.g. The sun shines.
He is clever.
There is a book on the table, etc.

Syntactic Modelling of the Sentence
associated with transformational grammar (N.Chomsky)

Syntactic Modelling of the Sentence
All possible grammatical structures derivations of kernels, received by transformational rules

Syntactic Modelling of the Sentence
Transformational rules (TR):
- addition,
- substitution,
- deletion,
- embedding ,
- recategorization (verbalization, nominalization)

Semantic Modelling of the Sentence
generative semantics and semantic syntax
Charles Fillmore, Wallace Chafe,
Ch. McCauley, O.I. Moskalskaya,
V.V. Bogdanov

Semantic Modelling of the Sentence
a semantic structure:
a mental model of an extralinguistic situation
in terms of propositions, predicates, arguments
deep cases

Semantic Modelling of the Sentence
2 parts within a basic structure:
a noun + a verb,
a subject + a predicate,
a noun phrase +a verb phrase,
a predicate + an argument

Semantic Modelling of the Sentence
W. Chafe:
the total human conceptual universe is dichotomized into two major areas:
smb does smth
smth happens to smb

The Notion of a Syntactic Paradigm
a set of syntactic structures
- a kernel, invariable
- others, variables
- received by various transformational procedures
- syntactic derivation

Paradigm of the Sentence:
the morphological sphere
all possible changes
of the constituents
of the kernel:
E.g. The sun shines
= > the sun shone,
the sun will shine,
these suns shine,
the syntactical sphere
the negative and
the interrogative forms
of a kernel:
E.g.The sun does not shine. The sun did not shine.
Does the sun shine?
Did the sun shine?
How does the sun shine?

The Morphological Sphere
the paradigm includes the changes
in nouns as to number and case;
in verbs as to number, person, tense, voice, aspect, correlation and mood;
in adjectives as to degrees of comparison

The Syntactical Sphere
phrase-transforms of kernels
by the TP of phrasalization
E.g. The sun shines =>
the sun shining,
the shining of the sun ,
for the sun to shine, with the sun shining
clause-transforms
TP of clausalization
connectives - conj.,
conj. pronouns and adv. conjunctive phrases:
E.g. if the sun shines,
though the sun shines, when the sun shines, while the sun shines, as the sun shines, etc.

Structural Classification of Simple Sentences
classifications of a simple sentence:
structural communicative_ semantic pragmatic
declarative interrogative imperative exclamatory

Structural Classification of Simple Sentences
a monopredicative unit
one explicit predicative line
formally expressed by
a subject and a predicate

Structural Classification of Simple Sentences
one-member two-member
single-nucleus double-nucleus
one-axis two-axis
1. Nominal
(nounal and adjectival):
E.g. Silence! Wonderful!
2. Infinitival: E.g. Forget all so soon!
To love her! To have loved her! To be loved by her!

Structural Classification of Simple Sentences
Extended sentences carry the main parts
( a subject and a predicate) and secondary parts
Unextended sentences carry only the main parts
! two-member extended
E.g. She approved. E.g. I went to Oxford in 1948.
( subject + predicate) (subject + predicate + adv. mod. of place and adv. mod. of time)
(John Fowles, THE MAGUS)

Structural Classification of Simple Sentences
implicit predicative lines
formally unexpressed
distinguishable transformationally
E.g. I am amazed at the sun shining so brightly.

Structural Classification of Simple Sentences
Speech is subtler than writing
actual performance fragments of sentences, deviating from norm
E.g. On the hill. Yes.
Extracted from the context these fragments can be interpreted in an unlimited number of ways.

General Properties of a Simple
(Two-Member Expanded) Sentence
a simple sentence
primary elements
independent the structural
nucleus
Subject/Predicate
secondary elements
dependent
its adjuncts
objects, attributes, adverbial modifiers, etc

Syntactic Ties
The primary predicative tie
makes a sentence
realizes itself in the changes of the verb for person, number, tense, voice, mood, aspect, time relation
E.g. "You've been there?"
(John Fowles,
THE MAGUS)
The secondary predicative tie
- revealed transformationally
- it does not make a sentence
- concealed in infinitival, gerundial, participial constructions, predicative constructions with nouns, adjectives, statives
E.g. I saw him running.

Immediate Explicit Syntactic Ties
The Subordinating Tie
an expression of dependence of an adjunct on the head
x
E.g. I was proud of him

The coordinating tie
establishes syntactically homogeneous elements
E.g. The sky was pale and soft.
He was rude and nasty.

The appositive tie
E.g. King Alfred was a remarkable figure.
King is an apposition

The attributive tie
exists between a modifier and a modified word
can be transformed into a predicative tie
E.g. a beautiful girl

The completive tie
exists between an indispensable object and a verb
the object completes the meaning of the verb
E.g. He broke his promise

The attributive completive tie
exists between a verb and an adverbial modifier of manner which is indispensable
E.g. He treated me kindly.
He broke the thing gently.

The introductive tie
very loose
E.g. Frankly speaking, I don’t know anything about it.

Syntactic Ties
immediate explicit syntactic ties
implicit semantic ties
revealed transformationally
interpreted componentially in terms of semantic agreement/disagreement of subclasses of words: - abstract/concrete, - inanimate/animate, - human/non-human, - young/old, - male/female

Implicit Semantic Ties
E.g. The flowers stood white and desolate.
Flowers stood. Flowers were white.
Flowers were desolate.

Syntactic Processes
The ways of introduction of various dependent elements into the subject-predicate skeleton of a sentence as a means of expandeding structures

Completion
consists in adding
subjective and objective complements to complete the meanings of transitive verbs of incomplete predication
and copulative (связочные) verbs

Completion
E.g. He seemed tired.
the element tired is added to the copulative verb seem
otherwise a sentence would not be complete

Completion
E.g. I consider him clever.
The adjective clever is indispensable
the verb consider is that of incomplete predication

Syntactic Processes
Extension: adding adverbial modifiers
Expansion (enlargement):
the amplification of a sentence structure

Syntactic Processes
Modification:
adding an attribute to the subject or the object

Syntactic Processes
Contamination (стяжение):
fusing elements into a whole which results in a double predicate
E.g. The moon rose red.
or a predicate of double orientation
E.g. He is said to have done it.

Syntactic Processes
Syncretism:
combining two functions within one and the same form
E.g. She is not a girl to marry =>
- She is not a girl who would marry somebody.
- She is not the girl somebody would marry.

Syntactic Processes
Ellipsis:
omitting a principal or a subordinate element or both which can be restored from the context
E.g. Wanted a governess. Must possess knowledge of French, Italian, Russian, Romanian, music and mining engineering. = A governess is wanted

Syntactic Processes: Ellipsis.
! in conversation, ads, newspaper headings where expanded structures are customarily ellipticized

Syntactic Processes: Ellipsis.
structures which produce the impression of being elliptical:
E.g. She beautiful! He a general!
logically and grammatically complete sentences
they are to be analysed the way they are
Their expansion would destroy their spontaneous scream style

Syntactic Processes: Ellipsis.
O. Jespersen:
against the ellipsomania of those grammarians which speak of ellipsis in season and out of season as a sort of panacea to explain all the structures which deviate from the pattern subject-predicate-object-adverbial modifier with a finite verb.

Syntactic Processes: Ellipsis.
The surface and deep structures of such sentences do not coincide:
E.g. He a general! =>
He is a general.
I do not believe that.

Syntactic Processes
Inversion (broadly): placing a part of a sentence into an uncustomary position for it to be rhematized
to become a new communicative centre:
E.g. Economics Mary just doesn’t know.

Syntactic Processes
Narrow inversion:
placing the predicate before the subject:
E.g. There comes a mournful procession.

Syntactic Processes
Parcellation
a new syntactic process, characteristic of the XX-th century syntax
a break of the chain of elements on the syntagmatic level

Syntactic Processes Parcellation
E.g. He was interrupted at that point. By me.
There is a cloud in the sky. Grey. (Joyce. Ulysses)

Syntactic Processes Parcellation
Any element can be extracted from the maternal structure and turned into an independent structure:
E.g. Shame of death. They hide. My handkerchief. They threw it.

Syntactic Processes Parcellation
Parcellated elements in any function can be in
pre- or post position
or distanced from the maternal structure

A simple sentence
a grammatical structure:
principal and secondary parts
a semantic structure:
the predicate, arguments and deep cases
a communicative structure: communicative dynamism,
the rheme and the theme

A Simple Sentence
E.g. I opened the door.
1. in grammatical terms: its grammatical structure is
subject+ predicate+ object
2. in semantic terms: its semantic structure is agent + action + object
3. in communicative terms: its communicative structure is
theme + rheme

A Simple Sentence
a hierarchy of dependencies in a simple sentence
the principal and secondary parts

The Principal Parts of a Simple Sentence
subject and the predicate
indispensable

The Principal Parts of a Simple Sentence: Subject
denotes something that is spoken about

The Principal Parts of a Simple Sentence
Subject (6)
1. a group subject (expanded):
E.g.Ten minutes passed.
2. a complex subject (expressed by a predicative construction)
E.g. For me to do it is dangerous.
3. a formal subject which introduces the genuine subject:
E.g. It is strange his doing that.

Subject
4. an impersonal subject: E.g. It rains.
5. a rhematic subject:
E.g. A woman entered the room.
6. a thematic subject:
E.g. The woman came up to the window.

Subject
4. an impersonal subject: E.g. It rains.
5. a rhematic subject:
E.g. A woman entered the room.
6. a thematic subject:
E.g. The woman came up to the window.

The Predicate
denotes an action, state or property of the thing expressed by the subject
agrees with the subject logically:
E.g. a single subject denoting multitude agrees with a plural predicate:
The great majority are satisfied with the outcomes of the elections.

The Predicate
Simple
simple verbal
simple nominal
infinitival
reflexive
Compound
compound nominal predicates
compound modal predicates
compound aspect predicates
double predicates
predicates of double orientation

The Secondary Parts of a Simple Sentence. An Object.
indispensable (obligatory) is used after verbs of incomplete predication
(to be, seem, appear, smell, take)

The Secondary Parts of a Simple Sentence. An Object.
Such verbs are insufficient by themselves, structurally, communicatively and semantically incomplete and need an object or an adverbial modifier
E.g. They took the boy to the theatre.

An Object.
direct,
indirect,
prepositional
cognate (родственный) ( He smiled a winner’s smile. He lived a happy life).

An Object
In the cognate object the verb and the noun, functioning as the object, are of the same root.

An Attribute
very often merely decorates a sentence,
but there are instances when without it a noun is communicatively empty
E.g. She has blue eyes.
which makes it obligatory