English Syntax - Part 2

Tiếp nối nội dung phần 1, phần 2 Tài liệu English Syntax (Tài liệu ôn thi tuyển sinh sau đại học chuyên ngành Giảng dạy tiếng Anh gồm nội dung section 3 - Các mối quan hệ ngữ pháp (grammatical relations) và phần 4 - Một số đề thi và đáp án đã thực tế được dùng trong các kỳ thi gần đây.
Nội dung trích xuất từ tài liệu:
English Syntax - Part 2 SECTION 3: GRAMMATICAL RELATIONS 18 Structure “The concept of STRUCTURE is essential in distinguishing between the strings of words that are well-formed expressions in the language and those that are not.” [Burton-Roberts, 1997: 8] To show how things can be analyzed into their constituent parts in this text, we use TREE-DIAGRAMS — the trees that are upside-down: S NP VP DET N’ Vgrp AP[sP/sC] [intens] DEM headN A These concepts are basic. This does not prevent us from having a quick look at some other common types of diagrams:
Fries’ diagrams (also called UPSIDEDOWN-T DIAGRAMS) in Stageberg [1965] and Barsova et al [1969]: These concepts are basic  Candelabra’s diagrams in Barsova et al [1969]: these concepts are basic  Reed and Kellogg’s diagrams in House and Harman [1965]: concepts are these basic _________________ 19 Endocentric structures vs. exocentric structures 19.1 ENDOCENTRIC STRUCTURE Phrases like the NOUN PHRASE (NP, for short) their rather dubious jokes are said to be ENDOCENTRIC. “An endocentric construction may be 99 substituted for as a whole by one of its constituent units; e.g. a noun may stand for the whole noun phrase, c.f. big African lions roaming in the jungle — lions.” [Jackson, 1980: 26] 19.2 EXOCENTRIC STRUCTURE Phrases like the PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE (PP, for short) beside a stream are said to be EXOCENTRIC. There is a TWO-WAY DEPENDENCE (⇔ ⇔, for short) between beside and a stream as a whole: both of the two constituents must occur to form the PP beside a stream; “one of them cannot stand for the whole phrase” [Jackson, 1980: 26]. However, the PP beside a stream can also be considered ENDOCENTRIC: “Although beside and a stream are both needed to express the spatial orientation in this case, it is the word beside that is giving the phrase as a whole its locational character. So beside is the head of the phrase.” [Burton-Roberts, 1997: 43] If the PREPOSITION (P, for short) beside is the HEAD (H, for short) of the prepositional phrase beside a stream then a stream is functioning as COMPLEMENT (C, for short) to that head: (H) beside ⇔ a stream (C). “Each phrase must have a head. A noun phrase has a noun as head, a verb phrase has a verb as head, a prepositional phrase a preposition as head, and an adjective phrase an adjective as head.” [Jacobs, 1995: 51] Briefly, the STRUCTURES of MODIFICATION, COMPLEMENTATION, and CO-ORDINATION are all endocentric whereas THE STRUCTURE OF PREDICATION is exocentric. As to a prepositional phrase, it may be regarded either as an exocentric structure or as an endocentric structure. _________________ 20 Types of syntactic structures 20.1 STRUCTURE OF MODIFICATION There is a one-way dependence (⇒ ⇒, for short) in the STRUCTURE of MODIFICATION. In the phrase their rather dubious jokes, rather is dependent on dubious, in the sense that it is only present because dubious is. If we are to omit dubious, rather will be left without a function, and the 100 omission would result in an ill-formed string (*their rather jokes). Notice, however, that dubious is in no way dependent on rather. We can omit rather and still be left with a perfectly good phrase (their dubious jokes). And rather dubious as a whole is dependent on jokes but not vice- versa. Rather dubious (the modifier of the phrase) could be omitted (giving their jokes), but jokes (the head of the phrase) could not (*their rather dubious). (modifier) rather ⇒ dubious (head) (modifier) rather dubious ⇒ jokes (head) (modifier) their ⇒ rather dubious jokes (head) Thus, ‘their rather dubious jokes’ is a typical example of the STRUCTURE OF MODIFICATION. 20.2 STRUCTURE OF COMPLEMENTATION There is a two-way dependence (⇔⇔, for short) in the STRUCTURE of COMPLEMENTATION. Both the monotransitive verb saw and the noun phrase many things must occur to form the verb phrase saw many things: saw is its head and many things is the complement of that head: (head) saw ⇔ many things (complement) Since one of the two constituents cannot stand for the whole verb phrase as a unit, ‘saw many things’ is a typical example of the STRUCTURE of COMPLEMENTATION. 20.3 STRUCTURE OF COORDINATION “Max and Adrian is a COORDINATE NOUN PHRASE (Co-NP, for short), with Max and Adrian coordinated by ...