Revision Material

Definitions

Grammar - The study of the system and structure of language

Syntax - Sentence Structure

Morphology - Words

Discourse structure - The way in which texts are organised and sequenced

Pragmatics - the context of language

Word class - A group of words that fulfil the same kind of role and function in speech and writing

Lexical word classes -  Have the most members and are open to new membership

Grammatical/closed word classes - Provide connections and cohesion between other words

Noun Phrase - groups of words entered around a noun that acts as the ‘head’ of the phrase

Nouns - naming words

pronouns - takes the place of a noun

concrete nouns - things you can touch

abstract nouns - concepts

Verbs - Either auxiliary or main. Main tell you the action auxiliary give extra info on the main verb.

Auxiliary can be subcategorised between the following:

Primary Auxiliary - Do, have and be

Modal auxiliary - Can, could, will, would, shall, should, must, may and might (have the ability to make a text more polite or more formal or emphasise something’s importance or add formality

Adjectives - describing words (describes an attribute of a noun)

Adverbs - words that describe how verbs are carried out (eg: quickly)

Iconic signs - a direct picture of the thing it represents (often simplified eg: male/female toilet sign)

Symbolic sign - Draw on association and are defined by cultural convention (eg: school logo)

Graphology - The features that contribute to the appearance of a text (eg: fonts, colours etc)

Theorists

Erving Goffman – ‘In Face theory’

Face theory – theory in which an individual has both positive and negative face needs.

Positive face needs – associated with feeling valued and appreciated

Negative face needs – desire to feel independent and not to be imposed on

Interactions can therefore be face threatening acts (FTA’s) which is why people are naturally mindful of other people’s face needs during conversation.

Paul Grice – The 4 Conversational Maxims

1. Quantity – The use of an appropriate amount of detail
2. Quality – Speaking the truth and not knowingly misleading
3. Relevance – Keeping what is being discussed relevant to the topic
4. Manner – Avoiding vagueness and ambiguity

These are also known as the co-operative principals

William Labov - The 6 Narrative categories

The six narrative categories summarise the six elements that a narrator will (generally) conform to when conveying a story

1. Abstract - The indication that the speaker wants a listener’s attention
2. Orientation - The who, what, when, where, why is conveyed 
3. Complicating Action - Main body providing a range of narrative detail
4. Resolution - Final events to give narrative closure
5. Evaluation - adds to the basic story in highlighting the narrator’s opinion / commanding the listener’s attention at important moments
6. Coda - A sign that the narrative is complete 

Types of evaluation:

External - added by the narrator at the time of recounting (not usually part of the series of events) An example would be “now i'm getting to the good part”

Internal - occur at the same time as those in the complicating action

Intensifying - contributes via gestures, repetition or dramatic sounds

Explicative - provides reasons for narrative events

Ferdinand de Saussure - Semiotics

Semiotics - how signs are interpreted and understood (usually have a deeper meaning or connotation). Examples include logos, pictures etc.

The two types of sign are as follows:

1. Iconic signs - A direct image of the thing it represents (often simplified) such as the male/female toilet sign
2. Symbolic Sign - Draw on association and are often defined by social convention. An example would be the school logo