AJ42012 Introduction to Functional Syntax

Faculty of Arts
Spring 2013
Extent and Intensity
0/0/0. 6 credit(s) (plus 2 credits for an exam). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
doc. PhDr. Jana Chamonikolasová, Ph.D. (lecturer)
doc. Wei-lun Lu, Ph.D. (seminar tutor)
Guaranteed by
Jeffrey Alan Vanderziel, B.A.
Department of English and American Studies – Faculty of Arts
Contact Person: Tomáš Hanzálek
Supplier department: Department of English and American Studies – Faculty of Arts
Timetable
each even Friday 13:20–14:55 G31
Prerequisites
( AJ40999 Qualifying Examination || AJ41002 Practical English II ) && 42001
The course is taught in English. It is designed for students who are able to communicate in fluent English about scientific topics. The prerequisites are knowledge of the basics of syntax (normative syntax) and semantics, and an ability of analytical reasoning.
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
The course is taught in English. It denotes the position of functional syntax in linguistic theory. It analyzes the function of language units in the act of communication. The course presents the Brno theory of Functional Sentence Perspective and outlines other approaches to the analysis of the information structure of language. The seminars include exercises in text analysis. Main course objectives: 1. Understanding the difference between static and dynamic approaches to syntax and semantics. 2. Mastering the basics of the theory of the information structure, especially the Brno theory of functional sentence perspective. 3. Acquiring the capacity of functional analysis of discourse. 4. Understanding the dynamics of language as a communication system. 5. Mastering translation methods respecting typological differences between languages especially at the syntactic level.
Syllabus
  • Week 1 Approaches to the study of Syntax The position of functional syntax in linguistic theory Syntactic analysis of a sentence. Sentence types. Basic sentence elements. Text analysis Week 2 The theory of functional sentence perspective (FSP). FSP and translation. The distribution of communicative dynamism Text analysis. Week 3 Factors of FSP. The linear modification factor. The contextual factor. Text analysis. Week 4 The contextual factor: the ‘immediately relevant context’ The semantic factor. Text analysis. Week 5 Foundation and core of a message. FSP functions. Text analysis. Final assignment guidelines.
Literature
    recommended literature
  • FIRBAS, Jan. Functional sentence perspective in written and spoken communication. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992, xv, 239. ISBN 0521373085. info
  • BIBER, Douglas, Susan CONRAD and Geoffrey N. LEECH. Longman student grammar of spoken and written English. First published. Harlow: Longman, 2002, vii, 487. ISBN 9780582237278. info
    not specified
  • BIBER, Douglas. Longman grammar of spoken and written English. Edited by Randolph Quirk. Harlow: Pearson Education, 2000, xxviii, 12. ISBN 0582237254. info
  • HUDDLESTON, Rodney and Geoffrey K. PULLUM. A student's introduction to English grammar. 1st pub. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005, viii, 312. ISBN 9780521612883. info
  • HUDDLESTON, Rodney and Geoffrey K. PULLUM. The Cambridge grammar of the English language. Edited by Laurie Bauer. 1st pub. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002, xvii, 1842. ISBN 9780521431460. info
  • QUIRK, Randolph. A comprehensive grammar of the English language. Edited by David Crystal. London: Longman, 1985, x, 1779. ISBN 9780582517349. info
  • DUŠKOVÁ, Libuše. Mluvnice současné angličtiny na pozadí češtiny. 1. vyd. Praha: Academia, 1988, 673 s. info
  • Příruční mluvnice češtiny. Edited by Miroslav Grepl - Petr Karlík - Marek Nekula - Zdenka Rusínová. Vyd. 2., opr. Praha: Lidové noviny, 1996, 799 s. ISBN 8071061344. info
  • SGALL, Petr, Eva HAJIČOVÁ and Jarmila PANEVOVÁ. The meaning of the sentence in its semantic and pragmatic aspects. 1. vyd. Prague: Academia, 1986, ix, 353 s. info
  • CHAFE, Wallace L. Discourse, consciousness, and time : the flow and displacement of conscious experience in speaking and writing. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1994, xiii, 327. ISBN 0226100545. info
Assessment methods
Final assessment is based on the results of (1) a written exam in syntactic analysis focusing on the FSP interpretation of a text, (2) a critical analysis of a translation text from the viewpoint of the FSP theory, and/or (3) an essay summarizing a paper on some aspect of the information structure theories in focus
Language of instruction
English
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
Study Materials
The course is taught once in two years.
General note: This course is NOT designated for Erasmus students! List of courses offerd by the Department of English and American studies for Erasmsus students is available at http://www.phil.muni.cz/wkaa/ under "Information for Erasmus students".
Information on the extent and intensity of the course: This course is NOT designated for Erasmus students! List of courses offerd by the Department of English and American studies for Erasmsus students is available at http://www.phil.muni.cz/wkaa/ under "Information for Erasmus students".
Teacher's information
http://elf.phil.muni.cz/elf/course/view.php?id=2490
The course is also listed under the following terms Spring 2005, Spring 2009, Spring 2011, Spring 2015, Spring 2017, Spring 2019, Spring 2021, Spring 2025.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Spring 2013, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/phil/spring2013/AJ42012