Basic Concepts of Grammatical Theory

Abstract

Abstract In this chapter we discuss some of the most fundamental concepts of grammatical theory, necessary for the elaboration of SG. The first section begins by discussing the notion of constituency and suggests that current conceptions are misguided. It proposes that constituency must be understood as the syntagmatic relationship between a part and the whole to which it belongs, specifically the function that the former serves in the latter. Following this, in section 2.2, we briefly discuss the classification of words into parts of speech categories. Section 2.3 goes on to argue that Saussure’s notion of the sign permits an understanding of the nature of constituents and functions, as well as the special relationship between them. This leads to a general discussion of the nature of meaning. In section 2.4 some important preliminaries are set out, through a discussion of the Saussurean dichotomy between syntagmatic and paradigmatic relationships. It is argued that both types of relationship are fundamental to grammatical theory, and that they are mutually defining and logically independent; this means that neither can be replaced by the other. Finally, in section 2.5 we outline the contextual theory of meaning that informs SG.