Abstract
This paper presents a first outline of an encompassing account of extra-clausal constituents (ECCs) within the framework of Functional Discourse Grammar (FDG). Drawing primarily on English corpus data, we investigate both the functional and the formal properties of this heterogeneous class of constituents, focusing in particular on their underlying pragmatic structure and contribution to the ongoing discourse, and on the communicative factors relevant to their placement within the larger linguistic expressions within which they occur. More specifically, we suggest that each ECC forms a separate, though invariably dependent unit of communicative behaviour (i.e. a Subsidiary Discourse Act). Moreover, we argue that the mechanism governing the placement of ECCs vis-à-vis both their hosts and each other is fundamentally different from the placement rules proposed in FDG for morphosyntactic units belonging to the clause, phrase or word; the result is a system that captures both the functional constraints on the placement of ECCs and their greater positional freedom.
Highlights
Theoretical accounts of extra-clausal constituents (ECCs) go back several decades (e.g. HAEGEMAN, 1991; DIK, 1997a; 1997b), it is only in recent years that their importance in everyday communication has come to be fully appreciated, leading to a surge of studies on this broad group of expressions
Hengeveld and Mackenzie are certainly right in arguing that interpersonal adverbials like honestly in (10) are more likely to be realized as ECCs than adverbials with representational meaning, we have argued that ECCs never express modifiers, operators or functions but always correspond to separate (Subsidiary) Discourse Acts: as such, ECCs are never part of the Nuclear Discourse Act, and their position within the Linguistic Expression cannot be determined by differences in interpersonal or representational functional scope
At the Interpersonal Level, all ECCs are analysed as Subsidiary Discourse Acts, that is, as separate units of communicative behaviour that depend for their interpretation on a discursive relation with an independent (Nuclear) Discourse Act
Summary
Theoretical accounts of extra-clausal constituents (ECCs) go back several decades (e.g. HAEGEMAN, 1991; DIK, 1997a; 1997b), it is only in recent years that their importance in everyday communication has come to be fully appreciated, leading to a surge of studies on this broad group of expressions. For FDG, what determines which expressions belong to the grammatical component is not their intra- or extra-clausal status, but whether their pragmatic and semantic content receives explicit, systematic encoding in language structure. This means that any aspect of the speaker’s communicative intention that is morphosyntactically or phonologically expressed in a language is dealt with within the grammar. This does not mean that FDG does not acknowledge the specific functional and formal features of ECCs – it certainly does, but within the grammar, by modelling their distinctive properties at all levels of grammatical analysis (pragmatics, semantics, morphosyntax and phonology). We will provide a brief sketch of the overall organization of the FDG model, and its functional approach to the linear placement of constituents
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
