Systemic Functional Grammar Theory Research Articles

A Study on the U.S. White House Executive Order on Artificial Intelligence from the Perspective of Systemic-Functional Grammar

In November 2023, the White House of the United States introduced relevant laws and regulations about AI. The regulation of artificial intelligence is the inevitable result of social development and the inevitable trend of technological development. Other counties domestic regulation of artificial intelligence-related laws and regulations has not yet been carried out. This paper analyzes American AI executive order from keywords, transitivity, modality, and cohesion by using Systemic Functional Grammar theory. Understanding the important contents and characteristics of the U.S. executive order on artificial intelligence can provide a reference for the formulation of other countries artificial intelligence-related administrative regulations and laws, which finally promote the development of international artificial intelligence law.

Systemic Functional Grammar Analysis on Igor’s Utterances Portraying His Ideology in Coelho’s The Winner Stands Alone

Someone’s ideology can be manifested through one’s language. The language one uses to talk about himself or other can give the picture on how one sees oneself and one’s surrounding. There might be an argument that the use of language is the unconscious product. However, based on systemic functional grammar (SFG) theory, that unconscious language can be analysed from the structure to figure out the ideology of the user. This study took the novel written by Paulo Coelho entitled The Winner Stands Alone to analyse how the language used by the main character, Igor Malev, to show his ideology. There are 660 data taken from Igor’s dialogues and monologues to be analysed using SFG theory proposed by Halliday. From the analysis, this study found out that Igor shows and perceives himself as a doer, carrier, senser, existent, sayer, and behaver. It means he truly manifested his ideology as a winner and resistant in this materialistic world and he means it. He puts every thought into an action. To put simply he is a man of his word. Keyword: choice of word, ideational metafunction, ideology, interpersonal metafunction, textual metafunction

Representation of Racial Disparity in Angie Thomas's The Hate U Give

Racism has become the biggest social issue in the world because of its constant unjust treatment that affects people from minority races, ethnicities, and religions. Related to this issue, The Hate U Give conveys the social condition where racial disparity towards black people is profoundly represented in the narrative. This study focuses on identifying the ideational metafunction elements, including transitivity and ergativity patterns found in the narrative. It reveals how the racial disparity is performed by the use of the meta function. Mixed method research was employed to collect and analyze the data to yield more insightful information that complements both methodologies’ findings. The theory of Systemic Functional Grammar was used to identify and classify the ideational metafunction elements from the collected narrative, and the Discourse Analysis approach was applied as a theoretical approach to support the observation. The result concluded that in the analysis of transitivity patterns, material and relational processes dominate the narrative by approximately 25% to 33% of the entire collected narrative. The findings show that racial disparity in analyzing black people that was performed by law enforcement in the collected narrative is manifested in three forms: police brutality, racial profiling, and sentencing policy.

A Stylistic Analysis of ‘Two Friends’ Short Story by Guy de Maupassant In terms of Halliday’s Systemic Functional Grammar Author: Asst. Lecturer: Shouq Ali Afrawi

In this study, a stylistic analysis is conducted to ‘Two Friends’ short story by Guy de Maupassant in terms of M. A. K. Halliday’s systemic functional grammar theory. Halliday believes that grammar is functional because it is designed to account for how the language is used. He assumed that there are two very general purposes underlying all uses of language; to understand the environment (ideational) and to act on the others in it (interpersonal). Combined with these purposes, Halliday added a third component (textual), which is relevant to the other two. This stylistic analysis is conducted on three main levels; grammatical, phonological and lexical. At the end, one may have a clear picture of the literary work and it would be an objective way through which we can have a new interpretation of the short story. Key words: Stylistics, Systemic Functional Grammar, Guy de Maupassant, Two Friends.

Telaah Kritis-Dialogis Mazdhab Linguistik Antara Teori Generative Transformative dan Teori Systematic Functional Linguistik

This article discusses and describes the thoughts and arguments that influence the process of linguistic development. There are two mazdhab (groups) of linguistics presented in this article; the generative-transformation theory popularized by Noam Chomsky and the Systemic Functional Grammar theory proposed by the MAK Halliday tradition of thought. This research uses a literature study (library research) method with qualitative descriptive study analysis. The data in this paper is a collection of literacy data derived from books, articles, and journals, as a secondary source to obtain information and explanations in accordance with the research objectives. This article aims to analyze and discover the dialogical-critical relationship between the two mazhabs (groups) of linguistics.

Transitivity System of Markobar Text In Traditional Angkola Marriage

This research aims to describe transitivity process types in Markobar text. Quantitative data supported this qualitatively-oriented descriptive study. The subject of the investigation is a Markobar text in Angkola language. The research was designed using qualitative content analysis. Six indigenous elders and four parents were purposively selected as participants in this study. The data source used is oral data in the form of transcripts. Transitivity in Halliday's systemic functional grammar theory was applied to the data analysis. The study reveals the following two primary findings: 1) All of the six process types can be found in Angkola Markobar text; 2) Material process and mental process are the most frequently occurred process types in the traditional traditional text of Angkola. The dominant use of material process suggests that brides ought to practice the traditional Angkola skills mentioned. Besides, because Markobar text is a kind of oral tradition, the dominant use of mental processes places emphasis on expressing the innermost feelings, ideas, and views of Angkola people.

Translation of Chinese Prose from the Perspective of Transitivity

The Sight of Father’s Back is a well-known prose work of Zhu Ziqing, a famous modern essayist and poet in China. The structure of the article is exquisite, simple and concise, and has high literary and aesthetic value. This paper is based on Halliday's systemic functional grammar theory and utilizes the core semantic system of conceptual function-the transitivity system, to analyze Mr. Zhang Peiji's translation of The Sight of Father’s Back. The main focus is to compare and analyze the different expressions of small sentence processes in the original text and translation, so that readers can have a deeper and more comprehensive understanding of the translated text, and provide some inspiration and thinking for translators.

The Ideational Meanings of Multimodal Texts Presented in an EFL Textbook

This study explores the ideational meanings of multimodal texts in an EFL textbook entitled “Bahasa Inggris: When English Rings a Bell”. This study aims to describe the meanings of visual and verbal modes from ideational aspects. The visual modes were analyzed by using Visual Grammar Design framework (Kress van Leeuwen, 2006). Meanwhile, the verbal modes were analyzed using Systemic Functional Grammar theory focusing on the Transitivity system (Halliday, 1994). The ideational aspects of this study focus on components like participants, processes and circumstances. This study applied Systemic Functional Multimodal Discourse Analysis (henceforth SF-MDA) methodology. The findings of this study found that the dominant process types used in realizing the ideational meaning of the verbal text is relational process. Meanwhile, the ideational meaning of visual text is realized mostly through speech process. This study showed that the presentation of multimodal texts in the EFL textbook is relevant to the teaching and learning activity for the Junior high school students. Keywords: multimodality, ideational meaning, systemic functional grammar, multimodal analysis

THEME IN THE VIETNAMESE CLAUSE SIMPLEX: A SYSTEMIC FUNCTIONAL DESCRIPTION

This article is a functional description of an aspect of textual grammar of Vietnamese. The theoretical framework adopted for the description is Systemic Functional Grammar (SFG) as developed by Halliday and other systemicists. The focus is on the description of Theme in the clause simplex. Two main questions which form the basis of this article are: (1) “what is Theme in the Vietnamese clause simplex and how is it recognised?”; and (2) “what are the delicate options available in the environment of THEME and how are they distinguished?” The study shows that Theme in Vietnamese is a system of the clause as a message; it can be defined as “the point of departure of the message” (Halliday (1967b, p. 212; 1970, p. 161; 1985b, p. 38), and can be recognized by first position in the clause; and the environment of THEME opens for a number of delicate options, and these options can be distinguished along the three metafuncions of language: the experiential, the interpersonal, and the textual. The study contributes to the application of SFG theory to the description of textual grammar of the Vietnamese clause, opening up potentials for a new approach to the description of a comprehensive SFG of Vietnamese for language teaching, learning, and research.

Perceptions in Uhuru-Raila 9th March, 2018 Handshake Discourse in Kenya’s Print Media

In Kenya, the handshake between President Uhuru Kenyatta and Orange Democratic Movement (henceforth referred to as ODM) leader, Raila Odinga, on 9th March, 2018 elicited diverse discourse on the phenomenon. The print media was replete with the discourse on the Uhuru-Raila handshake. This particular handshake ostensibly surpassed the traditional social purview of handshakes as polite greetings. Its conceptualization by Kenyans definitely eluded the precinct of handshakes as greeting occurrences hence the extensive discourse on it. The purpose of the paper was to evaluate the effect of the handshake on the perception of Kenyans by undertaking an analysis of the handshake discourse in Kenya’s print media. The study was guided by Systemic Functional Grammar theory by Halliday (1975). The study adopted analytical research design and data was qualitatively analysed as per the tenets of the aforementioned theory. The study concluded that the Uhuru-Raila handshake had significant influence on the perception of Kenyans on socio-economic and political issues in the country.

Interpersonal Function of Mood and Modal System in English Commercial Advertisements

This paper studies the mood and modal system and its interpersonal function of language in English commercial advertising on basis of Halliday’s systemic-functional grammar theory. Starting from the examples of English commercial advertisements，this paper analyzes the characteristics of its mood system and modal system respectively, and concludes the three specific interpersonal functions of mood modal system in realizing the purpose of English commercial advertisements.

An Exploration of the Teaching Mode of College English Reading Based on Discourse Analysis

This paper started with the current situation of teaching on college English reading of existing problems, based on the theory of systemic functional grammar, and applied discourse analysis to English reading teaching, formed a new reading teaching pattern organically combining thematic information analysis, Textual structure analysis, cohesion analysis of discourse and scenario analysis, which provides important enlightenment for English reading teaching.

Exploring Interaction in Academic Book Reviews across Different Disciplines: A Comparative Study

This study is a corpus-based study that aims at examining the frequencies and the functions of metadiscourse elements based on Hyland's Metadiscourse theory and ideational metafunction elements based on Hallidayan Systemic Functional Grammar theory in the relatively neglected academic genre of the book reviews by using a computer software. The researcher compares between two different disciplines. These disciplines are chemistry and sociology. In addition to studying the distinctive features of metadiscourse, this study investigates the social relationships that are constructed between the writers and the readers because of using the elements of metadiscourse. Moreover, it investigates the functions that the academic book review writers are trying to perform through their writing which are: organizing their discourse, engaging their readers and conveying their attitude.

The Analysis of the Thematic Structure of the Standard Arabic Clause: A Special Focus on Verb-initial Structures

The objective of the present paper is to give a detailed presentation of how the thematic structure is expressed in Standard Arabic (SA) and how different it is from that of English language. SA is a language which displays different linguistic properties in comparison to English, the language around which the Systemic Functional Grammar theory (SFG) was first developed (Halliday, 1994). Very few studies have been carried out to study the thematic structure of SA and none of them deals with all types of sentence structures in this language. Abdul-Raof’s study is a case in point (Abdul-Raof, 1998); he is mainly concerned with studying the thematic structure of nominal clauses i.e. clauses starting with nouns, despite the fact that Arabic is a language where VSO structures are frequently used. It is precisely at the level of VSO structures that the analysis of thematic structure in Arabic becomes problematic. Contrary to what previous studies in this area of enquiry say, I will mainly argue that the verb cannot be considered Theme in SA. It is also worth noting that the present work is part of a general endeavour to develop a Systemic Functional Grammar of SA.

Transitivity Analysis of Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos’ Nobel Peace Prize Lecture

The present document will offer an analysis of the Nobel Peace Prize acceptance lecture delivered by the former Colombian President, Juan Manuel Santos, from the fundaments of the transitivity system provided by the Systemic Functional Grammar theory. To attain this goal, a quantitative and qualitative research method approach was applied. Findings indicated that among the six transitivity process types, the material processes (54% - 205 realizations) dominate the speech whereas the verbal, existential, and behavioral processes are relatively low all together representing an overall occurrence of 10% (41 realizations). This reveals that the speaker’s main goal is to emphasize the actions that led to consolidating the Colombian peace process, placing him as the core actor of this achievement. Furthermore, by employing a narrative thread that connects the past, the present, and the future time, he can demonstrate to the world his capability as a governor who deserves to be awarded the Nobel Prize.

CDA OF GUS IPUL’S POLITICAL ADVERTISING IN 2018-EAST-JAVA-REGIONAL ELECTION

Recent campaign models tend to change from the traditional model which commonly happened in the past. If in the past the campaign was identical to speeches, flags, marches, etc., nowadays the campaign can be done by utilizing the digital world as a media, even though the old model is still used today in a fewer portion. Therefore, this study aims to analyze the digital campaign advertisement of Gus Ipul in East Java Election 2018. Using the Systemic Functional Grammar (SFG) theory and Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) approach of Fairclough three-dimensional model, researchers want to reveal what message is behind the advertisements. The data in this study are five political campaign videos obtained from online video service providers, www.youtube.com. The videos are downloaded, then transcribed so that the textual data is obtained. These data are analyzed using the SFG theory. From the analysis, the results of the present study show that Gus Ipul’s political advertising is included in advocacy and contrasting advertising. Also, there are two objectives of Gus Ipul's political advertising. The first is to satire political opponents, and the second is to provide information. The information conveyed is by providing positive information, namely by using the lexicon like pengalaman - experience, paham - understanding and amanah -trustworthiness. From the political advertisement model, it can also be obtained that there are four strategies used in advertising viz emphasizing our good things, emphasizing their bad things, de-emphasizing our bad things, and de-emphasizing their good things.

The acquisition of the Latvian language as the Second language at preschool age in theory and practice

In Latvia there are no substantial studies on bilingual preschool children’s Latvian language as the second language. The article provides an overview of the 20th–21st century linguistic theories in the context of child second language acquisition as well as raises awareness about their infl uence on and use in the learning of preschoolers whose second language is Latvian, carrying out content analysis of the Minority Preschool Education Program(with instruction in Russian), the Latvian Language Program of X preschool education establishment, teaching resources (teaching aid kits, didactic handouts) as well as the Latvian language as the second language study content.The conclusion is drawn that the theory of communicative competence and the systemic functional grammar theory prevail as well as the basic principles of the behavioral theory can be discerned. In the teaching resources and learning process it is advisable to more often incorporate the same language material repetition in different situations and new combinations. Consideration must be given to more positive and negative transfer (interference) emphasis. To prevent children’s errors it is advisable to provide and incorporate special exercises in the teaching resources as well as methodological recommendations for the Latvian language teachers.

Exploring the Theme of Cultural Identity in the Poem “Song of Lawino”: The Use of Halliday’s Transitivity in Revealing Ideologies

The individual’s identity is crucial in his/her life in countless fields, especially the social, political, and economic ones. It is constructed by different cultural elements: ethnicity, history, traditions, language, religion, literature, etc. In the colonial period, the elites tried to erase the cultural identity of the colonized nations and forced the assimilation of their own culture. This image was highly seen in Africa during colonialism. Consequently, in postcolonialism; different Africans were not aware of their real identity and chose to westernize their culture. Literature was one of the ways that myriad African writers used to revive the real cultural identity of black Africans. Okot p’Bitek wrote a song that tackled the differences between the culture of the Africans and that of the Western people. It was about a conflict between a married couple who divorced because the man was deeply affected by Western culture. This paper attempts to analyze the poem by using the linguistic framework of transitivity with a qualitative research method. Halliday introduced the framework in the theory of Systemic Functional Grammar. It is generally used as a strategy in the stylistic approach since it deals with the analysis of the lexical and grammatical structures to interpret the implicit meaning of discourse. The findings revealed that the African and Western people were different in several cultural elements: beauty care, religion, education, politics, dancing, and time value. In other words, the verbs, adjectives, and other linguistic choices that were extracted from the different process types of the transitivity system had distinct and contrasting functions. Thus, the results showed that transitivity facilitated the detection of the linguistic elements used by the writer to describe the cultural identity of the African and Western nations, which helped in getting through the writer’s inner thoughts, feelings, and ideologies. In the end, it was suggested to implement transitivity in the teaching of literature as a strategy to trigger students’ critical thinking and demystify the analysis of literary discourse.

Interpersonal Function in Paul Biya’s 2018 French Inaugural Speech and its English Translation

In this paper, Halliday’s Systemic Functional Grammar theory (1985) is used to analyze the interpersonal metafunction of language, with focus on the mood system, across two linguistics mediums. The corpus analyzed is a political speech namely, Cameroonian President Paul Biya’s 2018 inaugural speech in French and its English translation. Specifically, the paper seeks to know if the mood system of the political speech in the French language is preserved in its English translation. The paper leads to the conclusion that, with regard to mood choices in the French and English texts respectively, declaratives account for 96.42% and 97.79%, imperatives account for 3.58% and 2.21% while there is no representation of the interrogative in both texts. Therefore the mood system in a vast majority of the clauses in the French Source Text is preserved in the English Target Text. This is proof that in the English Translation of Paul Biya’s 2018 inaugural speech, the translator tried as much as possible to keep the original style of the political speech.

Differences of Style between English and Arabic Political Discourse: A Contrastive Study

Traditionally, style is defined as the expressive, emotive or aesthetic emphasis added linguistically to the discourse with its meaning is the same. In the current study, however, style is defined as the linguistic choice that the language users can make for specific purposes.
 This study, thus, aims at analyzing political Arabic and English speeches to find out whether there are differences of style between English and Arabic and whether the choices the language users make can show any traits of their psychological status.
 To fulfill the above aims, the study hypothesizes that English and Arabic speeches can be analyzed stylistically and that there are stylistic differences between English and Arabic.
 Two political speeches have been selected to be the data of this paper. The first is an Arabic one by the former Egyptian president Jamal Abdul Nasir. The second is an English one by president David Johnston, governor of Canada.
 The model adopted here is an eclectic one. Style, according to this model, is defined as the choice the language user made at two axes; direct and indirect. The direct choice is determined relying on the theory of systemic functional grammar. At the indirect axis choice, the traditional approach of style is adopted.
 The study comes to some conclusions the most important of which is that language users utilize unconsciously linguistic choices to express their points of view and intentions which say a lot about their psychological status and thus their characters.