Re: Syntax - Teachers Discussion

Syntactic Structures ON Improving Sentence Craft IN Developing English Proficiency.
**NOTE:
A. an utterance ( a word or group of words) is a SENTENCE only if it expresses a complete thought through the combination of a subject and a predicate, either of which or both of which may be simple or compound.

-You sing. You sing and I will dance. YOU sing

and dance and I will play the guitar:

B. a group of words is a PHRASE if it expresses a thought unit or functions as a part of speech but is otherwise a fragment. The various types of phrases are based on function;

C. a group of words is a CLAUSE only if it has a subject and a predicate both of which may be either simple or compound, and that clauses are identifiable by their function.

KINDS OF SYNTACTIC STRUCTURES:
1. PREDICATION. Predication exists wherever you find the expression of a complete thought. A complete thought may be expressed through: 1. one word - Sing; or 2. a group of words - You sing well. The sentence may be different types based on purpose such as a)to declare a statement - You sing; b)to ask a question - You sing, don't you?; c) to make a request- Please sing; d)to give a command- You must sing; or e)to express strong feeling- Oh my, how you sing!

Predication as basis of classifying sentences.
There are three known ways of classifying sentences. These are: on the basis of structure or the number of clauses sentences contain, the kind of predication and according to rhetorical style
a. On the first basis sentences may be:

1. simple - with only one independent clause

2. compound -with two or more independent clause

3. complex - with one independent clause and one

or more subordinate clause

4. compound-complex - with two or more independent

clauses and one or more subordinate ones

b. On the basis of kind of predication, sentences

may be:

1. declarative- straight assertion: He is a good

writer. He writes well.

2. interrogative- Is he a good writer? Does he

write well?

3. imperative- Write well. Please write well.

4. exclamatory- Alas, he cannot write!

c. Sentences on a purely rhetorical basis may be

considered:

1. loose - a sentence that completes its meaning

before it reaches its conclusion.

2. periodic - a sentence whose meaning is

incomplete until it reaches its period. It

maintains its momentum throughout because its

center of gravity lies in the second

predication.

3. balanced.

2. COORDINATION.Coordination exists in any utterance that shows a succession of phrases, clauses,sentences observing parallelism in that they are of the same form and function.

Learning acquired by students comes in three forms, understanding, values and attitudes and skills. Understanding is of three forms:concepts, generalization,facts. Values and attitudes are of three kinds: beliefs, aprreciation, ideas. Skills are shown in three ways: obtaining knowledge,processing knowledge, and working with others.

Structures of coordination, you will note upon analysis, have two or more immediate constituents which are syntactically equivalent units joined in a
structure that functions as a single unit. Joining may be achieved by the following means:
a. word order - I came, I saw, I conquered.

Be clean in word,in thought,in deed.
b. prosody (the patterns of sounds and rhythms in poetry and speech).

My love is deep,

The more I give,

The more I keep.
c. Use of coordinators

Ask not what your country can do for you but what you can for your country.
A structure of coordination with more than two constituents, like the example given is called a series.

3. MODIFICATION. This structure is shown by a word, a phrase, a clause that is used to affect meaning or to express the same thought in a different way, or to show a different shade of the meaning. Through modification one meaning can be expressed in various ways as in the following examples:
Single word-You sing a song. You sing a modern song.
Phrase-You sing a song of the modern type.
Clause- You sing a song which is modern.
Note that all the bold words function as one part of speech, the adjective: in the first sentence, a descriptive adjective in the positive degree; in the second sentence, an adjectival prepositional phrase and in the third an adjectival clause.

Remember always to place your modifier closest to the word it modifies, or a contrary effect may be achieved by your intention to communicate an idea. Note the following: I love you only; only I love you; I only love you; I love you only.

What is meant by modifying?
The etymology of "modify" shows that is a word made up of the Latin words which mean "make a limit or extent". For instance, regarding the adjective as modifier, the term "adjective" is derived from the Latin word meaning "to add to". What adjectives do is to put persons, places, things or ideas into additional or secondary classes after these have been put into generic classes by nouns.
If we regard an object having a trunk,branches, leaves, roots as belonging to a primary or general class designated by the noun "tree", we can introduce a secondary classification with the adjective "molave" or "molawin". It is still possible to add a further classification to show characteristics of this particular tree such as "resilient","firm","strong", and so on. The further we classify an item, or the more narrowly we delineate its limits and extent - the more closely we pin it down, the more specific and concrete we make it, and of course, the clearer becomes our meaning in accordance with our sensory perceptions. It is good to remember at this point that the modifying function of adjectives may be performed not just by one word but by a compound.

4. COMPLEMENTATION. A structure of complementation consists of two immediate constituents- a verbal element and a complement. The verbal element may be a single verb or one of various kinds of verb-headed structures. Verbal elements are classified into 1)linking or copulative; 2)transitive and 3)intransitive.
Remember that, whereas transitive elements take complements, intransitive verbal elements do not appear in structures of complementation. Intransitive verbs do not need complements but they take modifiers in word,phrase,or clause forms.
The transitive verb differs from the intransitive in that it shows an action from a doer to a receiver (the indirect object) and/or the thing received (the direct object). Thus remember that complements appearing with transitive verbs may be any of three kinds: 1. direct object; 2. indirect object; 3 objective complement.
Note the following examples:
Mario pilfered an apple.
Mario gave his daughter the pilfered apple. Mario nominated his neighbor chairman. Mario is the principal character in "The World Is An Apple".

Important Note. It is good to note at this point how voice of the verb is used in structures of complementation involving the transitive verb element. Either the active or passive voice will be used depending on the intention or emphasis. In process descriptions, for instance, the acitve voice is used if the emphasis is on the person operating or doing the action and the passive voice is used if the emphasis is on the thing done or on the mechanism being operated.
Note the following illustration:
Press the lever immediately. (Active voice)
The lever is pressed immediately. (Passive)
Note also that linking verbs are followed by subject complements in the form of either an adjective or a noun/noun substitute. In such structures as well as other structures of complementation, and coordination subject-verb agreement must be strictly observed.
**************

That's all Zach. Hope I were of help.