TRANSITIVITY

PRESENTATION BASED ON GEROT & WIGNELL; BLOOR & BLOOR; MARTIN, MATTHIESSEN & PAINTER

TRANSITIVITY
The system or resource for construing experiential meaning, i. e. meaning about the world outside and inside the speaker. It is the resource for construing (= interpreting

and expressing) events, happenings, goingson, mental states, sayings, behaviours and

relations of different kinds.

Process type

Meanings

Examples

Material

actions and He ran. The window broke. He happenings (outside climbed the tree. She made a cake. world; observable) She broke the window. She gave him a present.
perception, cognition and

Mental affective processes (inner world; not directly observable)

I saw a bird, I heard a sound. I saw him cross the street. I knew the answers. I believe/think he is wrong. I fear the outcome. I like the smell. The woman scares me. The decision pleased me.

Behaviou r-al

human and animal physiological behaviour; human verbal and mental behaviour

He snored/coughed. He slept soundly. He breathed heavily. They shouted/cried/growled. He pondered/reflected over the

Process type

Meanings

Examples He told a lie. He told a story. He said Hello. Im tired! he exclaimed. He answered that he was unaware of the decision. There is a bird on the tree. Ghosts exist. He is a (famous) scientist. He is the head of the department. He has blue eyes/a car.

Verbal

saying (mental process that becomes observable) existence being and having

Existential Relational

Meteorological

weather or time processes

Its 8 oclock. Its noon. Its windy. Its raining/snowing.

Process type

Participants

Subtypes

Examples

Distinctive features/ Reactances

RELATIONAL
(being and having)

CARRIER & ATTRIBUTE

ATTRIBUTIVE

She is famous. She is a scientist. She has blue eyes.

Presence of be or verbs comparable in meaning.

-

TOKEN & VALUE

She is the leader. The IDENTIFYAconca-gua ING -S Present as is the unmarked tense highest in Present. beak in America.

-No substitution by any verb

-

Process type
RELATIONAL

Participants

Subtypes

Examples
America is the beacon of democracy. The Aconcagua is the highest peak in America

Distinctive features/ Reactances

(being and having) Identify-ing an entity by reference to some other entity. Mean-ings of symbolizat ion.

TOKEN

INTENSIVE

Presence of definite NGp.

-

&
VALUE

POSSESSIVE

This is Neils. This belongs to Neil.

- substitution by represent
-

The time of the meeting is CIRCUMS- Friday. TANTIAL The cause for his illness is stress.

-Reversibility
-

PARTICIPANTS IN RELATIONAL PROCESSES

Token: The concrete entity that embodies/ represents/ symbolizes a value (Susan is the kindest salesperson in the shop; He is the leader).
Value: A more abstract entity that can be perceived only if represented by a more concrete entity (Susan is the kindest salesperson in the shop; He is the leader).

AMERICA

IS

THE BEACON OF DEMOCRACY

VALUE SUBJECT COMPLEMENT

TOKEN RELATIONAL: IDENTIFYING: INTENSIVE SUBJECT

THE BEACON OF DEMOCRACY

VALUE

IS

AMERICA

RELATIONAL: TOKEN IDENTIFYING: INTENSIVE

SUBJECT

SUBJECT COMPLEMENT

THE ACONCAGUA
TOKEN

IS

THE HIGHEST MOUNTAIN IN AMERICA

VALUE

RELATIONAL: IDENTIFYING: INTENSIVE

THE HIGHEST MOUNTAIN IN AMERICA

VALUE

IS

THE ACONCAGUA

RELATIONAL: TOKEN IDENTIFYING: INTENSIVE

THI S BOOK

IS

M ARYS
VALUE

TOKEN RELATIONAL: IDENTIFYING: POSSESSIVE

THI S BOOK

BELONGS TO M ARY.

TOKEN RELATIONAL: VALUE IDENTIFYING: POSSESSIVE

THE TIME OF THE MEETING

VALUE

IS

FRIDAY

RELATIONAL: TOKEN IDENTIFYING: CIRCUMSTANTIAL

THE CAUSE FOR HIS ILLNESS

VALUE

IS

STRESS

RELATIONAL: TOKEN IDENTIFYING: CIRCUMSTANTIAL

CRITERIA FOR IDENTIFYING VALUE AND TOKEN

TOKEN
More concrete entity America in America is the beacon of democracy
Subject in a clause with the verb represent America represents the beacon of democracy

VALUE
Abstract notion, value the beacon of democracy in same clause
Complement in clause with represent See the beacon of democracy in other box

Process type

Participants
Senser Phenomenon Macrophenomenon (actPerception) Metaphenomenon (factemotion)

Subtypes

Examples

Distinctive features/ Reactances

MENTAL

(perceptions, cognitions, affection inner world Meta nonobserv-phenomenon able) Cognition (idea cognition)

He saw a -No substitution by bird. I saw any verb Perception him cross/crossing the street. -S Present as unmarked tense in I like/fear him. Present He pleases/ Affection scares me.
He knows all the answers. He believes that you are to blame. -Bidirectionality

-Capacity to project

PARTICIPANTS IN MENTAL PROCESSES

Senser: an entity endowed with higher or lower consciousness, like a human being and, for some processes, an animal. It can be Subject (I like fruit) or Complement (Fruit appeals to/pleases me); Phenomenon: a thing (person, object, place, etc.) that can be perceived, known or that can be the object of an emotion of some kind. It is a participant in the mental clause and it is always a Ngp (He saw the animal; he knew the animal; He loves animals); Macro-phenomenon: Act: an event or happening or doing in the material world that can be perceived; only used with processes of perception. It is an embedded clause that is a participant in the mental clause (he saw [[him help the old lady/him helping the old lady]]; he heard [[him shout his name/him shouting his name]]).

PARTICIPANTS IN MENTAL PROCESSES

Meta-phenomenon: fact: an abstract, non-material, semiotic entity that pre-exists the emotions it triggers; only used with processes of emotion/affection and an embedded participant element in the clause. I regretted (the fact) [[that I had not had the courage to speak to her]]. I liked (the fact) [[that she was black]]. [[That she was so young]] surprised me. Meta-phenomenon: idea: abstract but not pre-existing the process; rather brought into existence by it. Not really a participant in the clause but a separate clause: I understood // that it was futile. I knew // that it was of no use.

HE
SENSER

SAW

A BIRD

MENTAL: PHENOMENON PERCEPTION

HEARD TIM THREATENING BOB

HE
SENSER

MENTAL: MACRO-PHENOMENON: PERCEPTION act (embedded cl.)

HE
SENSER

KNOWS
MENTAL: COGNITION

ALL THE ANSWERS

PHENOMENON

HE
SENSER

BELIEVES THAT YOURE TO BLAME

MENTAL: COGNITION METAPHENOMENON: idea (hypotactic cl.)

HE
SENSER

REGRETS
MENTAL: AFFECTION

(THE FACT ) [[THAT HE WAS UNABLE TO HELP]].

META-PHENOMENON :FACT (embedded clause)

(THE FACT ) [[THAT HE WAS UNABLE TO HELP]] SURPRISES

META-PHENOMENON :FACT (embedded clause) MENTAL: AFFECTION

ME.
SENSER

SHE
PHENOMENON

PLEASES
MENTAL: AFFECTION

ME
SENSER

HE
SENSER

LOVES
MENTAL: AFFECTION

YOU
PHENOMENON

MENTAL PROCESSES: BIDIRECTIONALITY

I
SENSER

FEAR

THE OUTCOME

MENTAL: PHENOMENON AFFECTION

THE OUTCOME
PHENOMENON

SCARES
MENTAL: AFFECTION

ME
SENSER

I
SENSER

DONT UNDERSTAND
MENTAL: COGNITION

THIS STUFF
PHENOMENON

THIS STUFF

BAFFLES

ME
SENSER

PHENOMENON MENTAL: COGNITION

Process type

Participants

Subtypes

Examples
He told (us) a lie/a story.

Distinctive features/ Reactances

-Presence of

VERBA L (SAYING)

Sayer Verbiage Receiver

receiver -No substitution by do S. Present as unmarked tense in Pr.

-

Locution: Quoting

Im tired he

said

Locution: Reporting

He said (to me) he was tired.

Locution

-projection

PARTICIPANTS IN VERBAL PROCESSES

Sayer: The person or thing (dictionary, sign, article, newspaper, etc.) that says sth. Receiver: the addressee; the person to whom sth is said Verbiage: the content of what is said, always expressed by a Ngp
Processes of saying or verbal processes can project another clause that expresses the content of what was said (locution). It can project it verbatim (quotation) or paraphrase it in line with the here and now of the speaker (report). The locution IS NOT a Participant in the verbal clause but a separate clause projected by it

HE
SAYER

SAID

HE WAS TIRED

VERBAL LOCUTION REPORTING (Hypotactic cl.)

I AM TIRED
LOCUTION (Paratactic cl.)

HE
SAYER

SAID
VERBAL QUOTING

HE
SAYER

TOLD

US

A LIE
VERBIAGE (NG)

VERBAL RECEIVER

SHE
SAYER

ASKED
VERBAL

TOO MANY QUESTIONS

VERBIAGE (NG)

Process type

Participant Subtypes

Examples
There are different species of whales. On the sofa was a cat

Distinctive features/ Reactances

-No substitution by do S. Present as unmarked tense in Pr.
-

EXISTEN TIAL
(EXISTENCE)

Existential

Existent
Existential (+ some other meaning)

Through the window, there -presence of the came the unstressed There in sounds of S position. Sydney.

PARTICIPANTS IN VERBAL PROCESSES

Existent: it is the participant that the process introduces as existing, as having existence.
For some, the non-stressed there has no experiential role in the clause. It is just a dummy Subject, a place-holder for Subject. For others, it encodes the process together with be. When the clause starts with a Circumstance THERE can be omitted. It can be marked together with the verb be

THERE

ARE

DIFFERENT SPECIES OF WHALES

EXISTENT
THE SOUNDS OF SYDNEY
EXISTENT

EXISTENTIAL

TRHOUGH THE WINDOW, THERE CAME

CIR: SPATIAL LOCATION

EXISTENTIAL

THERE

IS

A UNICORN
EXISTENT

IN THE GARDEN.
CIR: SPATIAL LOCATION

EXISTENTIAL

ON THE MATINEE JACKET

CIR: SPATIAL LOCATION

WAS
EXISTENTIAL

A BLOOD STAIN.
EXISTENT

GHOSTS
EXISTENT

EXIST.
EXISTENTIAL

Process type

Participants

Subtypes

Examples
he slept soundly. He snored. He breathed. He babbled/ granted/ sang a song. He cried/laughed/gi ggled. They talked .
He pondered /meditated over the matter. He watched TV. He listened to the news

Distinctive features/ Reactances

-No substitution by do

BEHAVIOURAL
(physiologi cal, mental and paraverbal behaviour)

BEHAVER (behaviour) Range,

Physiological

(para) Verbal

S. Present as unmarked tense in Pr.

-

Matter,
Target

Mental Behaviour Perception, affection, cognition

-no projection

BEHAVIOURAL PROCESSES They are half way between material processes, on the one hand, and mental and verbal processes on the other. They include: processes which are physiological in nature, with human or animal participants, like the expressed by the verbs sleep, snore, cough, breathe, sneeze, that is, where there is not properly an action being carried out,

BEHAVIOURAL PROCESSES They include:

processes which have a mental quality to them but which involve volition and cannot project, particularly: processes of perception which are voluntary observe, watch, stare, listen to, look, feel (Feel the fabric, Feel the texture), processes of affection, where affection is expressed by Behaviour (chuckle, cry, frown, giggle, grin, laugh, moan, weep, embrace, kiss, frown, etc.); and processes of cognition, which are also voluntary and cannot project an idea (reflect,ponder, puzzle over a problem);

BEHAVIOURAL PROCESSES They include:

finally, paraverbal or verbal processes which cannot project (shout, mutter, mumble, babble, grunt, talk, gossip, chat, converse, discuss, describe, etc.), but which present verbal activity as behaviour, not as saying proper. If the paraverbal processes project a locution, as it often happens in narrative, then they are to be analysed as verbal

He shouted like a monkey. He babbled and cried. I could not understand him because he mumbled. Ill kill you he shouted. = Verbal process

PARTICIPANTS IN BEHAVIOURAL PROCESSES

Behaver: person or animal having the behaviour, usually endowed with consciousness. Most behavioural processes ONLY have a single participant, and thats the Behaver. Behaviour: found in very few cases in which the behaviour usually repeats the behavioural process with some added attribute (he breathed a deep breath; he dreamt a strange dream) Range: in very few cases in which the process takes a second participant that is not a behaviour and that is different in nature from the process itself: he watched a movie; they observed the stranger; they discussed/debated the problem.

PARTICIPANTS IN BEHAVIOURAL PROCESSES

Matter: used with verbal behavioural and mental behavioural processes (They talked about the problem; They reflected/pondered over the problem). Target: used with verbal behavioural processes expressing insult, offence, criticism (They criticized his manners. He insulted him.) Both his manners and him in these sentences are the Target of the insult or the criticism.

THE Y
BEHAVER

TALKED
BEHAVIOURAL: VERBAL

ABOUT THE PROBLEM

MATTER

SHE

CRITICIZED

HIS MANNERS
TARGET

BEHAVER BEHAVIOURAL: VERBAL

WE
BEHAVER

WATCHED
BEHAVIOURAL: MENTAL

A MOVIE
RANGE

HE
BEHAVER

REFLECTED
BEHAVIOURAL MENTAL:

OVER THE PROBLEM

MATTER

HE

SLEPT

SOUNDLY
A:cir

HE

SNEEZED

BEHAVER BEHAVIOURAL: PHYSIOLOGICAL

BEHAVER BEHAVIOURAL: PHYSIOLOGICAL