FUNCTIONAL GRAMMAR

UNIT 22, 23, 24

STUDENTS
1. Nguyễn Công Châu
2. Ngô Thị Kiều Oanh
3. Hà Thị Thanh Hương
4. Võ Thị Hồng Hạnh
5. Nguyễn Thị Hiền
 UNIT 22: PROCESSES OF TRANSFER
 There are 3 participants in the processes of transfer:
• agent
• affected
• recipient or beneficiary

Công Châu
22.1 RECIPIENT AND BENEFICIARY IN PROCESSES OF TRANSFER

I. RECIPIENT
- The recipient is a central participant who usually receives
the “goods”, permission or information.
- With owe there is a moral recipient who has not yet
received anything.
(give, send, lend, charge, pay, offer and owe)
E.g: Ed gave the cat a bit of tuna
R
Bill’s father has lent us his car
R
Have you paid the taxi-driver the right amount?
R

Công Châu
II. BENEFICIARY
- The beneficiary is the optional, non-central participant for
whom some service is done.

(fetch, get, make, buy, order and many verbs of preparation

such as cook, bake, mix which can be replaced by make.)
E.g: 1. Nurse, can you fetch me a glass of water?
B
Yes, but soon I’ll bring you your orange juice. I’ll get
B
you something to read, too.
B

Công Châu
2. She gave me a present for my daughter
B
Intended Recipient

Công Châu
22.2 TRANSITIVITY STRUCTURES IN MATERIAL PROCESSES

Công Châu
EXERCISE 1 (p. 199)

(1) Don’t forget to send us a postcard.

R
(2) My brother-in-law has been offered a job analysing mud for an
oil company. R
(3) Can I get you something to eat?
B
(4) I think Sammy would like you to buy him an ice-scream.
B
(5) How much do we owe your parents for the tickets?
Moral R

Công Châu
 UNIT 23: CONCEPTUALISING WHAT WE THINK,
PERCEIVE AND FEEL
23.1. MENTAL PROCESSES
 Definition: Mental processes are those through which we
organize our mental contact with the world.
 4 main types:
 Processes of perception such as understand, believe, doubt …
 Processes of cognition such as see, notice, hear, feel …
 Processes of affectivity such as like, love, admire, miss …
 Processes of desideration such as hope, want, wish …
Kiều Oanh
Experiencer (or Senser): is the participant who sees, feels, thinks, likes…
and is typically human, but may also be an animal or even a personified
inanimate object.
Mental processes are typically stative and non-volitional.
The second participant in a mental process, that which is perceived, know,
like… is called the Phenomenon.
Phenomenon has been a single entity, expressed as a nominal group as the
Object of the verb. It can also be a fact, process or a whole situation,
realised by a clause.
For example:
 Bill liked the present
Experiencer Process Phenomenon
We knew that it would be difficult
Experiencer Process Phenomenon Kiều Oanh
Phenomenon fills the subject slot and Experiencer as Object.

Experiencer Process Phenomenon

Most people are horrified by the increase in violence

Phenomenon Process Experiencer

The increase in violence horrifies most people

Passive is possible with many mental processes.

Kiều Oanh
 23.2. COGNITIVE PROCESSES: KNOWING, THINKING
AND BELIEVING
Cognitive processes are encoded by such stative verbs as
believe, doubt, guess, know, recognize, think, forget, mean,
remember, understand.
Phenomenon can be human, inanimate and abstract
entities encoded as nominal groups.

Experiencer Cognitive process Phenomenon

1. I don’t know any one of that name (entity)
2. Every body remembered his face (entity)

Kiều Oanh
Phenomenon can be facts, beliefs, doubts, perceptions
and expectations are encoded as finite that-clauses, finite
wh-clauses, or non-finite clauses.

For example:
3. Susan felt that the first idea was the best
 Susan felt that the first idea was the
best.(fact)
Experiencer Process Phenomenon

Kiều Oanh
• 4. She has forgotten to leave us a key.
 She has forgotten to leave us a key. (situation)
Experiencer Process Phenomenon

Kiều Oanh
23.3 PERCEPTION PROCESSES: SEEING, HEARING
AND FEELING (P.174)
- Perception is an involuntary state, which does not depend
upon the agency of the perceiver, who in fact receives the
visual and auditory sensations non-volitionally.

Experiencer Perception process Phenomenon

Tom saw a snake

- Verbs used in perception processes are see, hear, feel, taste,

and smell.

Thanh Hương
I am smelling gas.
This sentence is ungrammatical.
I can smell gas.
- Can is used when expressing non-volitionally perception at
the moment of speaking.
- This use replaces the present progressive.

Thanh Hương
- The verb see is used in conceptual metaphor for the cognitive
process of understanding.
You do see my point, don’t you?
No, I don’t see what you mean.

- The verb see has a number of dynamic uses.

+ See for yourself! (verify)
+ See someone off (accompany someone to the station, airport)

Thanh Hương
- In process of seeing, hearing and feeling, English allows the
Phenomenon to represent a situation that is either completed
or not completed.
+ I saw her cross the road.
 completed
+ I saw her crossing the road.
 not completed

Thanh Hương
 23.4 AFFECTIVE AND DESIDERATIVE PROCESSES:
LIKING AND WANTING (P.174)
23.4.1 Affective processes: loving and hating
- Under affective process, we include those positive and negative
reactions expressed by such verbs as like, love, delight, please,
dislike, hate and detest.

Experiencer Affective process Phenomenon

I love dancing
She detests hypocrisy

Thanh Hương
- The Phenomenon in affectivity processes can be expressed by:
+ a nominal group representing an entity
I like science subjects.
Phenomenon  an entity
+ a clause representing a situation
They like to walk in the woods.
Phenomenon  a situation

Thanh Hương
23.4.2 Desiderative processes: wanting and wishing
- Desiderative processes are expressed by such verbs as want,
desire and wish.
- The Phenomenon role of want and desire can be expressed by:
+ a nominal group representing a thing
I want a new computer.
Phenomenon  a thing
+ a to-infinitive clause representing a situation
If you want to stay overnight, just say so.
Phenomenon  a situation
Thanh Hương
- Wishing can also express in the Phenomenon role a longing
for an event or state.
+ Present-time reference
I wish Ted were here with us.
+ Past-time reference
I wish Ted had been here with us.
+ Future-time reference
I wish Ted would come soon.

Thanh Hương
 EXERCISE 1 (P.199)
Identify each of the processes in the main clauses of the following
sentences as on of perception, cognition or affectivity. Say whether
the phenomenon is an entity, a factor or a situation.

1. He recognised a group of fellow Americans by their accent.

 recognition
 entity
2. Yesterday I saw a mouse in the supermarket.
 perception
 entity
Thanh Hương
3. The miner knew he wouldn’t see the light of day again for
many hours.
 recognition
 fact
4. Most people hate going to the dentist.
 affectivity
 situation
5. Did you watch the World Cup final on television?
 behavioural
 entity/ event
Thanh Hương
6. He wondered whether he had heard correctly.
 perception
 fact
7. He could hardly believe that what happen to him was true.
 cognition
 fact
8. With a cold like this I can’t taste what I’m eating.
 perception
 entity

Thanh Hương
Exercise 2 (page 200): Write an alternative construction for
each of the following clauses so that Experiencer is made
to coincide with Subject, as in (b) below:
• (1) Neither of the proposals pleased the members of the
commission.
 The member of commission were not pleased by either
of the proposals.
• (2) His presence of mind amazed us.
 We were amazed by his presence of mind.

Kiều Oanh
• (3) The dramatic increase of crime in the cities is alarming the
government.
 The government is alarmed by the dramatic increase of crime
in the cities.
• (4) The fact that she seems unable to lose weight worries her.
 She is worried by the fact that she seems unable to lose
weight.
• (5) Will the fact that you forgot to phone annoy your wife?
 Will your wife be annoyed by the fact that you forgot to
phone?
Kiều Oanh
 UNIT 24: RELATIONAL PROCESSES OF
BEING AND BECOMING
24.1 TYPES OF BEING (P.176)
• Relational processes
+ express the concept of being in a broad sense. They
answer the questions ‘Who or what, where/when or whose is
some entity, or What is some entity like?
+ cover various ways of being: being something, being in
some place/at some time, or in a relation of possession.

Hồng Hạnh
 Ex:

1. Mont Blanc is a (high) mountain. (an instance of a type)

2. Mont Blanc is popular with climbers. (attribution)
3. Mont Blanc is the highest mountain in western Europe. (identification)
4. Mont Blanc is in the Alps. (circumstance: location)
5. Those gloves are yours. (possession)

(1,2,4,5  attributive 3  identifying)

Hồng Hạnh
24.2 THE ATTRIBUTIVE PATTERN (p.177)
• Ascribed to the Carrier is an Attribute, which characterises the entity
in some way.
Carrier Process Attribute
Their eldest son was a musician

• The Attribute characterises the entity in the following ways:

+ as an instantiation of a class of entities (a mountain, a musician) or a
sub-class (that of high mountains, as in (1)
+ by a quality (popular with climbers)
+ by a location (in the Alps)
+ as a type of possession (yours)
Hồng Hạnh
• The Carrier is in some way the Attribute
Ex: My younger sister is Lan.

• The Attribute is not a participant in the situation, and when

realised by a nominal group the NG is non-referential; it can’t
become the Subject in a clause. Attributive clauses are non-
reversible in the sense that they don’t allow a Subject–
Complement switch.
Ex: My younger sister is a primary school student.
Carrier(S) Process Attribute(Complement)

Hồng Hạnh
• The process can be expressed either as a state or as a transition.
+ Stative verbs: be, keep, remain, seem and verbs of sensing:
look(= ‘seem’), the Attribute is seen as existing at the same time as
the process described by the verb, called the current Attribute.
+ Dynamic verbs of transition: become, get, turn, grow, run, the
Attribute exists as the result of the process, called the resulting
Attribute.
Current Attribute Resulting Attribute
He remained captain for years He became captain
Your sister looks tired She gets tired easily

Hồng Hạnh
 As states, the most common verbs of perception such as
look, feel, sound, smell and taste keep their experiential meaning
in relational clauses. An Experiencer participant (e.g. to me) can be
optionally added to this semantic structure:

feel The surface feels too rough (to me)

look Does this solution look right? (to you)
sound His name sounds familiar (to me)

Hồng Hạnh
• The verb feel can function:
+ with an Experiencer/Carrier I feel hot
+ with a neutral Carrier The surface feels rather rough

• In expressions referring to the weather, such as it is

hot/cold/sunny, there is no Carrier and much of the meaning is
expressed by the Attribute.
Ex: It’s sunny.

Hồng Hạnh
24.3 CIRCUMSTANTIAL RELATIONAL PROCESSES
- These are processes of being in which the circumstantial
element is essential to the situation.

*Location in space:
The museum is round the corner.
*Location in time:
Our next meeting will be on June 10.
*Means:
Entrance to the exhibition is by invitation.

Nguyễn Thị Hiền

*Agent: This symphony is by Mahler.
*Beneficiary: These flowers is for you.
*Metaphorical meanings:
He’s off alcohol. Everyone’s into yoga nowadays.

Nguyễn Thị Hiền

The film script concerns a psychopath who kidnaps a girl.
The performance lasted three hours.
 The circumstance is encoded by the verb.
Tomorrow is Monday
Yesterday was July 1st.
 Reversible, can be considered as identifying circumstantial process.

Nguyễn Thị Hiền

24.4 POSSESSIVE RELATIONAL PROCESSES

Types of possession:
• Sub-types:
- Perhaps part-whole (in your left foot)
- Ownership (in our house)
- Kinship relations (Jane’s sister)

Nguyễn Thị Hiền

*Other less central types:
- A mental quality (her sense of humour)
- A physical quality(his strength)
- Occupancy (his office)
- An association with another person (my friends and
colleagues)

Nguyễn Thị Hiền

• The two participants involved are: Possessor and
Possessed.
• E.x: I have a new computer.
Possessor Possessed

Nguyễn Thị Hiền

A. POSSESSION AS ATTRIBUTE
* Verb is be and the Attribute/Possessor is encoded by a
possessive pronoun (mine, yours, his, hers, ours, theirs) or
by an’s phrase.
• Ex: The green Peugeot is John’s.

Nguyễn Thị Hiền

Possessed /Carrier Process Possessor/Attribute

These keys Are My brother’s

This glove Isn’t Mine

This mansion Belongs To a millionaire

Nguyễn Thị Hiền

B. POSSESSION AS PROCESS
• With Be, have, own, possess and have, got:
the Carrier is the possessor and the Attribute is the Possessed.
• Included in the category of ‘possessing’ are the notions of not
possessing (lack, need), off being worthy to possess (deserve),
and the abstract relations of inclusion, exclusion and containment.

Nguyễn Thị Hiền

Possessor/ Carrier Process Possessed/ Attribute
The baby has blue eyes

His uncle owns a yacht

I don’t possess a gun
He lacks confidence
Plants need water

You deserve a prize

The price includes postage

The price excludes breakfast

That can contains petrol

Nguyễn Thị Hiền

 24.5 THE IDENTIFYING PATTERN

• The participant roles in an identifying relationship are known as

Identified and Identifier.
• The Identifier is the one that fills the wh-element in a wh-
question corresponding to the identifying clause .
• The Identified is identified in terms of the other (the Identifier).

Nguyễn Thị Hiền

(a) What/Which is Mont Blanc?
• Mont Blanc (Identified) is the highest mountain in
western Europe (Identifier).

Nguyễn Thị Hiền

(b) Which is your father-in-law? Looking at a
photograph.
My father-in-law (Identified) is the one in the middle
(Identifier).

Nguyễn Thị Hiền

(c) What/Which is the highest mountain in western
Europe?
The highest mountain in Europe (Identified) in Mont
Blanc (Identifier).

Nguyễn Thị Hiền

(d) Who/Which is the one in the middle?
The one is the middle (Identified) is my father-in-law
(Identifier).
 Identifying are reversible.
* The difference between the two sequences lies in
which element we want to identify.

Nguyễn Thị Hiền

EXERCISES (P.200)
1 †Identify the types of ‘being’ and the participants in the following
relational processes 1–8.
(1) The dormouse is a small rodent related to the mouse.
Carrier Attribute
-> instantiation of a type; attributive
(2) The dormouse is famous for its drowsiness and long winter sleep.
Carrier Attribute
-> instantiation of a type, attributive
(3) The Dormouse is one of the characters in Alice in Wonderland.
Identified Identifier
-> identifying
Hồng Hạnh
(4) I felt quite nervous all through the interview.
Carrier Attribute
-> attributive
(5) I haven’t any change, I’m afraid.
Possessor Possessed
-> possessive
(6) The concert will be in the sports stadium at nine o’clock.
Carrier circumstance
-> circumstantial

Hồng Hạnh
(7) Food is the supreme national symbol.
Identified Identifier
-> identifying
(8) What we call civilisation or culture represents only a fraction of
human history. [HRM]
Identified Identifier
-> identifying
Exercise 2 (unit 24/p.200)
Add a suitable Attribute or circumstance to each of the
following clauses and say whether it is current or resulting
1. After wandering around in circles for more than an hour , we
ended up…….
2. Keep your money….. in this special travelling wallet.
3. Growing coffee proved to be more……than they had expected.
4. Stand ……while I bandage your hand.
5. Feel ………to do as you like.

Nguyễn Thị Hiền

1. After wandering around in circles for more than an hour, we
ended up…….
 exhausted , tired…: resulting
2. Keep your money….. in this special travelling wallet.
 safe : current
3. Growing coffee proved to be more……than they had expected.
 risky , profitable…..: resulting
4. Stand ……while I bandage your hand.
 still: current
5. Feel ………to do as you like.
 free : current
Nguyễn Thị Hiền