Appraisal: negotiating meaning

Appraisal is concerned with evaluation: the

kinds of attitudes that are negotiated in a
text, the strength of feeling involved and
ways in which values are sourced and
readers aligned
 Negotiating attitude
Appraisal is a system of interpersonal meaning
to negotiate our social relationships, by telling
our readers or listeners how we feel about
things and people (in a word, what our
attitude are).
Attitudes have to do with evaluating things,
people’s characters and their feelings.
Such evaluations can be more or less intense,
that is it may be more or less amplified.
 For example:
He was working in a top security structure. It
was the beginning of a beautiful relationship.
We even spoke about marriage. A bubbly,
vivacious man who beamed out wild energy.
Sharply intelligent. Even if he was popular
with all the ‘Boer” Afrikaners. And all my
girlfriends envied me. Then one day he said he
was going on a ‘trip’. ‘We won’t see each
other again … maybe never ever again.’ I was
torn to pieces. So was he.
Basic options for appraisal

Attitude Affect envied

torn to piece
Judgment a bubbly vivacious man
wild energy, sharply intelligent
Appreciation a top security structure
a beautiful relationship
Amplification sharply intelligent
wild energy
Source he was popular with all the ‘Boer’ Afrikaners.
And all my girlfriends envied me
 Basic options for appraisal
Affect (feelings)

Attitude Judgement (character)

Appreciation (value)

Appraisal Amplification

Source
 Kinds of attitudes
Affects is expressing our feelings
It can be positive or negative.
And it can be expressed directly explicitly or
impliedly or implicitly.
Examples of direct expression of attitudes: pain,
bitterness, worry, anxiety, satisfied, envy, respect,
humorous, fear etc.
Examples of implicit attitude: celebrate, restless,
withdraw, press his face into his hand, shake
uncontrollably, rushed breathing, the shakes,
terrible convultion, shrieks, etc.
 Options for affect

positive We were ecstatic

We even celebrated
negative I was torn to pieces.
I can’t explain the pain and bitterness in me
direct emotional state Ecstatic
Wild consuming fear
physical Withdrawn
expression Shake uncontrollably
implicit extraordinary Wander from window to window
behaviour Rolls this way, that side of the bed
metaphor Ice cold in a sweltering night
Eyes…dull like the dead
 Judging people’s character
• Judgement can be positive or negative.
• It can be personal judgement of admiration or
criticism and moral judgement of praise or
condemnation
• It can also be expressed directly and impliedly.
• Based on the categories judging people’s
characters can be illustrated as follows:
Example of judgement of people’s
characters
direct Implied
personal admire Bubbly, vivacious, energetic, He was working in a top
intelligent, popular security structure.
criticize What’s wrong with him? I can’t explain the pain and
…I can’t handle the man bitterness in me when I
anymore! saw…
moral praise Their leaders have the guts I envy and respect the people
to stand by their vultures. of the struggle …
Condemn Our leaders are too holy and …’those at the top’ were
innocent. And faceless… again targeting the next
‘permanent removal from
society’…
 Appreciating things
• Appreciating things includes our attitudes
towards things such as TV shows, films, books,
CDs, paintings, sculptures etc.
• Appreciation can also be categorized into
positive and negative.
Examples of appreciation

positive a beautiful relationship

a very serious issue
healing of breaches
redressing of imbalance
restoration of broken relationship
negative my unsuccessful marriage
a frivolous questions
broken relationship
the community he has injured
 Borderline of character and value
• In many cases attitude in texts can be
analyzed as either judgement of character or
appreciation of things.
• For example: the positive appreciation of
Vaughan’s album and its tracks are the
evaluation of his performance: raw, soul and
passion, artistry, inspired six-string diction
 Amplifying attitudes
• One of the distinctive features of attitudes is that they are
gradable.
• This means that we can say how strong or weak we feel about
someone or something.
• For example:
extremely high grading
sharply
really intelligent
quite
fairly
somewhat low grading
 Amplifying the force of attitudes
• Attitudes can be amplified by intensifiers such
as very, really, and extremely. For example:
very serious issue, quite a price to pay, really
happy, extremely short marriage.
• Intensifiers can also be called amplifiers,
downtoners, and emphasizers.
• Amplifying attitudes can involve attitudinal
lexis (lexis with attitudes)
Examples of attitudinal lexis with
suggested scales of intensity:

vivacious man dull/placid/lively/vivacious

torn to pieces saddened/grief/stricken/torn to pieces
ecstatic happy/chuffed/delighted/elated/ecstatic
bewildered bemused/puzzled/confused/bewildered/
blood-curdling shrieks of fear whimper/groan/cry/screech/shriek
pleading ask/request/pray/beseech/plead
 Sharpening and softening focus
Focus means experiential categories.
In many cases, the experiential categories can be
graded by sharpening and softening lexis. For
example:
We are real policemen now
I met a kind of policeman
I met a policeman sort of
After about three years with special forces
After exactly three years with …
We saw with our own eyes
the very first time, etc.
precisely this point
Options for graduation

force intensifiers he still plays great

attitudinal lexis the second part is fantastic
metaphors ice cold in a sweltering night
swearing dammit, there must ne a clique
focus sharpen a true guitar legend
soften a part-time blues fan
 intensifier

attitudinallexis

metaphors

force swearing

raise

Graduation lower

Focus sharpen

soften
 Sources of attitudes
Source of attitude can be defined as who are the
evaluation coming from.
The source of evaluation can be referred to
heterglossia meaning different voices which is
used to refer to multiple voicing. There are two
types of heterglossia. They involve:
Heterogloss is used to refer to the source of an
attitude of other than writer.
Monogloss (single voice) is use to refer to the
source of an attitude of the writer.,
 Types of sources of attitude

1. Projecting sources
projecting Then he says: He and three of our friends have been promoted.
clauses I know where everything began, the background.
‘names for I end with a few lines that my wasted vulture said to me they
speech acts’ broadcast substantial extracts:
projecting Many of those who have come forward had previously been
within clauses regarded as respectable such offices as it may deem necessary.
Scare quotes ‘those at the top’, ‘the cliques’ and ‘our men’
 Types of sources of attitude
(continued)

2.Modality: Modalization & Modulation

Modalization Modulation
it is positive do it positive
it must be you must do it
it should be you should do it
it might be you could do it
it isn’t negative don’t do it negative
 Types of sources of attitude
(continued)

3.Concession: counter expectancy

but Not quite my first love, but an exceptional person
Eyes bewildered, but dull like the dead
Even if Even if God and everyone else forgive me a thousand
times – I have to live with this hell
at least Spiritual murder is more inhumane than a messy,
physical murder. At least a murder victim rests
Appraisal system: an overview

MONOGLOSS
ENGAGEMENT PROJECTION
HETEROGLOSS MODALITY
CONCESSION

AFFECT
APPRAISAL ATTITUDE JUDGEMENT
APPRECIATION

FORCE
GRADUATION
FOCUS
 Prosody and genre
• Appraisal resources are used to establish the tone or mood of a
passage of discourse, as choices resonate with one another from
one moment to another as tes unfolds.
• The patter of choices is called ‘prosodic’.
• The choices form a prosody of attitude running through the text
that swells and diminishes, in the manner of a musical prosody.
• The prosodic pattern of appraisal choices constructs the ‘stance’
or ‘voice’ of the appraiser.
• This stance or voice defines the kind of community that is being
set up around shared values.
• In everyday language, the stances are often ranged a long a scale
of from more objective to more subjective.
 Ranges of prosody on style
The low productivity of livestock sector in Nigeria has more obje
resulted in rising prices of livestock sector products.

The very low productivity of livestock sector in Nigeria

has resulted in continuously rising prices of livestock
sector products.

The very low productivity of livestock sector in Nigeria

has caused the prices of livestock sector products to
continuously rise.

The extremely low productivity of livestock sector in

Nigeria has caused the prices of livestock sector in the
poor country to continuously rise.

The extremely bad productivity of livestock sector in

Nigeria has induced the prices of livestock sector in the more subje
poor country to continuously rise.
Ranges of prosody on prototypicality
of factual genres
report, procedure and explanation more objective

description

recount

discussion

analytical exposition
more subjective
hortatory exposition
 More detail of types of attitudes

affect as quality a happy boy epithet

the boy was happy attribute
the boy played happily circumstance
affect as process the present pleased the boy affective mental
the boy smile affective behavioral
affect as ‘comment’ happily, he had along nap modal adjunct
 Irrealis affect

DIS/INCLINATION SURGE (of behavior) DISPOSITION

fear tremble wary
shudder fearful
cower terrorized
desire suggest incomplete (miss)
request lonely (long for)
implore bereft (yearn for
 Realis affect 1
UN/HAPPINESS SURGE (of behavior) DISPOSITION
unhappiness: whimper down [low]
misery [mood: ’in cry sad [median]
me’] wail miserable [high]
unhappiness: rubbish dislike
antipathy [directed abuse hate
feeling: ‘at you’] revile abhor
happiness: cheer chuckle cheerful
laugh buoyant
rejoice jubilant
happiness: shake hands fond
affection hug loving
cuddle adoring
 Realis affect 2
IN/SECURITY SURGE (of behavior) DISPOSITION
insecurity: disquiet restless uneasy
twitching anxious
shaking freaked out
insecurity: surprise start taken aback
cry out surprised
faint astonished
security: confidence declare confident
assert assured
proclaim boastful
security: trust delegate comfortable with
commit confident in/about
entrust trusting
 Realis affect 3
DIS/SATISFACTION SURGE (of behavior) DISPOSITION
dissatisfaction: fidget bored
ennui yawn fed up
tune out exasperated
dissatisfaction: caution cross
displeasure scold angry
castigate furious
satisfaction: attentive curious
interest busy absorbed
flat out engrossed
satisfaction: pat on the back satisfied
admiration compliment impressed
reward proud
 Type of judgement 1

SOCIAL ESTEEM positive [admire] negative [criticize]

normality: fate ‘is lucky, fortunate, charmed … unfortunate, pitiful, tragic
s/he special?’ normal, average, everyday .. odd, peculiar, eccentric …
in, fashionable, avant garde dated, daggy, retrograde
capacity: ‘is s/he powerful, vigorous, robust … mild, weak, wimpy …
capable insightful, clever, gifted … slow, stupid, sick …
balanced, together, sane … flacky, neurotic, insane …
tenacity: resolve ‘is plucky, brave, heroic … rash, cowardly, desponde
s/he dependable?’ reliable, dependable … unrealiable, undependabl
tireless, preserving, resolute weak, distracted,dissolute
 Type of judgement 2

SOCIAL SACTION positive [praise] negative [condemn]

‘mortal’
veracity: truth ‘is truthful, honest, credible … dishonest, deceitful …
s/he honest?’ real, authentic, genuine … glitzy, bogus, fake …
frank, direct … deceptive, manipulative …
propriety: ethic ‘is good, moral, ethical … bad, immoral, evil …
s/he beyond law abiding, fair, just … corrupt, unfair, unjust …
reproach sensitive, kind, caring … insensitive, mean, cruel …
 Types of appreciation
linguistics positive negative
reaction: impact ‘did arresting, captivating, involving… dull, boring, tedious …
it grab me?’ fascinating, exciting, moving … dry, aesthetic, uninvi
lively, dramatic, intense … …
reaction: quality ‘did lovely, beautiful, splendid … plain, ugly …
I like it? appealing, enchanting, pleasing … repulsive, off-putting …
delightful, attractive, welcome … revolting, irritating, we
composition: balanced, harmonious, unified … unbalanced, discordan
balance ‘did it hang symmetrical, proportional, … unfinished, incomplete
together?’
compositon: simple, elegant… ornamental, o
complexity ‘was it intricate, rich, detailed, precise … complicated, puzzling …
hard to follow?’ monolithic, simplistic…
valuation: ‘was it challenging, significant, deep … shallow, insignificant …
worthwhile?’ profound, provocative, daring … unsatisfying, sentimen
enduring, lasting …. unmemorable, forgeta