Theretical Grammar Essay Example

of expression. Moreover,the text highlights synonymous relations(synonymy)and homonymous relations(homonymy). It also discusses paradigm and paradigmatic relations alongside syntagma and syntagmatic relations. Lastly,it examines synchrony and synchronic relations in addition to diachrony and diachronic relations.

1. Language is a multifaceted, complex phenomenon that can be examined from different angles such as psychology, sociology, and historical changes. However, language is predominantly regarded as a semiotic system, comprising organized signs. As a system, language consists of interconnected and interdependent lingual signs that facilitate the expression, preservation, and communication of ideas during human interaction. The systemic approach is extensively utilized in linguistics and carries particular significance in grammar studies.

In the early 20th century, various linguists such as I. A. Baudoin de Courtenay and A. A. Potebnya, both Russian scholars, laid the foundations for systemic language description. Ferdinand de Saussure, a Swiss scholar, is credited with originating the systemic approach in linguistics. Saussure was the first to categorize language into two aspects: 'parole', which involves speech production, transmission, and reception; and 'langue', which refers to the underlying language system. This division is a fundamental principle of modern systemic linguistics that asserts that language comprises two components: the system of lingual units known as language proper and their usage in speech known as speech proper.

In other words,

In its narrower sense, language can be understood as a system of expressive tools, whereas speech refers to the application of this language system during communication.

2) The language system consists of linguistic units and their usage rules, whereas speech encompasses the act of utterance production and its textual outcome.

3) While speech is unique

and personal to each individual, language is a shared and universal form of communication.

The abstract nature of language contrasts with the concrete nature of speech.

5) Language is more stable and less changeable compared to speech which tends to undergo changes.

6) Language is a closed system, with limited units, while speech is characterized by openness and infinity. Different authors use various linguistic terms to describe these two fundamental aspects of language, which may not always be synonymous with the 'language-speech' dichotomy. Some of these terms include 'language competence' and 'language performance' (N. Chomsky), 'linguistic schema' and 'linguistic usage', and 'linguistic system' and 'linguistic process'. However, the terms most commonly used are still 'language' and 'speech'.

Language and speech are opposite concepts, as are language units and speech units. The phoneme, a language unit, is opposed to the sound, the speech unit. Similarly, the sentence is opposed to the utterance, and the text is opposed to the discourse. Ferdinand de Saussure was one of the first scholars to define lingual units as specific signs that have both form and meaning. He spoke about the relationship between a phonetic signifier, which represents something, and a signified, which is what is being represented. In the system of language, a lingual sign only has potential meaning. However, in speech and during communication, this potential meaning becomes actualized and connected to a specific referent.

A lingual sign is visually depicted as a triangle, including the material form, meaning, and referent. An example of this is the word 'elephant', which consists of a signifier (the sequence of phonemes or letters) and a signified (the

mental image of the animal), while the referent is the real animal in the outside world, whether it is present physically or not. Referent

Elephant

Form meaning

The language is composed of two types of units known as segmental and supra-segmental. Segmental units, like phonemes, are the smallest components of the language that combine in different ways to form morphemes, words, sentences, and more. On the other hand, supra-segmental units cannot exist independently but are realized together with segmental units. Nevertheless, they convey various meanings including grammatical meanings. Examples of supra-segmental units include intonation contours, accents, pauses, and word-order patterns. For example, altering the word-order and intonation pattern can transform a statement such as "He is at home" into a question like "He is at home?". Supra-segmental units constitute the secondary aspect of speech accompanying the primary phonemic aspect.

Segmental lingual units are arranged in a hierarchy, with higher-level units made up of lower-level units. Each level has unique functional characteristics and should not be viewed simply as a mechanical combination of lower-level units. Linguists categorize levels as either basic or nonbasic (or primary and secondary) depending on whether they possess their own units. A level that possesses its own unit is considered basic or primary, whereas a level without its own unit is classified as nonbasic or secondary.

The number of language (or speech) units can vary depending on different conceptions. Some scientists argue that there are four units, while others believe there are five units: phonemes, morphemes, lexemes, word-combinations (phrases), and sentences. On the other hand, some suggest that in addition to these units, there are

also paragraphs, utterances and texts. This lack of consensus causes disagreement regarding the number of language and speech units. However, the most widely accepted viewpoint is that there are five language (speech) units which correspond to five language (speech) levels: phonetic/phonological; morphological; lexicological; syntax-minor; and syntax-major.

These intensifying forms of the language have been fixed in grammars, dictionaries". The lowest level in the hierarchy of language levels has two special terms: phonology and phonetics. Phonology deals with language units, while phonetics deals with speech units. The lowest level encompasses language and speech units, which are the smallest and carry no meaning. Thus, phoneme is the smallest meaningless unit of language, and phone is the smallest meaningless unit of speech. Phonemes differentiate the meanings of morphemes and words, such as in examples like man - men, òàì - äàì. Language units are abstract and limited in number, showcasing that phonemes are abstract and have a set number in languages. On the other hand, speech units are concrete, changeable, and seemingly endless.

The way language units (phonemes) are represented in speech varies depending on the individual and the combinability of the phoneme. The pronunciation of phonemes can differ from person to person based on how they have learned to pronounce certain sounds. This can be explained by "idiolect," which refers to an individual dialect. Pronunciation is also influenced by positional changes or combinability, where the sounds that come before or after a specific sound can result in different pronunciations. For example, the sound "1" is pronounced differently in words like "low" and "battle" due to its placement next to the letters "l" and "t," respectively.

These variations in pronunciation are considered complementary distribution and are known as allophones or variants of a single phoneme.

In the hierarchy of morphological strata, an allophone is a variant of a phoneme at the second level. Although language and speech are described by the same term, different terms are used for their units: "morpheme" for language and "morph" for speech. This level focuses on the smallest meaningful units. A morpheme is the smallest unit of language, while a morph is the smallest unit of speech. It should be noted that a morpheme can be as short as one phoneme, as seen in examples like "step-s," where "-s" indicates either the 3rd person singular form or plural form. The significance of a morpheme lies in its ability to convey meaning rather than naming the referent. Furthermore, morphs with similar meanings but distinct forms are combined into one allomorph.

The past tense morpheme has several allomorphs, including worked, phoned, and wanted. The choice of allomorph depends on the preceding sound in the word. In addition, there are three levels of linguistic analysis, with the third level referred to as lexicological and focusing on words. While "word" is a general term for language and speech units, some linguists prefer more specific terms like "lexeme" for language and "lex" for speech. The relationship between "lexeme" and "lex" is similar to that between "phoneme" and "phone," as well as "morpheme" and "morph." A lexeme serves as a language unit fulfilling a nominative role.

The term "Lex" refers to a speech unit that functions as a nominative entity. Both lexeme and lex have the ability to name

or designate various things, actions, phenomena, qualities, quantities, and more. Examples of lex include words like "tree," "pen," "sky," "red," "worker," "friendship," and "ungentlemanly." An abstract lexeme within a language, such as "table," can be used in speech with specific connotations like "writing table," "dinner table," "round table," and "square table." There may also be variations of lex known as "allolexes" which share similar or identical meanings but differ in their forms. For instance, one can compare the lexemes “start,” “commence,” and “begin.” To avoid any confusion between the terms “morpheme” and “lexemes,” it is essential to understand that morphemes are structural units while lexemes are communicative units. Morphemes consist of phonemes and serve as fundamental components for constructing lexemes.

Lexemes are important in constructing sentences and shaping thoughts. They can be made up of one or multiple morphemes. For instance, the lexeme "tree" has one morpheme, while the lexeme "ungentlemanly" consists of four morphemes: un-gentle-man-ly. Lexemes, or words, directly express meanings by naming or designating entities. Words are composed of morphemes, with the shortest word having just one morpheme like "cat". The fourth level is formed by word combinations or phrasemes that involve two or more significant words representing complex nominations within a sentence.

The text suggests that in a more advanced approach, sentences can be broken down into phrases and individual words, which are known as "denotemes" and make up the fourth language level. The fifth level consists of sentences called "proposemes", which not only name specific situations or events but also express predication. In other words, they indicate the relationship between the event mentioned and reality, including factors such as

whether it is real or unreal, desirable or obligatory, presented as a fact or posed as a question, affirmed or denied, and so on. For instance, the sentence "Their departure was sudden" represents a real event that occurred in the past and is stated as a fact.

The sentence is commonly defined as a predicative lingual unit, and even a minimal sentence can be just one word, like "Fire!". The term "Syntax - minor" is used to refer to both language and speech levels, and their unit "sentence" is also a common term. For example, the abstract idea of writing a letter can be represented in speech as "John writes a letter" or "A letter is written by John". The 6th level consists of sentences in a text or in actual speech. These textual units are traditionally known as supra-phrasal unities and we will call them "dictemes" when they are produced in speech, derived from the Latin word 'dicto' meaning "I speak".

Dictemes possess various features, but the primary one is their topic unity. Similar to other linguistic units, dictemes can be reduced to lower-level units. For example, an advertising slogan may consist of a single sentence like "Just do it!". Similarly, a paragraph in a written text can be formed using a single independent sentence that holds topical significance. There is no separate term for "Syntax-major", as it represents both language and speech levels. Additionally, the term "text" is used uniformly for both language and speech units. The interconnection and interdependence of language and speech units are evident.

The relationship between different linguistic units can be easily observed by looking at

how they are used to construct higher-level units. Specifically, phones create morphs, which then combine to form lexes. These lexes are used in sentence construction. Additionally, considering homonyms that appear at the phonetical level, their meaning can often be clarified by examining the higher-level context. For instance, the morph "er" can have different meanings depending on its usage. By analyzing its usage on the lexicological level, such as in words like "teacher" or "worker", we can determine one meaning. However, when used with adjectives like "higher" or "lower", it takes on a different meaning.

According to the Bible, the Word existed from the start. Additionally, it is considered as the main component of language, although not the sole one. Signs, which are linguistic units, have the ability to form three different types of relationships.

Semantics is the study of referential meaning, which examines the relationship between a unit and an object in the world around us. This includes not only objects, but also processes, states, qualities, and more. Syntax, on the other hand, focuses on syntactic meaning - the relationship between a unit and other units. It is important to note that no unit can stand alone; it operates within a system of other units. Additionally, there is a connection between a unit and the person using it. When communicating, words or sentences can take on different meanings depending on the communicator's intention - this is known as pragmatic meaning.

Pragmatics is the study that examines the relationship between linguistic units and their users. In linguistic description, there are three models: semantic, syntactic, and pragmatic (Students are students). During the early 20th

century, language study primarily focused on a formal approach. Analysis was based solely on the internal relations between linguistic units, disregarding the reference of words to objective reality and language users.

Later, semantic language analysis was not sufficient for a thorough language study. Our identity as individuals and social beings is formed during childhood and language acquisition plays a crucial role. It helps us think independently and communicate with others in our community. Thus, the pragmatic aspect of language must not be disregarded. The functional approach in language analysis focuses on how language is used in practice. To gain a comprehensive understanding of language, all three approaches should be integrated.

The term "grammar" originally meant the "art of writing" in Greek, but it later came to include a broader study of language, often seen as synonymous with linguistics. The study of grammar can be approached practically, describing it as a set of rules and regulations to follow. Alternatively, it can be approached theoretically, seeking to explain how and why the grammatical system works. Each subsystem within grammar has its own unique elements and structural organization. For example, parts of speech and sentence patterns are differentiated within the grammatical system.

Morphology is a subdivision of grammar that classifies the different parts of speech such as nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs into various subsets. It focuses on the inner structure of words, their grammatical categories, and their semantics. Traditional syntax in modern linguistics deals with the rules governing word combinations to form sentences and texts. The main objectives of Morphology are to study the internal structure and formation of words based on abstract meanings,

analyze general grammatical characteristics that enable sentence construction, and categorize words into fundamental classes.

The categorization of sentences into simple and composite, and further dividing composite sentences into complex and compound, is referred to as syntax in grammar. The grammatical signals have their own meaning, distinct from the meaning conveyed by the actual words employed. This is demonstrated in the following sentence example, which utilizes nonsensical vocabulary.

The sentence can be easily transformed into different forms, such as singular, negative, or interrogative. All of these forms are grammatically correct. The main concern in grammar is the structure. For instance, let's imagine a scenario with a man, a boy, some money, the man giving and the boy receiving it at a specific time - yesterday. Any of these elements like the man, boy, money, act of giving, and time can be the subject in the linguistic structure.