Topics for Discussion
1. Classification of sentences according to the number of predicative lines: simple,
composite, semi-composite sentence. The notions of parataxis and hypotaxis.
2. Compound sentence. Types of semantic relations between coordinative clauses.
Topics for Reports
1. Structural relations between clauses (from G. Lock “Functional English Grammar” in
the book by Blokh M.Y., Semionova T.N., Timofeyeva S.V. Theoretical English
Grammar. Seminars. Moscow, 2007, Pp. 368-375)
2. Logical relations between clauses (from G. Lock “Functional English Grammar” in
the book by Blokh M.Y., Semionova T.N., Timofeyeva S.V. Theoretical English
Grammar. Seminars. Moscow, 2007, Pp. 375-382)
Literature
1. Blokh M.Y. A Course in Theoretical English Grammar. Moscow, 2006.
2. Blokh M.Y., Semionova T.N., Timofeyeva S.V. Theoretical English Grammar.
Seminars. Moscow, 2007.
3. Кобрина Н.А., Болдырев Н.Н., Худяков А.А. Теоретическая грамматика
современного английского языка. Москва, 2007.
4. Кобрина Н.А., Корнеева Е.А., Оссовская М.И., Гузеева К.А. Грамматика
английского языка. Морфология. Синтаксис. – СПб., 1999.
5. Illyish B.A. The structure of Modern English. – M.-L., 1965.
6. Iofic L.L., Chakhoyan L.P., Pospelova A.G. Readings in the theory of English
Grammar. – Leningrad, 1972.
7. Universals of Human Language: Syntax, Stratford, Calif., 1978, v. 4.
8. Иофик Л.Л. Сложное предложение в новоанглийском языке. – Л., 1968.
9. Литвин Ф.А. О степенях предикативности// Филологические Науки, 1984,
№ 4.
10. Плоткин В.Я. Строй английского языка. – М., 1989.
11. Серкина О.В. Функционально-семантический аспект рассмотрения
абсолютной конструкции в современном англ. языке. Автореф. дисс. на
соискание уч. степени канд. филол. наук.
12. Снитко Т.Н. Критерии предикативности для типологии языков//
Предикативность и полипредикативность. – Челябинск, 1987. – С.41-58.
13. Структура и семантика простого, сложного и осложненного предложения:
Межвузовский сборник научных трудов. – Ленинград, 1988.
Practical tasks
I. State the type of clause connection and identify the semantic relation between
clauses in the following compound sentences:
1. Suddenly the door burst open, and a tall man was standing in a quite baggy
sweater.
2. You see there is nothing seriously wrong, she just gets a bit paranoid
sometimes.
3. I bent down when she got near and she put her arm round my neck and
pressed her little hot face against mine.
4. Jerome’s sensing his poems are ready, so I’m finding him book club venues.
5. Young Ladislaw did not feel like smiling, but she wore rather a pouting
air of discontent.
6. He does not hold a regular job, nor does he take odd jobs.
7. Either she goes or I go.
8. I don’t eat much, yet I am a size 16.
9. Formula One motor car racing is supposed to be dangerous, still “Indycar”
racing is supposed to be more dangerous.
10. She was free for five whole days, and so she would be going to Charles, to
join her family.
11. Martin helped his father dig the water gardens out by hand, thus he
discovered his interest in gardening.
12. The superadded circumstance evolving the genius had not yet come;
the universe had not yet beckoned.
13. Ben did not hear the answer, he felt himself fading again.
14. Mr. Casaubon’s words had not been quite reasonable, yet they had brought a
vague sense of aloofness on his part.
II. Consider the polysemy of “and”- connector in the following sentences. What
types of inter-clause semantic relation does this connector render?
1. She is not my daughter, and I don’t feel called upon to interfere.
2. Christine bit her lip and her worried look increased.
3. It was the pure enjoyment of comicality, and it had no mixture of sneering and self-exaltation.
4. Come one step closer and I’ll shoot you.
5. Believe that, and you’ll believe anything.
6. He was inquisitive and he did not understand and he wanted to know.
7. Featherstone had rarely given him presents of money, and at this moment it seemed almost harder to part with the immediate prospect of bank-notes.
8. Slowly he took out a bunch of keys from the waistcoat-pocket, and slowly he drew forth a tin box which was under the bed-clothes.
9. His health was in a critical condition and the doctor ordered him to rest.
10. Presently, the farm bailiff came up to give his master a report, and Fred, to his unspeakable relief, was dismissed with the injunction to come again soon.
SEMINAR 7
SYNTAX OF THE COMPLEX SENTENCE
Topics for Discussion
1. The nature of the complex sentence as a polypredicative unit.
2. Classifications of complex sentences according to the types of clauses.
Topics for Reports
1. The structure of complex sentences (from H.R.Stokoe “The understanding of syntax”
in the book by Blokh M.Y., Semionova T.N., Timofeyeva S.V. Theoretical English
Grammar. Seminars. Moscow, 2007, Pp. 388-391)
2. The main principles of classifying complex sentences (see: Blokh M.Y. A Course in
Theoretical English Grammar. Moscow, 2006, Pp. 355-359; Кобрина Н.А.,
Болдырев Н.Н., Худяков А.А. Теоретическая грамматика современного
английского языка. Москва, 2007, С. 336-351)
Literature
1. Blokh M.Y. A Course in Theoretical English Grammar. Moscow, 2006.
2. Blokh M.Y., Semionova T.N., Timofeyeva S.V. Theoretical English Grammar.
Seminars. Moscow, 2007.
3. Кобрина Н.А., Болдырев Н.Н., Худяков А.А. Теоретическая грамматика
современного английского языка. Москва, 2007.
4. Кобрина Н.А., Корнеева Е.А., Оссовская М.И., Гузеева К.А. Грамматика
английского языка. Морфология. Синтаксис. – СПб., 1999.
5. Illyish B.A. The structure of Modern English. – M.-L., 1965.
6. Iofic L.L., Chakhoyan L.P., Pospelova A.G. Readings in the theory of English
Grammar. – Leningrad, 1972.
7. Universals of Human Language: Syntax, Stratford, Calif., 1978, v. 4.
8. Жарких Е.Ю., Биренбаум Я.Г. О границе сложносочиненного и
сложноподчиненного предложения в // Предикативность и
полипредикативность. – Челябинск, 1987. – С.58-77.
9. Иванова И.П., Бурлакова В.В., Почепцов Г.Г. Теоретическая грамматика
современного английского языка. – М., 1981.
10. Иофик Л.Л. Сложное предложение в новоанглийском языке. – Л., 1968.
11. Петрова Т.А. Свернутые конструкции как тип сложных номинативных
единиц в современном англ. языке. Автореф. дисс. на соискание уч.
степени канд. филол.наук. Иркутк, 2004.
12. Плоткин В.Я. Строй английского языка. – М., 1989.
13. Системный анализ простого и сложного предложения: Межвузовский
сборник научных трудов. – Ленинград, 1990.
14. Структура и семантика простого, сложного и осложненного предложения:
Межвузовский сборник научных трудов. – Ленинград, 1988.
15. Черемисина М.И. Сложное предложение как объект общего языкознания//
Предикативность и полипредикативность. – Челябинск, 1987. – С. 5-19.
16. Шалифова О.Н. Структурно-семантические типы придаточных
определительных в английском языке// Вестник факультета иностранных
языков. – Сам ГПУ, 2002, №3, стр. 51-57.
17. Universals of Human Language: Syntax, Stratford, Calif., 1978, v. 4.
Practical tasks
I. Analyse the following complex sentences in terms of categorial classification:
identify the clauses in the given sentences as a) substantive-nominal
b) qualification-nominal
c) adverbial.
1. That his letters remained unanswered annoyed him very much.
2. Did you find a place where we could make a fire?
3. The woman knew only too well what was right and what was wrong.
4. Describe the picture as you see it.
5. The man who came in the morning left a message.
6. All will be well if we arrive in time.
II. Analyse the following complex sentences in terms of functional classification:
1) define the type of clauses of primary positions:
a) subject clause b) predicative clause c) object clause of
substantive background d) object clause of adverbial background
e) object clauses of general event background f) reportive object
clauses.
1. Wainright said that Eastin would periodically report to him.
2. Why he rejected the offer has never been accounted for.
3. It is a miracle how he managed to pull through.
4. You just get yourself into trouble is what happens.
5. The trouble is that I don’t know Fanny personally.
6. We couldn’t decide whom we should address.
7. Now he could prove that the many years he had spent away from
home had not been in vain.
8. The plot of the novel centered on what might be called a far-fetched
situation.
2. The conversation centered on why that clearly formulated provision of
international law had been violated.
10. The difficulty seems how we shall get in touch with the chief.
11. After all those years of traveling abroad, John has become what you
would call a man of will and experience.
12. She looks as though she has never met him.
2) define the type of clauses of secondary positions:
a) attributive descriptive b) attributive restrictive c) appositive with nounal relation d) appositive with pronominal relation e) appositive with anticipatory relation.
1. The place where we could make a fire was not a lucky one.
2. At last we found a place where we could make a fire.
3. The news that Dr. Blare had refused to join the Antarctic expedition was
sensational.
4. It gave me a strange sensation to see a lit up window in a big house that
was not lived in.
5. I couldn’t agree with all that she was saying in her irritation.
6. You may depend on it that the letters won’t be left unanswered.
3) define the type of clauses of adverbial positions:
a)clauses of time and place b) clauses of manner and comparison
c) clauses of attendant circumstance d)clauses of immediate circumstance (consequence/result, purpose, condition, cause, concession, condition e) parenthetical clauses.
1. Jack has called here twice this morning, if I am not mistaken.
2.You talk to people as if they were a group.
3. We lived here in London when the war ended.
4. The swimmers gathered where the beach formed a small promontory.
5. Mr. Smith looked at me in a way that put me on the alert.
6. The swimmers kept abreast of one another from where they started.
7. We had lived in London all through the war until it ended.
8. As (while) the reception was going on, Mr. Smith was engaged in a lively
conversation with the pretty girl.
9. He opened the window wide that he might hear the conversation below.
10.Unless he wanted to hear the conversation below he wouldn’t open the
window.
11. As he wanted to hear the conversation below, he opened the window wide
and listened.
12. Though he couldn’t hear properly the conversation below, he opened the
window and listened.
13. The voices were so low that he couldn’t hear the conversation through the
open window.
14. If he hadn’t opened the window wide he couldn’t have heard the
conversation.
15. Whoever calls, I’m not at home.
III. Identify the type of subordination arrangement in the following complex
sentences as: a) parallel homogeneous b) parallel heterogeneous
c) consecutive direct d) consequtive oblique.
1. When he agrees to hear me, and when we have spoken the matter over, I’ll
tell you the result.
2. I’ve no idea why she said she couldn’t call on us at the time I had
suggested.
3. Mrs. L. had warned her that C. was an extraordinary place, and that one
must never be astonished by anything.
4. The speakers who represented different nations and social strata were
unanimous in their call for peace which is so ardently desired by the
common people of the world.
5. What he saw made him wince as though he had been struck.
IV. Analyze the types of the subordinative connection on the basis of the
intensity of connection between two clauses in the following complex
sentences. Consider:
a) obligatory connection in monolythic structures (merger complexes, valency complexes, correlation complexes, arrangement complexes) b) optional connection in segregative structures.
1. It was at this point that Bill had come bustling into the room.
2. Tell him to wait if he comes.
3. If he comes, tell him to wait.
4. Put the book where you’ve taken it from.
5. His nose was as unkindly short as his upper lip was long.
6.This is the report that was submitted last week.
7. He had already disappeared when she came into the room, if I am not
mistaken.
SEMINAR 8