Punctuation

Lecture 18

The Compound Sentence. Syntax and Punctuation.

The Compound Sentence.

The compound sentence is a composite sentence built on the principle of coordination. Coordination can be expressed either syndetically or asyndetically.

The main semantic relations between the clauses of the compound sentence are:

1) copulative,

2) adversative,

3) disjunctive,

4) causative-consecutive.

The base sentences joined into one compound sentence lose their independent status and become coordinate clauses. The first clause is leading (the leader clause), the successive clauses are sequential.

The coordinating connectors, or coordinators, are divided into 1) conjunctions proper (and, but, or, nor, neither, for, either... or, neither... nor, etc.) and 2) semi-functional clausal connectors of adverbial character (then, yet, so, thus, consequently, nevertheless, however, etc)

See Зеленщиков

Punctuation

Speech exists in two main forms: oral and written. While prosody is very important for the understanding of oral speech, for the written speech punctuation marks are of equal importance. Prosody and punctuation function in speech as semiotic systems – the systems of signs which help to organize speech into logical and semantic order.

There exist different systems of punctuation for different languages. In Russian, for example, punctuation is logical and obligatory. One must follow strictly the rules of punctuation. In the English language punctuation is much more free. It has not only formal-grammatical functions, but also semantic-stylistic. This means that the rules of punctuation in English leave much freedom of choice for the writer of a text.

There are two main functions оf punctuation: 1) division and 2) specification. By means of punctuation marks the text is syntactically divided into meaningful syntactic units. Punctuation marks may also help to specify, to emphasize some elements within a text.

For syntax most important are the following marks: period (or a full stop), indented line (paragraph), comma, semicolon, colon, dash, question mark, exclamation mark.

There exist two types of rules in connection with the use of a comma: 1) rules which should more or less be followed and which are rather conventional and 2) those recommendations which may be used depending upon the preference of the author of the text. The first group includes the following:

­ adverbial constructions

­ homogeneous parts or homogeneous constructions

­ appositions

­ tag questions

­ names or ranks in the case of address

­ to separate the utterance from the words with the meaning of speaking.

­ for references in the bibliographies.

For example:

This is the way in which grammarians spend time explaining the older states of a language as a preliminary to their description of the modern language, implying that the older information will be useful in understanding the modern state of affairs.

Magic formulae, incantations, rhythmical listening of proper names, and many other rites exemplify the intensifying power of words.

But this field, language pathology, is perhaps a rather special justification for language study.

As Robert Graves said, "The poet has got to master the rules of English grammar, before he attempts to bend or brake them ".

As for the second type of recommendations here the following ones can be mentioned

­ to mark the borderline between two clauses within a complex sentences with the conjunction. In this case comma may or may not be used, or a semicolon may be used instead of a comma.

­ to single out non-clicheed parenthetical insertions. In this case the author of the text may choose between commas, brackets and dashes.

1) a) In all kinds of discourse one can trace prepositional development through cohesion and illocutionary development, and all discourse can be characterized in terms of the relationship between propositions and illocutionary acts.

b) Subjects like history, geography, general science, art and so on draw upon the reality of the child's own experience and there seems no reason why a foreign language should not relate to the "outside world" indirectly through them.

c) The recognition of the INTER/INTRA distinction was important in itself; but the lessons learned during the process of its birth, so to speak, were also of great importance.

2) a) In short, the greater theoretical rigour of Chomskyan linguistics, quite apart from its preoccupation with syntax and with an orientation towards cognitive psychology, led to a reduction in the immediate practical relevance of linguistics for language teachers.

b) Thus the "language awareness" material – if we may use this label to refer to the kinds of reference works we are referring to – which the teacher on the Bloomfieldian "linguistic " line was expected to use consisted of main stream analyses of phonetics, phonemics, and morphemics. In retrospect we can see that original success of the audio-lingual method was not its basis in linguistics and psychology (i. e. Bloomfieldian Linguistics and Skinnerian Psychology).

Semicolon is used for separation. Usually it occurs between sentences, but this punctuation mark is stronger than a comma, at the same time its use instead of a full stop brings the separated sentences closer, they are apprehended as one global whole. Weary learners learn little; weary teachers teach little.

Semicolons may divide sentences not only without, but also with a conjunction:

Stops should be used as sparingly as sense will permit; but in so far as they are needed for an immediate grasp of the sense or for the avoidance of any possible ambiguity, or occasionally to relieve a very lengthy passage, they should be used as freely as need be.

A semicolon helps the writer to emphasize the important idea, the conclusion of the utterance:

The Company is doing some work on this; it may need supplement.

A semicolon is very often used before the words namely and that is.

A colon is used before explanation, conclusion, the development of the idea presented in the previous part:

For the linguist, language is both the end and means of his investigation: he has to analyze language, using language.

Three countries were represented: England, France and Belgium.

In cases of this kind, parts which follow a colon are usually pronounced with a specific prosody: the tempo is diminished, the loudness is increased.

A colon may be used to introduce the homogenous pans of the sentence:

In considering them, the syllabus designer will bear in mind several different aspects of the content: linguistic, situational, notional, functional, and communicative.

Also a colon is used to introduce direct speech:

Another news report, even more recently, began as follows: "The Prime Minister, when it suits him, may speak the broadest Huddersfield he can manage ".

A dash is a strong punctuation mark which is usually brought out prosodically in speech. A dash may be used within a complex sentence to separate its two parts, especially in cases when the second part of the sentence contains explanation, paraphrase, diversification of the previous thought:

For a linguist, then, considering two alternative usages, one is not "right" and the other "wrong" – the two are merely different.

A dash may also be used to introduce a construction of the parenthetical origin, an afterthought:

Just because a community happens to be, anthropologically speaking, primitive, is no reason for arguing that its language is primitive also – for it never is.

The dash may also be used to introduce a paradoxical ending to a sentence:

He makes mistakes, as I do, though not so many or so serious – he has not the same opportunities.

Naturally any exclamation or question needs exclamation or question mark. Exclamation mark may be also used to attract the attention of the reader to some idea, expressed in the narrative sentence:

James IV of Scotland is reputed to have carried out an identical investigation, and it is reported that at the end the children spoke very good Hebrew!

This is the expressive function of the exclamation mark which may also be performed by the question mark:

But surely, the study of this system of rules is ultimately more important than the study of the actual sentences themselves?

Such cases of the use of the question mark are characteristic of the situations when the author of the text wants to show hesitation, doubt, uncertainty. In this situation these marks naturally require an emphatic prosody, they immediately attract the attention of the reader.

Parenthetical insertions are usually accompanied by commas, brackets or dashes. Short insertions are usually marked off by commas:

In other words, you, the reader, will receive some samples of language taken out of the context through the written medium.

Brackets separate longer insertions, or they may be used in the sentence which already contains some commas to single out the insertion more obviously. The use of brackets presupposes the stronger degree of separation of the insertion.

Viewers use their genre knowledge (not necessarily consciously) to know what to expect when they look at the TV magazine and decide what to watch.

Dashes are usually more expressive. Although they may also introduce insertions into the text, these insertions are usually rather important for the context:

Tony goes outside with some plastic garbage bags — Charts knows plastic is bad, but she's found no alternative – and collects up the dead chickens.

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