This course centres upon Systemic Functional Grammar (SFG), a theory of language developed by M.A.K. Halliday in 1985. SFG sees language as a social semiotic system of resources for making meanings (rather than a system of abstract rules), and studies language at the level of lexicogrammar (i.e. how linguistic forms relate to the meanings they express in specific contexts). Throughout the course, we will explore how language can perform three interconnected metafunctions simultaneously, namely to represent our experience of the world (the ideational metafunction), to enact social relationships (the interpersonal metafunction), as well as to organise language to fit in its context (the textual metafunction).
SFG has had a profound influence on discourse studies and has inspired many theories in the field. In this course, we will not only look at SFG, but also a range of theories rooted in SFG. Some of these theories extend aspects of SFG to non-lexicogrammatical linguistic resources such as discourse semantics (i.e., Martin and White’s Appraisal Theory (2005)) and sociosemantics (i.e., van Leeuwen’s approach to Critical Discourse Studies (2008)); others adapt SFG to other semiotic systems such as images (i.e., Kress and van Leeuwen’s Visual Grammar (1996, 2021)).
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To introduce students to SFG and theories rooted in SFG;
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To introduce students to a range of tools from these theories for conducting discourse analysis
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To develop students’ capacity to identify and describe key linguistic patterns in texts;
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To develop students’ critical awareness of language use in daily life and how it reflects and is shaped by society.
- Systemic Functional Grammar
- Appraisal Theory
- Visual Grammar
- Social Actor Theory
- Critical Discourse Analysis
The course is comprised of weekly lectures and tutorials.
Assessment is by 100% coursework, consisting of:
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Tutorials and in-class participation (15%)
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Mid-term test (25%)
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Data analysis proposal (10%)
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Final essay (50%)
There is no specific textbook for the course. Relevant readings and references will be provided in class.