An Analysis of the Grammatical Function of the Baby Book

一理论研究An Analysis of the Grammatical Functionof the Baby Book◆张晓华(西安文理学院外国语学院)Abstract: The SFL is the most powerful theory in the last half of 20岁serve a speaker/ writers expression for diferent purpoges. It's imposi-century , which aids language learmers to deeply interpret language. It’ble for a speaker/ writer to employ only one process to convey his/hers acceptable to use this theory to analyze the literary product. It is un- meaning clearly. The combination of diferent processes in an essaydoubtedly that the application of this theory ofers us some objective such as The Baby Book serves various functions: to state the truth, totheories to know , understand and appreciate the literary text.express feelings, to describe happenings, and so on. In this text, theKey words: experientialfunetiontransitivityprocess typesmaterial process is in the dominant position.In the fllwing part we will analyze The Baby Book from diferentThe Baby Bookis an essay about mother's love. Through this es-perspectives.say, the author expresses her thanksgivings to her mother. To achieve1Transitivity in the Experiential Functionthis, the author wants readers to know what her mother has doneIt is language that enables human beings to build a mental picture for her.of reality, to make sense of these experiences and sort out these " goingAccording to the transitivity analysis by excel, it is clear that the- on" in the grammar of clause. Being a mode of action, of giving and most used types are mental processes (36. 6% ) and material processesdemanding goods - & - services and information, the clause is also a (33. 3% ), which account for 69. 9% of the total process types. Rela-mode of relection, of imposing order on the endless variation and flow tional processes rank third, making up 13. 3%. The fourth is verbalof events. The grammatical system by which this is achieved is TRAN- processes, which account to 11. 1% . Behavioralprocess account for 4.STTIVITY. The transitivity system construes the world of experience in~ 4% and existential process is least used, account for only 2. 2%. Thisto a manageable set of PROCESS TYPES in which the processes con- is because a narrative story is based on expressing feelings emotionallysist. In the transitivity system, there are six kinds of processes: materi- through vivid description.al, mental , relational, behavioral, verbal and existential processes.In a clause of mental process, there is always one participant whobout the " content" of clause in termns of processes involving participants The significant feature of such a participant is that of being endowedin certain circumstances. The process is typically expressed - or real- with consciousness.ized - by the verbal group in the clause, and is the central componentIn this text, the author recalls what her mother did for her whenof the message from the experiential perspective. One of the most sali- she was a girl. At that time , she couldnt understand that deep love un-ent types of processes are those involving physical actions. These are til she became a mother. Now, she can feel how her mother loves her.called material processes. The " doer" of this type of action is called All these feelings are indicated by lots of mental processes.the Actor.Look at the last paragraph of the text. In this paragraph, the au-For the two participants in a mental process ，the termns Sensor and thor uses several mental processes such as I now see my mother cookingPhenomenon are used. The Sensor is the conscious being that is feel- me warm', Inotice one other change in the book, Isee pages full of loveing, thinking or seeing; and the Phenomenon is that which is " sensed” : All these mental processes reflect the changes of the author' feelings.- felt, thought or seen. Relational clauses relate one fragment of expe-Material processes are processes of doing: They express the notionrience to another through identifying and attributing. There are two that some entity does something - which may be done tosome other enti-kinds of relational processes. The first is called an atributive relational ty. In the first paragraph, the author narrates what her mother did whenprocess ; and the two participants are the Carrier and the Attribute. The she was a girl. She just describes her mother's ordinary actions by usingsecond type is called an identifying relational process ; and the two par- a series of verbs, and she did not make any comments on this. Butticipants of this type are the Identified and the Identifier.from this simple description we can get a vivid picture of mother andMental process, material process and relational process are thedaughter.three main types of process in the English transitivity system. But thereReferences:are other processes at the three processes boundaries; on the borderline[1]Halliday, M. A. K.1978. Language as Social Semiotic: Thebetween material andsocial Interpersonal of Language and Meaning. London:al process, the participant who is " behaving"，labeled Behaver, isEdward Amold中国煤化工typically a conscious being, like the Sensor; but the process is gram-[2]. Halliday,YHCNMH G"1 to Functionalmatically more like one of " doing"Grammar. Lon2Transitivity Analysis of the Baby Book[3]. Halliday, M. A. K. 2000. An Introduction to FunctionalEvery complete discourse shall have consisted of more than oneGrammar.北京:外语教育与研究出版社.functional component via different proccsses which combine together to137 制