4.1 Clause and sentence level grammar: Clauses
Clauses
(i) Representing and/or expressing our experiences of the world
In Functional Grammar (which is concerned with how we use language), the clause is considered as the basic unit for conveying meaning. This is because it allows us to express our experiences of the world by providing information about the main aspects of our experiences: what is happening, who or what is taking part in the happening and the circumstances surrounding these activities (when, where, how, who with, etc.)
In English we give the term verb or verb group to those words which express what is happening. At primary school they are often referred to as 'doing' and 'being' words.
Just as happenings are central to our experience, so too are verbs essential parts of the clause. To make sense, a clause MUST have a verb.
eg "Help! " and "Stop!" make sense without the need for any other words because they are both verbs.
These commands are Examples of single word clauses.
However, there are usually at least two or more words in clauses:
Example:
| Birds fly | The dog barked. | It was a nice day. | Truth is hard to find |
| The tin can rolled noisily along the street. | Sydney has a very beautiful harbour. | ||
Each of these clauses contains a verb (to express the happening), but they also express the people, places, things and ideas (nouns and pronouns) involved in the happenings.
NOTE: Because these clauses express a complete thought and make sense on their own, they can also be called sentences. These simple sentences are made up of a single clause.
(ii) Interacting with each other
In communicating and interacting with others we can:
- make a statement (statement)
- request information (question)
- tell someone to do something (command)
- express our ideas or feelings strongly and emphatically (exclamation)
| a) | Function: | Statements are used to provide information, and make assertions and remarks. | |||
| Form: | Subject | Verb group | Object(s)/ circumstances | ||
| We | have studied | this painting. (object) | |||
| She | said | too much. (circumstances) | |||
| The baby | wants | a new toy. (object) | |||
| b) | Function: | Questions are used to ask about something or someone. | |||
| Form: | Verb group | Subject | Verb group | Object(s)/ circumstances | |
| Have (auxiliary) | you | studied | this book? | ||
| Did (auxiliary) | she | say | too much? | ||
| *What does | the baby | want? | |||
| *NOTE: | 'What?' is an interrogative pronoun, and all wh-question words come at beginning of the question before the verb group. | ||||
| c) | Function: | Commands are used to tell people what to do, to give orders. The subject is not usually expressed (i.e the subject is implied), except in informal spoken language | |||
| Form: | Subject | Verb group | Object(s)/ circumstances | ||
| Pass | the salt, please. | ||||
| (You) | Leave | me alone! | |||
| (You guys) | Come | over here. | |||
| Halt! | |||||
| NOTE: | Commands can be a single word clause (as shown in (i) above) | ||||
| d) | Function: | Exclamations allow us to express ourselves more strongly, to stress what we want to say. | |||
| Form: | Exclamations are introduced by the words 'What!' or 'How!' There is often added emphasis because the normal order of having the object after the verb group is changed | ||||
| Object(s)/ circumstances | Subject | Verb group | |||
| How cold | (it | is!) | |||
| What a noise | they | are making! | |||
| How odd! | |||||
*See below in 5.2(i) or in the glossary for an explanation of complement
Organising clauses
(i) The passive
Changing the order of words in a clause or sentence also allows for a change in emphasis, and a useful way of doing this is to use the passive.
| eg: | Subject | Verb group | Object(s)/Circumstances |
| ACTIVE | Sam | put | some seeds on a Petri dish |
| PASSIVE | Some seeds | were put | on a Petri dish (by Sam) |
The meaning in these two sentences is essentially the same, but in the passive, the object of the clause or sentence, the receiver of the action, has become its passive subject. This allows it to become the focus of the clause or sentence.
The passive is used when it is more important to focus on ideas, information and effects, rather than the people carrying out the actions, as in the Science recount above. The words 'by Sam' can even be left out.
NOTE the difference in emphasis between:
| PASSIVE | The passive is used when it is more important to ... |
| and | |
| ACTIVE: | We can use the passive when it is more important to ... |
The first sentence is much more impersonal and formal and allows the focus to be on the idea of the passive rather than 'we'. This is the kind of language often found in textbooks and other formal writing.
(ii) Direct and indirect objects
As has been explained, a well-structured clause or sentence MUST have a verb.
Some verbs can have two objects, a direct object and an indirect object:
Note that the position of the direct and indirect objects can change, but "to" is needed if the indirect object comes after the direct object.
| Subject | Verb group | Direct object | Indirect object |
| He | gave | a birthday present | to his friend |
| Subject | Verb group | Indirect object | Direct object |
| He | gave | his friend | a birthday present |