From Nontext to Text

8/13/2019 From Nontext to Text

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From NONTEXT to TEXTWhat is text?

Silvia IRIMIEA, PhD TEXT According to Crombie Winifred (1985) a text represents an un interr upted larger or smaller group of

clauses and sentences, which are withi n the domain of an overal l topic. Halliday and Hasan (1976: I) offered a definition of text, that may well serve as a point of departure

for any prospective text exploration. They went further than Crombie in their definition of text,

suggesting that a text is any passage (of language), spoken or written, of whatever length, that doesform aunified whole.

Therewith they overtly defined the text as a uni fi ed whole, introducing the concept of texture,i.e. thequality or the property that distinguishes a text from a nontext and holds the clauses together. Susanne Eggins (1996: 85) states that the

discourse part of the discourse semantic label describes the different types of texture that contri buto making text: the resources the language has for creating text.

TEXTURE

In an attempt to clarify the concept of texture, Eggins supplies the following example of

conversation:

A: What t ime is it, love?

B: Juli e left her car at the station today.

Despite the fact that the above quoted text makes little or no sense to others, it makes perfect sense to

the interactants or participants in the conversations, as much of the text was omitted because of the

participants familiarity with the topic discussed and the shared situational context that provides for

the missing informational gap. Henceforth, Bs full answer would have made the text more

intelligible:

B: I know Julies late, but we shouldnt be worried because she left her car at the station today and

caught the train , instead of driving in to work .

Susanne Eggins quotes the ethnomethodologists (Schegloff and Sacks 1973/74, Sacks, Schegloff and Jefferson 1974, an

Schegloff 1981) interest in conversations, the claim that no empirically occurring utterance ever occurs outside, or external to some specifi

sequence. Whatever is said will be said in some sequential context (Atkinson and Heritage, 1984), and their notion of sequential implicativeness ((Schegloff and Sacks 1973/74), thus explicating tha

language is inexorably tied to linear sequence,

whereby one part of a text (a sentence or a turn at talk) must follow another part of the text (thnext sentence or tur n at talk)(Eggins, 1991).

This leads to the conclusion that each part of the text creates the context wi thi n which the next bi t of the text iinterpreted- thus, practically everything that is said/written will be interpreted against the backgrounof what was said/written previously.

A further example supplied by Eggins is intended to facilitate the readers understanding of why a text is textas compared to a non-text.

1. Up road runs they. 2.To sign please form those page 3 on. 3. Thr ee chi ldren Shi r ley have: botwo, girl .

This example is clearly a non-text,- first, because each of the sentences composing the example is grammatically incorrect, and- second, because the sentences cannot be tied together to form a whole.


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This sets forth a critical condition for a text to be a text, and that is its compliance with the standard rules ogrammar. In other words, in order for a text to be a text, it must necessarily be grammaticallcoherent.

According to Eggins the clauses of a text hang together by virtue of two kinds of paragraph-relateproperties: contextual propertiesthat give to a text coherence and internal propertiesthat give to texits cohesion.

As defined by Halliday and Hasan (1976: 23) coherencerefers to the way a group of clauses orsentences relate to the context. Since context can be further expressed in terms of two levels: context

of cultur e(i.e. genre) and context of situation, i.e. register, there are two recognizable types ofcoherence:

- situational or r egister ial coherence, and

- generi c coherence.

A text has situational coherencewhen the sentences and/clauses of the text could or may occur within

the framework of one thinkable or imaginable situation.

Similarly, a text has generic coherenceif or when it can be recognized as a particular genre, i.e. when

the text itself displays a structure that is recognizably and commonly used as a standard structure, a

schematic structur e, and where each part/component of the text represents an element in the

unfolding of the communicative (linguistic) event. Cohesion Eggins turns again to Halliday and Hasan, whom she quotes:

Cohesion occurs where the INTERPRETATION of one element in the discourse is dependent on thaof another. The one PRESUPPOSES the other, in the sense that it cannot be effectively decodeexcept by recourse to it . When this happens, a relation of cohesion is set up, and the two elementthe presupposing and the presupposed, are thereby at least potentially integrated into a text(1976: 4).

This explanation states clearly that there are elements in a text that are semantically tied, and the existenceof such semantic tieswill certify that a text is a text. The presence of the tie makes at least one item inthe text depend on another item for its interpretation. In the event the clauses are self-contained andsuch ties are unnecessary or nonexistent, the clauses or sentences that hang together represent anontext.

Despite its generic coherence, the example below is lacking both situational coherence and internalcohesion:

1. Once upon a time there was a little white mouse called Tiptoe. 2. The boys lived in a large, red-brichouse with a thatched roof at the end of the longest street in town. 3. That morning, M rs Smooks left hehome in a great hurry. 4. But, too late, Wi ll iam reali zed that the car had no breaks. 5. So they ran anthey ran them any more[].

Reversibly, the sentences display lexical links (cheese, dairy products, milk, calcium, vitamins), whicgenerate a lexical chain:

1. The li ttl e whi te mouse sni f fed the cheese carefu l ly. 2. Camembert is a soft , French cheese. 3. ThFrench consume a lot of dairy products. 4. Isnt milkan important source of calcium? 5. You know ocourse that vitami n defi ciencies can lead to feel ings of fatigue and li stlessness.

The unconnectedness of clauses in a supposed text is also accounted for by a few other factors aswell, such as

participants/interactantsbrought in the text and

activities/actionsrecounted.

Another example given by Eggins shows how referential cohesion or reference patterns are achieved at the

level of participants.


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1. Michael took the book out of the glovebox and gave it to Jane. 2.I t had a terri ble smell about i t. 3. He

coughed and said: Thanks. 4.She asked if it was pretty. 5.Together they cooked.

This example lackslexical cohesion, as the lexical items used do not exhibit any closer ties:

1 book glovebox take give

2 smell terri ble

3 coughed said

4 asked pretty

5 cook

Referential cohesion or reference patterns, lexical linksReferential cohesion or reference patterns

Example Michael Jane the book it He it she they both

lexical links

Example

1. I had always wanted to see Par is. 2.However, you can imagine how excited I was once we got there3.We had to do some sightseeing. 4. And unfortunately it was cold and wet. 5. Meanwhil e we went tthe Louvre instead. 6. Prior to that it had fined up. 7.In addition we were exhausted by 6 o clock.

Lexical links: Paris, sightseeing, the Louvre

Existence of a realistic (social) purpose Eggins gives yet another example, which apparently fulfills all requirements the other examples hav

failed to meet.

Mark offered L isa the box of chocolates. 2. She took two out of the box. 3. Placing down one onher saucer, 4. she star ted eating the other. 5. These are delicious, she said. 6. Are they? he replied7. Then why dont you take another? he suggested. 8. I will, she repli ed. 9. And so shedid.

At the same time the example is defective in not having a (realistic) purpose.

(Participants: Simon, Diana, Stephen, George, Sue)

Si: How how did- have you given blood before?

Di: 36 times

St: It makes me go all funny just thinking about it

G: You have never done it, obviously

St: Oh no

Di: 1. No I do it because I had a daughter who when she was 2 days old needed blood transfusion cause she wagetting sort of premature jaundice and things. 2. This was in Geneva. 3. And they rang me up on the Sat- thiwas Saturday night and said Youve got to come in and have your blood tested against donors. 4. Andthere were these wonderful Swiss men whod left their dinner you know 8 oclock at night and come in therto give blood to my daughter. 5. And I was really impressed and you know how. 6.I had to give blood to btested to see if it was compatible with theirs. 7. And I had[]. 9. It was very exciting. 10. I stayed up alnight and watched this um operation taking place. 11. And fortunately her umbilical artery hadnt closed sbecause I mean all the other things would have been minute!

S: So tiny!

Di: So they a could actually do it through the umbilical artery or whatever. 13. So I said OK, you know, be blood doner after that. 14. but in Switzerland they give you a cognac. 15. Here they give you tea anbikkies. Texture


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This extract represents a text because it has texture, which in turn is recoverable through:

1. an identifiable narrative/recount structure on the pattern Abstract(once upon a time I had a sick daughterOrientation(it happened in Geneva), Action(I had my blood tested, the Swiss doners came and gavblood), Complicating action(they had to operate on this tiny baby), Resolution(but they could still do thoperation), Evaluation(so I decided to be a blood doner), Coda(but its different in Switzerland.

2. situational coherence

3. cohesion accomplished through: participants, same lexical items that form lexical links, semantic

links or reference ties, logical relations expressed through adequate conjunctions

4. the text has been assigned an entertaining function, suggested and indicated by the participants

conventionalized remaining silent and listening to the speaker until the Coda is reached, which

signals the end of the recount.

At the end of the argumentation, Eggins admits that text is not a black-and-white category, but rather hardly definable one. In this respect she suggests a continuum of textness along which any stretch olanguage/text/discourse to be examined should be positioned.

text nontext

+texture -texture

COHESIONTypes of COHESION IN TEXTS

Sentences hang together= cohesive Types of cohesion Semantic cohesion: ties Lexical cohesion: lexical ties- chains

= semantically related words that run through the text (skin, soap, cleansing lotion, cleanser, water, after-cleansing astringent)

+ synonyms (fresher, cleaner)

+ antonyms (dirt- clean, under control-out of control)

+ substitution by one/ones

COHESIONTypes of COHESION IN TEXTS

Grammatical cohesion: Reference:

In the text Outside the text

Take it from us. Use Johnsons Clean and Clear as a one-step cleanser.. (referenceto Johnsons)

It actually tingles on your skin to tellyou its working (refers to the reader)The technical name for language that makes direct connection to the material world= deixis

(adjective: deictic) Substitution of clause elements, substitution-by-zero

Substitution:And whats even better, it does this without drying. (removes more of the dirt, oil,and make-up that can lead up to spots)

so and not- substitute for whole clauses, as in:

Will it rain?- I Think so. (I think it will rain)

Will it rain?- I Think not.

Substitution can operate at the level of individual words as well: one/ones- stand for nouns or noun phrase

So-clause substitution:

Is it important that a gin comes from London? The ones that dont, seem to


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thinkso. (The gins that dont come from London seem to thin that it s im

portant that a gin comes from London.)

Substitution-by-zero= ellipsis (leaving out elements that can be retrieved from elsewhere)

It actually tingles your skin to tell you itsworking. Not that it needs to. (the reader is supposed tofill in the blank)

Linkers (conjuncts) Comparatives:And whats even better..(presupposes a previous mention-direct or indirect) Tense:consistency in the use of tense

Rhetorical cohesion Question-answer Parallelism= where sentences echo one another (repetition)

Its not your music.

Its not your handshake.

Its not your clothes.

Its your watch that says most about who you are. Contrast: in literary texts (three lines contrast with the last line-subversion)

ANALISING COHESION IN TEXTSReference

Referencerefers to how the writer/speaker introduces participants and then keeps track of them once theyare in the text.

I had a daughter who needed a blood transfusion when she was 2 days old cause she was getting prematurjaundice and things.

Whether known or not the presence of participants in a text must be signaled by the

writer/speaker. Therefore the participants in a text are either

presented(introduced as new to the text) or

presumed(in which case we need to presume their identity from somewhere

in the text) through:

the definite article: the

demonstrative pronouns: that , these, those

pronouns: he, she, it, they

The identity of a presuming reference item may be retrievable from a number of contexts:

a) the general context of culture. This is retrieved from shared context

homophoric reference

b) the immediate context of situationexophoric reference

c) from within the textendophoric reference

anaphoric reference(the referent has appeared at an earlier point)

cataphoric reference(the referent will be provided subsequently)

esphoric(the referent appears in the phrase immediately following

the presuming referent item (within the samenominal group/noun phrase)

Nominalization The use of certain nouns= nominalization

Nouns that are typically used to nominalize actions and events includeprocesses, situation,and way.

Ideas can be referred to by using words like idea, theory and viewpoint.

In addition, words like: explanation, criticism, proposal, suggestionetc are used to refer to what has beensaid or written.


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circumstances of the act

roles and status of the speaker and hearer

prosodic features

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From Nontext to Text