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Lado, Comparison Grammatical Structures
Lado, Comparison Grammatical Structures
Lado, Comparison Grammatical Structures
drSlavicaPerović
Lado, Robert. 1964. Linguistics actoss Cultures. Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan
Press, pp. 51-74.
1.2 Not grammar as definitions or as grammatical terms in the older sense. Grammar
is not identifying or defining S, V, or DO.
1.4 Not usage as merely usage. A logical question that follows from 1.3: Does a
grammatical structure mean only usage then? Grammatical structure deals with things people
say, but it means more than mere recording examples of usage. Usage does not give rules, the
usage point of view results in “problems” that require students to decide if this or that phrase
is the best one for his/her communicative intention. A watch pocket is wrong if the intention is
a pocket watch.
1.5 Grammatical structure as matters of form that correlate with matters of meaning.
Grammatical structure – the systematic formal devices to convey certain meanings and
relationships.
Is he there? Word order with the falling high-law intonation– a question in English.
If a foreign speaker does not react to that sentence as a question he may be missing the
structural significance of the word order arrangement.
2.2 Elements of form used in grammatical structures. A variety of formal devices may
signal grammatical meanings. This variety causes the problem. Among the most frequent
elements used in various languages to signal grammatical structure are: word order, inflection,
correlation of forms, function words, intonation, stress, and pauses.
I know; He knows
John came. He came. The boy came. Who came –high – low falling intonation
Many other languages signal this particular type of question by means of a function word
which can be equated with who in this context.
h- -h h- -l
2.2.6 Stress as a grammatical signal. Sentence stress and the accompanying difference
in meaning:
Consider the PROBlem – give the problem, not something else, some thought
etc.
3.1 System. The examples above look like they are independent items with no relation
to one another. The items above contrast to many others. It is a complex net of rhese contrasts
which constitutes a system for each language.
In all these examples, in addition to potential changes and expansions there are things which
cannot change in English but might normally change in another language.
3.2 Habit. We speak. We mastered the system. We think about what we want to say.
We can say that the degree of control of these structures that are different is an index to how
much of the language a person has learned (our italics).
4.3 Production versus recognition. The effect of the native language transfer is not
identical when a student is listening (recognition) and speaking (production). Speaking is the
problem. He/She chooses what to say (meaning), and then produces the forms.
Grammatical meaning is the “same” in two languages – the form that signals it may be
different in two languages:
Who came?
Quién vino?
A Japanese speaker learning English: Difficulty in the function word signalling a question, the
position of ka, word order, new item, do,a different medium, i.e. word order.
A garden flower
A flower garden
4.4.4 Different media: Word order in one language versus intonation in another.
¿Esustedunestudiante?
(=>State the categories of each sentences and identify the differences in grammatical
structure. What is the significance of intonation?)
4.4.5 Different media: Word order in one language versus function word in the other.
Thai: the same word order in statement and question – function word signal /rȳ./
English: He is a student. vs. Is he a student? The signal in English is the word order of the
words he and is.
4.4.6 Different media: word order in one language versus inflection in the other.
The indirect object, which is signalled in English by word order, is signalled in Latin by
inflection.
(=>Why so?)
4.4.7 Different media: Function word in one language versus inflection in the other.
5.1 General procedure. For each structure we need to know if there is a structure in
the native language:
TRANSFER
First step: Locate the best structural description of the language involved.
Both descriptions should contain the form, meaning and distribution of the structures.
Third step: Actual comparison of the two language structures, pattern by pattern