6/15/2020

The Three Meta-functions

Experiential Interpersonal

Textual

Meta- Has to do with and is realized by

function
Experiential The way we represent the world as we The transitivity system
experience it And Lexis

Interpersonal Interaction between speaker and Mood and modality

hearer, and the speaker’s judgment of
the likelihood of an event happening or
the requirement of a course of action

Textual The way the message is organized in Theme-Rheme structure

relation to its context to achieve
coherence

1
 6/15/2020

The three meanings (meta-functions)

encoded in a clause
He kicked the ball into the net.

Experiential [ACTOR] [Pr:DOING] [GOAL] [CIRCUMSTANCE]

Interpersonal MOOD RESIDUE

SUBJECT FINITE

Textual THEME RHEME

Theme and Rheme

When clauses are combined to form a text, the constituents of

each clause must be arranged in a way that the information
presented flows smoothly from one clause to the next. In this way
the text is said to have COHERENCE.

One way to achieve coherence is to choose one constituent of the

clause as a point of departure of the message. The constituent
chosen to be the departure point of the message and is placed at
the beginning of the clause is called the THEME. The rest of the
clause is the RHEME.

2
 6/15/2020

Theme and Rheme

Consider the following clauses.

a. The storm destroyed the crop.

b. The crop was destroyed by the storm.

The two clauses express the same experiential and interpersonal

meaning. However, when used as a reply to the question “What
happened to the crop?” [b] is a much better choice.

The reason for the choice has to do with information structure/focus.

In [b] “the crop” is GIVEN INFORMATION and is the topic of the

conversation. “Was destroyed by the storm” as a whole presents
NEW information though one part of it (“the storm”) is GIVEN
informaton. In writing, given information is normally placed in the
theme position, and the rest of the clause, i.e. the RHEME presents
new information.

Types of Themes

Theme

Unmarked Marked

3
 6/15/2020

UNMARKED THEMES

CLAUSE THEME EXAMPLE

Declarative Subject John left early.
She was given a bike.
Interrogative Y-N Finite + Subject Did she like it?
Wh- Wh-word What’s her name?
Which one would you like?
By whom was it sent?
Imperative Predicator Do it now.
Don’t leave it here.
Exclamative What + Obj/Complement What a man he is!
How + Complement/Adjunct What a hat you’re wearing!
How fast she runs!
How nice it looks!

MARKED THEMES

• Any other constituent that occurs in the theme position is

called a MARKED THEME.
• When this occurs, it is said that the constituent is
THEMATIZED. The phenomenon is called
THEMATIZATION.
• Various constituents can be moved to the front to be a
marked theme.
a. That event I will never forget. (Direct Object)
b. Bright are the stars that shine … (Subject Complement)
c. In 1987, he moved to Boston. (CIRCUMSTANCE)
d. Die we can but surrender we never will. (PREDICATOR)

4
 6/15/2020

MARKED THEMES

• Absolute Themes are themes which have no role in the

transitivity of the clause. They stand outside the clause while
providing the framework for the interpretation of the whole
clause.
e.g. The salad, I think I’d prefer to have lots of olives.
• Absolute Themes are normally introduced with phrases such
as as for, with regard to, regarding, concerning, as far as
… is concerned, speaking of …, etc.
e.g. As for the salad, I think I’d prefer to have lots of olives.
• Picked-up Theme is a thematized constituent which is later
picked up by a pronoun in an unmarked position in the
clause.
e.g. Mary she hasn’t got a key any more.

Types of Themes

Theme

Experiential Non-experiential

Interpersonal Textual

10

5
 6/15/2020

Types of Themes

Theme

Simple
Multiple
(Experiential)

Experiential Interpersonal Textual

11

Non-experiential Themes
• Non-experiential themes are themes that have no
experiential meaning. They Express either intertextual or
textual meanings.

• Non-experiential Themes can be Interpersonal Themes

(modal adverbs, prep. phrases that express the speaker’s
attitude toward the message of the clause) or Textual
Themes (conjunctive adjuncts, binding conjunctions).

• The typical order in a multiple theme is:

Textual + Interpersonal + Experiential

12

6
 6/15/2020

Other Ways of Organizing the Message

Apart from thematization, there are other options in the grammar

for organizing the message in a clause. These include:

1. Voice selection (Passivization)

They call him Shorty.
=> He is called Shorty.
2. Use of existential clauses
A lot of foreign students live in this building.
=> There are a lot of foreign students living in this building.

3. Clefting / Pseudo-clefting
We’re now going to look at clefting.
=> It is clefting that we are going to look at now.
What we are going to look at now is clefting.

13