English Sentence Builder (Ed Swick, 2009)

Masaryk University
Faculty of Arts
Department of English
and American Studies
English Language and Literature
Michaela Kaprálová
Word-order Patterns in
Non-conversational Speech
Bachelor's Diploma Thesis
Supervisor: PhDr., Jana Chamonikolasová, Ph. D.
2008
I declare that I have worked on this thesis independently,
using only the primary and secondary sources listed in the bibliography.
……………………………………………..
Author’s signature
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Acknowledgement
I would like to thank to my supervisor PhDr., Jana Chamonikolasová, Ph.D. for
helpful guidance and valuable advice.
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Table of Contents
1 Introduction ....................................................................................................................... 1
2 Analysis procedure ............................................................................................................ 7
2.1 Text selection ......................................................................................................................... 7
3 Linguistic background ...................................................................................................... 9
3.1 Overview of sentence elements.............................................................................................. 9
3.1.1 Subject ...................................................................................................................................... 10
3.1.2 Verb phrase............................................................................................................................... 10
3.1.3 Complements ............................................................................................................................ 10
3.1.4 Object ....................................................................................................................................... 10
3.1.5 Adverbials ................................................................................................................................ 11
3.2 Sentence patterns ................................................................................................................. 11
3.2.1 Subject – verb phrase................................................................................................................ 12
3.2.2 Subject – verb phrase – subject predicative .............................................................................. 12
3.2.3 Subject – verb phrase – direct object ........................................................................................ 13
3.2.4 Subject – verb phrase – prepositional object ............................................................................ 13
3.2.5 Other patterns ........................................................................................................................... 14
3.3 Major types of clauses – mood ............................................................................................ 15
3.3.1 Declarative................................................................................................................................ 15
3.3.2 Interrogative ............................................................................................................................. 16
3.3.3 Imperative................................................................................................................................. 16
4 Spoken and written discourse ......................................................................................... 18
4.1 General differences in grammar ........................................................................................... 18
4.1.1 The grammar of conversation ................................................................................................... 19
4.2 Prosody and punctuation ...................................................................................................... 21
4.3 Interaction and distance ....................................................................................................... 22
4.4 Inexplicitness and explicitness ............................................................................................. 22
5 Public speech .................................................................................................................... 23
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5.1 History of public speech ...................................................................................................... 23
5.2 Comparison of public speech with written and spoken discourse ....................................... 24
5.2.1 Sentence structure in general .................................................................................................... 24
5.2.2 Prosody ..................................................................................................................................... 25
5.2.3 Interactivity .............................................................................................................................. 25
5.2.4 Explicitness .............................................................................................................................. 26
6 Analysis ............................................................................................................................. 27
6.3 Sentence patterns ................................................................................................................. 27
6.3.1 Public speech ............................................................................................................................ 27
6.2.1.1 Declarative ..................................................................................................................... 29
6.2.1.2 Imperative ...................................................................................................................... 32
6.2.1.3 Interrogative ................................................................................................................... 32
6.3.2 Written discourse ...................................................................................................................... 33
6.2.2.1 Declarative ...................................................................................................................... 34
6.2.2.2 Imperative ....................................................................................................................... 37
6.2.2.3 Interrogative .................................................................................................................... 37
6.3.3 Conversation ............................................................................................................................. 37
6.2.3.1 Declarative ..................................................................................................................... 38
6.2.3.2 Interrogative ................................................................................................................... 40
6.4 Position of adverbials ........................................................................................................... 42
6.5 Ellipsis ................................................................................................................................. 44
7 Comparison and conclusion ............................................................................................ 45
8 Bibliography ..................................................................................................................... 49
9 Appendix........................................................................................................................... 52
9.1 Analyzed public speeches and sentence patterns ................................................................. 52
9.2 Analyzed texts of written discourse ..................................................................................... 58
9.3 Text of spoken discourse analyzed ...................................................................................... 64
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1 Introduction
Public speech is an example of non-conversational speech and as such it lies on the border
between written and spoken discourse. At an initial stage it is written, but finally it is spoken,
which suggests that it necessarily has certain features of both spoken and written discourse.
The thesis aims at comparing public speeches with written texts and conversation. The focus
of the study is to analyse the frequency of different sentence patterns in the three different
registers. The analysis will answer the following questions: Which sentence patterns prevail in
public speech register? In terms of structure and form, is it closer to written or to spoken
English?
Theoretical background for the analysis is mostly based on Longman Grammar of Spoken
and Written English, where four major registers of English are treated: news, fiction and
academic prose as written English and conversation as spoken English. Apart from these,
Longman Spoken and Written English corpus (further abbreviated as LSWE corpus) includes
also supplementary registers, namely general prose and non-conversational speech. They are
not included in the findings discussed in the book, which was the initial impetus for choosing
this topic. Non-conversational speech is represented by lectures and seminars, public
speeches, sermons, courtroom discourse, debates, public meetings, interviews, broadcasting,
TV documentaries or news reading (Biber, 1999: 33).
Rhetoric and public speaking go back to ancient times, when they represented important
skills in political life. In the United States of America, public speaking, the political in
particular, has a strong tradition. The texts of public speeches were selected from the largest
online collection - American Rhetoric. The text for analysis of spoken discourse comes from
A Corpus of English Conversation. The texts of written discourse are gathered from American
newspaper websites, academic prose books and fiction.
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2 Analysis procedure
The aim of the analysis is to find out which of the written or spoken discourse features prevail
in public speech register. The analysis focuses on different types of sentence patterns in
selected public speech samples. The thesis studies the types and frequency of the patterns
which are characteristic for public speech and the findings are compared with other analyses
of written discourse and spoken discourse.
The grammatical analysis focuses on independent clauses and their major clause elements:
subject, verb phrase, objects, adverbials and complements. The patterns were examined also
in terms of their possible variations (word order variations and additional adverbials) and
sorted out into tables of frequency, distinguishing clause types. Positions of additional
adverbials are examined and treated in separate section. On the basis of the comparison with
texts of spoken and written discourse respectively, the thesis identifies the relations between
structural forms of public speech, writing, and conversation, and finds out which of the
registers (conversational speech or written texts) is closer to non-conversational speech.
2.1 Text selection
Several speeches from the US history available on American online speech bank website
proved to be a suitable resource, three of them were selected for analysis. The first text is John
Fitzgerald Kennedy’s inaugural speech, delivered in 1961, containing 58 clauses. The second
text is Martin Luther King’s address presented in Washington in 1963, well-known as “I have
a dream” (58 clauses from the first half were used for the analysis). The third is George W.
Bush’s speech presented after the attack on WTC on September 11, 2001 (63 clauses from the
second half were analyzed). In total the analysis of public speech sentence patterns included
179 main, single or coordinated, clauses.
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Equal number of clauses was analyzed in spoken and written discourse respectively in
order to compare them with the analysis findings of public speaking. The selection of written
texts was influenced by the methodology of text selection in LGSWE, where written English
corpus includes news, academic prose and fiction. Consequently, five newspaper articles,
three works of academic prose and two works of fiction were selected; various segments were
chosen to cover different parts of texts (introduction, main part, and conclusion). The text of
spoken English comes from an electronic version of A Corpus of English Conversation edited
by Jan Svartvik and Randolph Quirk, called London-Lund Corpus (further in the text
abbreviated as LLC).
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3 Linguistic background
The analysis in Part 6 focuses on distribution of various sentence structures in public speech
including word order choices. This section of the thesis, mostly based on Longman Grammar
of Spoken and Written English, covers an overview of linguistic categories treated in the
analysis. In the section 3.1, sentence elements within the clause are described. The second
section deals with individual sentence patterns and their examples. Next, three different types
of clauses are described, namely interrogative, declarative and imperative mood.
3.1 Overview of sentence elements
The basic and traditional recognition of clause elements considers the subject and the
predicate, which is further divided (c.f. scheme below based on English Syntax by Marjolyn
Stevenson). The predicate can be broken down into a verb phrase and completer, which is
represented by objects, complements (subject and object predicative) and adverbials. In this
section, a summary of basic characteristics of clause elements is presented, divided into
subsections based on Chapter 3, section 3.2 (p. 122-34) of Longman Grammar of Spoken and
Written English (further in the text it is abbreviated as LGWSE).
Sentence
Subject Predicate
Verb phrase Completer
Helping verb Primary (Adverbial[s])

transitive + object(s)
intransitive + Ø
linking + complement
Based on Stevenson, Marjolyn. English Syntax. Boston: Little, Brown  comp., 1987. p. 4.
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3.1.1 Subject
The subject identifies the theme or topic of the clause and precedes the verb phrase.
Subject is present in all finite clauses and does not occur in imperative mood. Subject usually
denotes certain semantic role, but it is frequently used also as a semantically empty subject,
which functions only as an obligatory element to complete the sentence structure
grammatically. (Biber et al., 1999: 125)
3.1.2 Verb phrase
The verb phrase expresses a wide range of meanings, such as actions, sensations, or states
of being. It is central in the clause because “it is regularly found in medial position” and “the
valency potential of the lexical verb determines the occurrence of other major clause
elements” (1999: 126), namely objects and complements. Biber (141) distinguishes following
types: one-place verb, which combines only with subject, two-place verbs combining with
subject and another element and three-place verbs. Further, there are either intransitive
(follow one-place SV pattern) or transitive, which occur in SVOd pattern and possibly also
SVOp. Specific category is represented by copulas, which follow SVPs or SVA pattern.
3.1.3 Complements
Complements give further information about another clause element, namely subject or
object. Subject complement or subject predicative characterizes or identifies the referent of
the subject and is used with copular verbs only. Object complement or object predicative
characterizes the preceding object. (1999: 128)
3.1.4 Object
Objects identify who or what has been directly affected by the action of the verb. The
direct object can be found with transitive verbs only and follows right after the verb phrase
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unless there is an intervening indirect object. Indirect object occurs with ditransitive verbs
only and is placed the between verb phrase and the direct object. (1999: 129)
Prepositional objects occur with prepositional verbs (e.g. talk about, rely on) and are
normally placed after the verb phrase. Prepositional objects are similar to indirect objects in
that they both require a mediating element – a preposition or a direct object; in some cases
indirect objects have corresponding prepositional construction. Following example comes
from LGSWE, p. 130.
• He gave Carrie a ring. (IO)
• He gave it to me. (PO)
3.1.5 Adverbials
Adverbials usually add extra information about the situation, such as the time of an action,
its location, or manner. They are typically optional and independent of the verb. They can be
realized in a wide range of forms and are classified as follows: circumstance adverbials,
answering questions When?, How? or Why?, stance adverbials, expressing attitude of speaker
towards the message, and linking adverbials, representing connection between clauses. (1999:
134)
3.2 Sentence patterns
Sentence is one of the basic terms in grammar and yet its definition is complex. Crystal
(1995) points out that every sentence is created according to a system of rules. Further,
“sentences are the largest construction to which the rules of grammar apply” (1995: 215) and
once we are acknowledged with basics of English grammar we are able to identify them.
Further characteristic is a notion that sentences are pieces of language which can be used and
understood on their own. This is not applicable in all cases. For example, an utterance
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containing deixis requires either another sentence or given context to explain it. Identifying
sentences according to the last characteristic is probably most problematic in conversation,
where the actual boundaries of sentences are unclear. However, in any kind of discourse
sentence is constructed according to grammatical principles.
Sentence structure in English is relatively fixed. Word order in sentences varies only little,
therefore syntactic analysis stands for the main point in overall English grammar. The
following overview of sentence patterns is based on Longman Grammar of Spoken and
Written English, chapter 3.5 (141-152). All the examples used in this part come from the
book, because they best illustrate the differences among all structures and provide information
about possible confusions.
3.2.1 Subject – verb phrase
This sentence pattern expresses the answer to “the question ‘What does/did X do?’”
(1999: 141). It always contains intransitive verb and there can be an optional adverbial added
as in:
• We went to the police station until their relatives arrived.
It is often difficult to draw a clear distinction between subject – verb phrase – obligatory
adverbial pattern and SV pattern with an optional adverbial. Clauses conforming to SVA
pattern typically answer questions asking when/where/how something happens or where
something/somebody is/was situated.
• The baby was lying on his back.
3.2.2 Subject – verb phrase – subject predicative
Clauses following this pattern contain a copular verb and a subject predicative, which
describes a certain property of the subject. According to Biber (1999: 145), this sentence
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structure may be characterizing (answering the question ‘What is/was X like?’), or identifying
(answering the question ‘Which one is/was X?’).
• He remained anxious about the surgery and its outcome. (characterizing)
• Delaware Park is the city’s showpiece. (identifying)
3.2.3 Subject – verb phrase – direct object
In this pattern, the verb phrase is a two-place monotransitive verb. The direct object most
typically expresses the thing or person “which is affected by the action denoted by the verb.”
(1999: 147)
• And it was Mary who finished – up in casualty after Carssier kicked her three times in
the stomach.
3.2.4 Subject – verb phrase – prepositional object
This pattern contains a two-place prepositional verb. It is necessary to mention certain
characteristics which distinguish this pattern from clauses with adverbial prepositional
phrases, as the two can be easily confused. First, Biber (1999: 148) suggests that the verb and
the preposition can be replaced by one word with the same or similar meaning. This is
obvious in the comparison of ‘look into’ in the two following sentences:
• Meanwhile, a joint economic commission will look into (investigate) the ways of
economic and industrial co-operation.
I looked into the alleyway and saw the dogs going mad.
Secondly, it is possible to express the prepositional object in passive voice as in “The
ways of economic and industrial co-operation will be looked into by a joint economic
commission.” (1999: 148) As a third possibility of verifying the prepositional object Biber
suggests asking questions with who or what, in this case “What will the commission look
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into?” Last characteristic of this pattern is represented by the impossibility to omit the
preposition without a change in the meaning.
3.2.5 Other patterns
Other patterns are listed below together with their examples, which can be found in the
texts of public speech.
Subject – verb phrase – indirect object – direct object
• America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked
“insufficient funds.” (Martin L. King’s address)
Subject – verb phrase – direct object – prepositional object
For this pattern the use of a three-place prepositional verb is characteristic.
• Tonight I thank my fellow Americans for what you have already done and for what you
will do. (George W. Bush’s address)
Subject – verb phrase – direct object – object predicative
Clauses of this pattern contain complex transitive verbs which are often compatible with
also the SVOd pattern.
• But we shall always hope to find them strongly supporting their own freedom. (John F.
Kennedy’s Inaugural Address.)
It is necessary to point out that the patterns mentioned above in the section, are considered
to be the basic ones. Certain changes in the structure in terms of position of clause elements
are possible, and “patterns can always be extended with additional optional clause elements”
(Leech et al, 1982: 84). They can be changed by insertion of an adverbial at any place
(depending on the type of adverbial); sometimes also complements or objects can be marked
as optional.
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3.3 Major types of clauses – mood
Biber (1999: 202) distinguishes independent and dependent clauses. Generally, an
independent clause is often considered to be the same as a sentence; for example, Leech
(1982: 78) uses the term sentence in cases where Biber speaks of independent clause. Biber
prefers the term independent clause as it is often difficult to define a sentence precisely, for
example in conversation. Independent clauses “may contain embedded clauses or be
coordinate with clauses on the same level” (1999: 202). What follows is a differentiation of
types which can occur, together with their examples from conversation (cited from p. 202):
• Simple independent clause (single clause)
You can give me a cheque.
• Complex independent clause (with one or more dependent clauses)
If we pay too much they’ll give us the money back.
• Compound independent clause (coordinated independent clauses)
He was crying and so I gave him back his jacket.
There are three major structural forms of independent clauses: declarative, interrogative
and imperative. This distinction is mostly based on the function they perform, though some
speech-acts functions can be expressed by different structural types. The following
subsections, based on LGSWE and English grammar for today (Leech: 1982), deal with the
description of these three types.
3.3.1 Declarative
The declarative is considered to be the basic form of the clause, containing subject and
finite verb phrase. In basic word order of declarative clause, subject precedes verb phrase and
other elements. It is “generally used to make statements” (Leech et al, 1982: 79), but there are
several occasions where “declarative clauses can be used (with appropriate intonation in
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speech) to express questions” (Biber et al., 1999: 203) as in following dialogue example from
LGSWE, p.203:
• A: Do you understand?
• B: No.
• A: You don’t understand? Why don’t you understand?
However, the function of making statements prevails. In written discourse, declarative
clauses represent the dominant type and the use of declarative mood to express questions is
restricted to conversation or fictional dialogues.
3.3.2 Interrogative
“The interrogative mood is most commonly used to ask questions” (Leech et al, 1982: 81)
and typically occur in situations enabling dialogue. Basically, two main kinds of interrogative
clauses are distinguished: the yes-no interrogative and wh-interrogative. The first one tries to
find out whether a statement is true or false, while the second one “asks about one of the
clause elements (…) using a wh- word” (1982: 81) and seeks for missing information. They
are shown in respective order in the following examples (Biber, 1999: 204):
• Do you think he will be any better?
• Where did you buy that?
3.3.3 Imperative
According to Leech, the imperative mood is used to make request or give orders. It differs
markedly from the preceding moods in that it usually has no subject, and verb phrase is in the
base form, while, the verb phrases in declarative and interrogative clauses are finite and
marked by tense, aspect or modality.
The identification of a true subject is problematic. Some grammars abandon the presence
of subject completely (for example, Leech), but Biber deals with possible determination of
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subject in imperatives. The addressee can represent either subject or vocative, which is more
common. The basic rule regards the position of addressee’s name in relation to the verb. This
can be demonstrated in following examples (219), where the position of the pronouns is fixed
in relation to the verb and therefore “best analysed as subject” (Biber et al, 1999: 220).
• Don’t you dare talk to me like that.
• Let’s catch up with Louis.
On the other hand, vocatives “can be freely placed either at the beginning or the end of
the clause” (1999: 220), which distinguish them from subjects.
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4 Spoken and written discourse
Writing and speaking represent two ways of communication; the later being considered the
primary or natural medium – it precedes written form in historical development as well as in
the lives of individuals. Nevertheless, writing has a crucial role in modern society and
education. This part of the thesis deals with differences “between the auditory and visual
medium” (Leech, 1982: 133) and serves as an introduction to the actual analysis. Rather than
on single sentences it focuses on larger units of language, or discourse, which is defined as
“language above the sentence” (Cameron, 2001: 11). Discourse can refer to language
transmitted by any channel or medium used for any purpose.
The main difference between spoken and written discourse is in the permanence and
interactivity. While speech cannot be retained without any technological support, writing is
permanent. However, boundaries between spoken and written discourse become blurred in
some cases. Crystal points out that “there are many styles of language use where the boundary
between speech and writing almost disappears” (2002: 26). People can write a text which is
read aloud, such as radio plays and news broadcasts, or they speak in a way which enables
other people to write down what is said as in dictation or teaching. Following chapters deal
with the main differences between spoken and written language.
4.1 General differences in grammar
The difference between overall sentence structure of conversation and writing is evident at
first sight. “In general, speech is more simple in grammatical structure than writing” (Leech,
1982: 137). In written text, all sentences are completed; many sentences are long and
structurally complex, as writers have time to plan and revise. Conversely, “the very notion of
a sentence in conversation is problematic” (Biber et al., 1999: 10), as sentences lack clear
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sentence boundaries and “are often difficult to delimit” (Leech, 1982: 136). The fact that the
utterance in talking is often incomplete does not suggest that conversation is difficult to
understand; thanks to prosody and the interactivity of speech the meaning is clear.
Apart from unfinished sentences, false starts or interruptions occur very often, because
speakers have no time to carefully premeditate their utterance. This, according to Crystal,
results in loose grammar and frequent repetition. In conversation, there is also a lot of non-
clausal material, such as brief answers yeah or okay, or even mere sounds (e.g. hm).
Consequently, speech is considered less fluent than writing and, as Crystal points out, what is
said in conversation can be expressed more effectively and economically in writing. (2002:
30)
4.1.1 The grammar of conversation
“Speech is less complex than writing because of the short time available to produce and
process it. Writing, on the other hand, can be re-drafted and re-read.” (Leech, 1982: 138) This
citation clearly expresses the source of all differences between written and spoken discourse.
However, the fact that conversation is perceived as the simpler one does not suggest that the
grammar of conversation is not worth mentioning. This subsection (based on LGSWE, p.
1052-1108) deals with the distinctive features of conversation, such as dysfluency, syntactic
non-clausal units and ellipsis in clausal units.
4.1.1.1 Dysfluency
According to Biber, dysfluency in conversation is caused by hesitations, repeats,
reformulations or unfinished utterances, as speakers need to organize their thoughts. Speakers
can repeat any part of their utterance to gain some time; the length can range from several
words to “less than one word” (Biber, 1999: 1055).
• This would, this would have been about a couple of months ago. (LLC)
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In some cases, utterances can be left grammatically incomplete. Generally, the reason is
either the intention of the speaker who decides to abandon the beginning of a sentence (and
start again but in different way), or it can be another speaker or unexpected event which
interrupts the utterance.
• I went to… there was one Saturday morning we were running some of his
programmes you see. (LLC)
4.1.1.2 Clausal and non-clausal units
Within an utterance, Biber distinguishes between clausal and non-clausal units. “A clausal
unit is a structure consisting of an independent clause together with any dependent clauses
embedded within it” (1069). This definition suggests that any piece of language other than
independent clause is a non-clausal unit. “Non-clausal units can be broadly divided into two
categories:” single words known as “inserts” (e.g. oh, right, well, yes) and “syntactic non-
clausal units” (1082). Inserts can range from mere sounds (e.g. wow or ah) to greetings and
farewells (bye, hello), or discourse markers (well, right). (Biber, 1999: 1083-94)
“Syntactic non-clausal units differ from inserts in that they can be given a syntactic
description in terms of the structures and categories of sentence grammar” (1999: 1099). They
can occur in various forms, from standard phrases to unembedded dependent clauses. The
most important functional category is that of elliptic replies. Elliptic replies are typical in
conversation, as the speakers “built on” what was said “to avoid unnecessary repetition”
(1999: 1099). In the bit of conversation below there are examples of both, an insert and an
elliptic reply.
A: Where do you come from?
B: You mean, where was I before?
A: Yes. (insert – response form)
B: History. (elliptic reply on the first question of speaker A) (LLC)
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Apart from elliptic replies, there are other types of syntactic non-clausal units. Condensed
question is well known to most students in form of an obligatory inquiry of a teacher at the
end of a lesson: Any questions? (i.e. Do you have any questions?). Further, there are echo
questions, condensed directives and assertions and elliptic exclamations.
Ellipsis occurs also in clausal units. Even though some elements are ellipted, the particular
bit of language can still be analyzed in terms of sentence patterns and clause elements. Biber
(1999: 1104-08) classifies it as initial, final, and medial ellipsis. Initial ellipsis includes
omission of subject or operator or both.
A: He’s working for a PhD here, I think, but I think he gets so involved in this
computer business that I don’t know how his PhD is going.
B: <-> shouldn’t think he had much time left. <You is omitted> (LLC)
Medial ellipsis means that the operator (the finite auxiliary or copula) is omitted, for
example, You better instead of You had better. Final ellipsis “takes the form of the omission
of any words following the operator” (1106) as in the example.
A: But in some ways they’re more fun.
B: Some of them are <->. <More fun is omitted> (LLC)
Of course, any form of ellipsis can occur in written discourse as well, but it still remains
the dominant feature of conversation (cf. section 6.3).
4.2 Prosody and punctuation
Speaking and writing represent two different forms of communication. First of all, speakers
can use intonation and rhythm in conversation to imply different meanings of the same
sentence. As Crystal states (2002: 92), this is impossible to convey in written text without any
change in sentence structure. Intonation features can be expressed by punctuation marks, but
only to a limited extent. Moreover, speakers can use non-verbal communication in face-to-
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face conversation. However, writing has several features which speech lacks: changes in the
sentence structure (e.g. fronting) or a wide range of graphic features to stress the main ideas
(colours, capitalization of letters, or paragraphs and headings). On both sides, there are many
devices that cannot be conveyed in the other medium. (Crystal, 2002)
4.3 Interaction and distance
While conversation is interactive, usually in form of a dialogue with addresses physically
present, writing is distant in nature. The presence of more speakers is a reason for the use of
monitoring features, which “indicate the speaker’s awareness of the addressee’s presence and
reactions” (Leech, 1982: 139), for example well, I mean, you know. In addition to the
monitoring features, there are many ways of “opening a conversation”, “checking that the
listener is following” or “changing topics (…) and ending” (Crystal, 2002: 94). All of these
phrases are unnecessary in writing because of the distance. Writers can use different ways of
text organizing, for example prefaces, summaries, headings or indexes.
4.4 Inexplicitness and explicitness
Contrary to writing, conversational language is often inexplicit, as the participants
communicate face-to-face and “can rely on the situation to clear up any problem of meaning”
(Crystal, 2002: 94). Speakers share the physical environment, which enables the use of deixis,
and have an opportunity for immediate feedback. Moreover, they can use body language to
convey additional information. Nothing of this can be applied in writing therefore writer must
be sufficiently clear and pay attention to the precise meaning of words selected. “The
vocabulary of everyday speech tends to be informal, domestic, and more limited than in
writing. (…) Conversely, writing tends to make greater use of vocabulary” (Crystal, 2002:
94). Writers have plenty of time to look up a word before they write it down, which is not
possible in conversation.
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5 Public speech
In this part, the thesis comes to the object of its analysis – public speaking, which represents
an overlap between spoken and written discourse. First, as the speeches selected come from
American culture, the introductory part deals with history of public speaking in the United
States. What follows is a comparison of the public speech with the two forms of
communication, and it is based on features mentioned in preceding chapter and focuses on
features public speech shares with either spoken or written language.
5.1 History of public speech
Nowadays, public speaking represents an inseparable part of political life. In the United
States, speeches are delivered on many occasions, such as presidential inauguration, important
events or crises. Modern history of public speaking in the United States is dealt with in The
Oxford Guide to the United States Government, available online.1 The present way of political
speaking has been influenced by technological development. Radio broadcasts and later
television has enabled politicians to speak to much higher number of people. “Modern
Presidents use their State of the Union addresses and special messages to Congress” to present
their opinions to television audience. Thanks to mass media, public speech has extended the
coverage of population.
Apart from the technical aspects, the practice of speech delivery and public speaking has
changed over the years. “In the 19th century, Presidents were not expected to show up at their
party's national convention to accept the nomination, nor were they expected to campaign for
office. They did not give a State of the Union address to Congress but sent a detailed written
message instead. They did not make political or policy speeches but stuck to vague platitudes
1
“Public opinion” The Oxford Guide to the United States Government. John J. Patrick, Richard M. Pious, and
Donald A. Ritchie. Oxford University Press, 2001. Oxford Reference Online. 31 January 2008.
<http://www.oxfordreference.com/views/ENTRY.html?subview=Main&entry=t89.e695>.
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of “civic republicanism” when addressing audiences. They had no direct dealings with the
press.”1 Woodrow Wilson was the first president in modern times who revived the practice of
delivering an annual speech to Congress, which was practiced at the time of Thomas
Jefferson’s presidency. First president who begun the tradition of addresses to people was
Franklin Delano Roosevelt, when he sought support for his New Deal.
5.2 Comparison of public speech with written and spoken discourse
Public speaking is one of the registers which represent the borderline between written texts
and spoken communication. Public speaking shares certain features with both ways of
communication. It is prepared and explicit similarly to writing, but it shares with conversation
the features of interactivity and use of prosody. This section aims at comparing public speech
with written and spoken discourse respectively; the texts of selected speeches were compared
with features of written and spoken language described in fourth chapter, namely 4.1-4.
5.2.1 Sentence structure in general
Public speech originates in writing, therefore the structure is more complex and well
premeditated and boundaries between individual sentences are clear. This makes public
speaking easier for transcribing than usual conversation. Speakers are aware of sentence
boundaries marked in the text by punctuation, so there are no unfinished sentences or false
starts. However, public speaking can be disturbed by the surrounding which can cause certain
fluency problems, and in spite of premeditated sentence structure, some repetition or non-
clausal material can be used during the reading or delivery of the speech. Still, public
speaking is, in terms of fluency, closer to writing. Together with the content of the text, the
speaker/writer premeditates also the way of delivery. This is connected with prosodic
features, which are treated below.
24
5.2.2 Prosody
Public speaking uses punctuation as well as prosodic features. In the initial stage,
punctuation is used to delimit sentences and individual clauses, which determines the final
process of speech delivery. In the text of public speech, punctuation conveys intonation,
which is presented in final stage. As was mentioned above, writer can use a wide range of
graphic features, so this is possible also in public speech preparation and may be useful for the
phase of delivery. Graphic features usually highlight the most important points and
consequently the speaker can decide on what intonation or stress to use in particular parts or
sentences. The purpose of the text is to be spoken, so the prosody is one of the basic
characteristics of public speech, which suggest close relation to spoken communication.
5.2.3 Interactivity
Although speakers lead monologue, the reaction of the audience plays an important role -
it is anticipated and often welcomed. They intend to raise some feelings and reactions in
audience. There also can be some immediate reactions as well as distractions during their
speaking; all this is closely connected with interactivity of public speaking.
However, the interactivity is different from usual conversation. There are no monitoring
features, the speaker continues speaking without checking whether the listeners are following
or not, and the audience cannot interrupt the speaker in order to clear up preceding statements.
Although speakers ask addressees questions, they do not expect detailed answer from every
individual in the audience; and when asking rhetorical questions, they expect no answer.
Feedback on what was said is expected only after the speaker finishes the whole speech, for
example in form of polls. The interactivity is not as spontaneous as in conversation and no
monitoring features are used.
25
5.2.4 Explicitness
Generally, speaking is said to be inexplicit, while writing has to be explicit and pay
attention to precise meanings of words, because there is no contact with addressee.
Explicitness in writing, compared with speaking, is expected also due to the possibility to plan
and revise the text; the writer can look up the most suitable word. This applies also for public
speech, as it can be premeditated ahead. On the other hand, the presence of the addressee
plays an important part, too.
Both, the speaker and the audience, share physical environment and knowledge of the
situation, which does not demand such explicitness as is needed in writing. Nevertheless, the
interactivity in public speaking is slightly different from the interactivity experienced in
conversation. In common face-to-face communication, immediate response or feedback of the
addressee(s) is desirable. It is no so in public speaking where the speaker expects certain
reaction, but not immediately and not in full detail. Public speech should be explicit for the
audience, but this does not have to apply for the readers of transcribed speech. The
explicitness consists in sufficiently clear and precise vocabulary, but at the same time it is
limited by the fact that it is possible to use deixis, body language and facial expressions.
26
6 Analysis
This part discusses the findings of the analysis. First section describes the occurrence of
individual sentence patterns within each of the registers concerned: public speech,
conversation and written discourse. In overall word order patterns analysis, I took into
consideration only simple or complex independent clauses standing on their own or as parts of
compound clauses. In section 6.1, all occurring derived structures in terms of word order
changes are treated within the description of the individual sentence patterns. Additional
adverbials are not treated in much detail in this section; their overall frequency and position in
individual registers is covered in section 6.2.
6.1 Sentence patterns
This section presents the results of the analysis of sentence patterns. It is divided into three
main sections according to the three registers: public speaking, written discourse and spoken
discourse. Each section includes the description of the most frequent patterns in particular
register, regarding possible word order variations. The distribution of patterns is summarized
in tables. Types of reversed word order are marked by “/”. The tables do not cover possible
positions of additional adverbials (i.e. they are not marked in the patterns), but they are
mentioned in the patterns descriptions. (Adverbial position is discussed in more detail in
section 6.2).
6.1.1 Public speech
In the following tables, there is a detailed summary of the frequency of different sentence
patterns in the individual public speech texts. The focus of this passage is on the most
frequent sentence patterns and word order variations.
27
MOOD PATTERNS No. Comments
Declarative: SV 13
60 clauses SVPs 10 no reversed word order
SVA 4
SVOd 24
SVOp 3
SVOiOd 4
SVOdOp 2
Imperative: VOd / vSVOd 1 / 1 v – may (similar to “let us”
3 clauses structure), fixed order (2x)
vSVOiOd 1
Table 1: occurrence of patterns in the speech by George W. Bush
MOOD CLAUSE PATTERNS No. Comments

Declarative: SV / sVS / vSV 2 / 2 /1 s – existential there
1
37 clauses SVPs / vSVPs1 2/1 v – inverted modal verb
SVA / AVS / vSVA1 1/1/1
SVOd / vSVOd1 / OdSV 13 /1 / 1
SVOp 1
OiSVOd 6
SVOdPo 3
SVOdA 2
Imperative: vSV 5 let (fixed position): 16
19 clauses vocatives (free pos.): 2
vSVOd, vocVOd 11, 2
imp. without addressee: 1
AVOiOd 1
Interrogative: vSVOp 1
2 clauses vSVAOd 1
Table 2: occurrence of patterns in the speech by John F. Kennedy
MOOD PATTERNS No. Notes/Comments

Declarative: SV / sVS 12 / 3 s – existential there
55 clauses SVPs 20
SVA / AVS 2/4
SVOd 8
SVOp 1
SVOiOd / OdSVOi 1/1
SVOdPo 2
Imperative: vSVOd / VOd 1/1 let
3 clauses V(A) 1 repeated 6x
Table 3: occurrence of patterns in the speech by Martin L. King
28
6.2.1.1 Declarative
There are 151 declarative clauses. The most frequent pattern is subject-verb-direct object
pattern, occurring in 47 declarative clauses (31%). Within this pattern word order variations
were very rare, they occurred only in two clauses. In one clause, direct object precedes
subject-verb phrase (cf. example below). In the second clause, there is a modal verb preceding
the subject followed by the main verb.
• This much we pledge and more. (Kennedy)
In the basic form of SVOd pattern (i.e. without any additional adverbial), there are 18
clauses. Often there are adverbials extending the basic pattern, which are placed at almost all
possible positions in the sentence. The most frequent position within this pattern was the
initial one (as in the example below), represented by almost a half of the number of all
optional adverbials. The least frequent position is in the middle of the verb phrase and only in
few clauses was direct object separated from verb phrase by adverbial.
• In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the
role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger. (Kennedy)
The second most frequent pattern is subject-verb-subject predicate which occurs in 33
clauses out of 151 (21.8%); it is present only in declarative sentences. Similarly to SVOd
pattern, in one clause a modal verb as part of a verb phrase precedes the subject. It is
interesting that the only change in word order present in SVPs pattern occurs in Kennedy’s
speech, where this pattern is only in three clauses. On the contrary, King used SVPs pattern in
twenty clauses, all of them in basic word order.
• For only when our arms are sufficient beyond doubt can we be certain beyond
doubt that they will never be employed. (Kennedy)
29
• This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would
be guaranteed the "unalienable Rights" of "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of
Happiness”. (King)
One third of clauses do not have any optional clause element inserted. In the remaining
sentences there are additional adverbials either in initial or final position. Only in three cases,
adverbial is inserted between subject and verb phrase (as in the example below), but never
occurs after verb phrase.
• But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. (King)
The third most frequent sentence pattern is subject-verb with 32 occurrences in total
number of clauses (21.2%). Deviation from the basic word order was mostly represented by
existential there. This occurs in five clauses altogether.
• And there will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is
granted his citizenship rights. (King)
In one clause of Kennedy’s speech, the subject is preceded by modal verb. In general,
Kennedy has wider range of word order choices in comparison with King and Bush.
• Nor will it be finished in the first one thousand days; nor in the life of this
Administration; nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. (Kennedy)
This pattern occurs only in two clauses without any adverbial; in the rest of the clauses
there is at least one adverbial, in three quarters of total number the adverbial takes position at
the end of a clause (including sentences with two adverbials). Seven clauses contain two
additional adverbials.
Next, subject-verb-adverbial pattern occurs in 13 clauses (8.6%). It is often difficult to
distinguish this pattern from subject-verb pattern with additional adverbial. Adverbials in
30
these patterns may not be in all cases compulsory, which can rarely be determined with
absolute certainty. The two verb patterns are presented in following examples:
Additional adverbial: • The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the
foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges. (King)
Obligatory adverbial: • Freedom and fear are at war. (Bush)
In seven clauses, there is no change in basic sentence pattern. In five clauses adverbial
takes initial position and is followed by verb phrase and subject, as in the following example.
• In your hands, my fellow citizens, more than mine, will rest the final success or
failure of our course. (Kennedy)
In one clause, subject is preceded by modal verb; adverbial appears in the final position.
• Nor will it be finished in the first one thousand days. (Kennedy)
Subject-verb-indirect object-direct object pattern occurred in 12 clauses. Basic word order
is less frequent than its variations, it occurs in five clauses, while reversed word order appears
in seven clauses. Again it was in Kennedy’s speech, where majority of the inversions occur.
He uses this pattern only in the form varied word order: indirect object precedes subject-verb-
direct object, as in following example.
• To those new states whom we welcome to the ranks of the free, we pledge our
word that one form of colonial control shall not have passed away merely to be
replaced by a far more iron tyranny. (Kennedy)
Different variation occurs in King’s speech. Instead of indirect object, he puts direct
object at initial position. This sentence resembles reported speech.
• Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends. (King)
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6.2.1.2 Imperative
Imperative clauses of public speech are represented mostly by structures using the form
let, where it is possible (according to Biber, section 3.3.3) to define subject. Pattern subject-
verb-direct object occurs in 17 clauses out of all imperatives.
• Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any
price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, to
assure the survival and the success of liberty. (Kennedy)
The second most frequent pattern is subject-verb, occurring in six clauses. The sentence
from King’s speech chosen as an example contains intended repetition of the verb.
• Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to South Carolina, go back
to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our northern
cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed. (King)
Another pattern occurring in the form of imperative clauses is SVOiOd. One of them
contains structure with may, similar to the clauses using let, so it is possible to consider the
word God to be the subject.
• In all that lies before us, may God grant us wisdom, and may he watch over the
United States of America. (Bush)
6.2.1.3 Interrogative
In the total of 179 clauses, only two of them were interrogative, both yes-no questions.
The first one contains prepositional object, the second one occurs in form of SVOd patterns
with additional adverbial added (Both of them are from Kennedy’s address):
• Can we forge against these enemies a grand and global alliance, North and
South, East and West, that can assure a more fruitful life for all mankind?
• Will you join in that historic effort?
32
6.1.2 Written discourse
Frequency of sentence patterns in individual registers is summarized in the tables below,
and is described in more detail in following subsections. Generally, there is a considerably
wide variety in word order.
MOOD CLAUSE PATTERNS No. Notes/Comments

Declarative: SV 7 reversed order occurs
62 clauses only within reporting
SV / sVPsS 7/1
of direct speech
SVA 1
SVOd / OdSV / OdVS 22 / 5 / 2 s – extraposition,
dummy it
SVOp 6
SVOiOd / OdSVOi / sVOiOdS 4/1/1
SVOdPo 1
SVOdA 2
SVOdOp 2
Table 4: occurrence of patterns in news

Declarative: SV / sVS 6/1 no reporting clauses
56 SVPs / PsVS1 16 / 1
s – existential there
SVA 5 1
fronting
SVOd 16
SVOp 1
SVOiOd / OdSVOi 3/1
SVOdPo 4
SVOpPo 2
Interrogative: 1 vSVOp 1 ellipsis/ non-clausal?
Table 5: occurrence of patterns in academic prose
33
1
Declarative: SV 2 s – extraposition
2
57 s – existential there
SVPs / sVPsS1 / PsVS 17 / 1 /1 3
reversed order is in
SVA / sVSA2 3/1 reporting of direct
SVOd / OdSV3 17 / 8 speech
SVOp 1
SVOiOd / OdSVOi3 2/1
SVOdPo 1
SVOdOp / OdSVOp3 1/1
Imperative: VOd,voc 1
2 clauses VOiOd 1
Interrogative: 1 vSVOd 1
Table 6: occurrence of patterns in fiction
6.2.2.1 Declarative
Total number of declarative clauses is 175. The most frequent pattern in written discourse
is subject-verb-direct object pattern occurring in 70 independent clauses (40 %). As presented
in the tables above, the largest number of this pattern is in news, in which SVOd clearly
dominates in comparison with the remaining sentence patterns. In news and in fiction, the
occurrence of the pattern is influenced by reporting statements; 30 per cent out of the total
number of SVOd pattern in news and fiction occur in reporting clauses. In academic prose,
there are no reports of direct speech and the frequency of this pattern is considerably lower
(overall frequency of SVOd pattern is surpassed by that of SVPs pattern).
• “I want to see where you live!” Michelle said plaintively. (Fiction)
• “We need tax breaks for the middle class, not for the wealthy and the well-
connected,” she said Monday morning at St. Norbert College in De Pere, Wis.
(News)
In the basic form of SVOd pattern, without any additional adverbial and in basic word
order, there are 22 clauses (31.4%). Distribution of the basic form is highest in the register of
news (10 clauses out of 29). In the remaining clauses there is either additional adverbial
34
inserted or reversed word order. Reversed word order occurs only within reporting clauses. In
twelve clauses, the object precedes subject-verb phrase, and two clauses, the object is in initial
position and is followed by verb phrase and subject (Both occur in news.)
• Several hundred Iraqi academics have been resettled outside the country with
support from organizations in the USA, England, Spain and the Netherlands, says
Kate Robertson, deputy executive secretary of the London-based Council for
Assisting Refugee Academics. (News)
Most frequent position of adverbials extending the basic pattern is at the beginning of
sentences (13 out of 35 optional adverbials), though not markedly; the frequency is almost
equal to that of the end position (12).
• Used as a social document, literature can be made to yield the outlines of social
history. (Academic prose)
The second most frequent pattern is subject-verb-subject predicative which occurs in 45
clauses out of 175 (25.7%). The highest frequency of occurrence is in fiction and in academic
prose; in the latter SVPs represents the most frequent pattern. More than a half of the clauses
following this pattern are in the basic form (58%). In four clauses there was a variation on
basic word order. In two of them subject predicative is fronted and followed by additional
adverbial, verb phrase and subject, as in the example.
• But of greater significance, according to the tests, was Jack’s capacity for
consecutive memory, which, when he was three, was comparable to that of a nine-
year-old. (Fiction)
In the other two clauses, there is extraposed subject (underlined in the example).
35
• For all the heated rhetoric unleashed as world powers slowly started recognizing
an independent nation called Kosovo, it seemed unlikely that large-scale violence
would erupt. (News)
The third most frequent is subject-verb pattern. It is most frequent in news and academic
prose, while in fiction it occurs only in two clauses. In total, SV pattern occurs in 9.7 per cent
of all clauses. Except for one clause there is no variation on the basic word order pattern. It
contains existential there.
• There were, however, other expressions of nativism that reflected very different
sentiments. (Academic prose)
Adverbials occur mostly at the end (10 out of 16), four times there are adverbials at the
beginning, and in two clauses there are two adverbials – one in initial position, the other in
final. Only in one clause following SV pattern, there is no adverbial added (the example
below).
• New methods based on a survey of the wider range of forms in modern literature
are being introduced. (Academic prose)
Pattern subject-verb-indirect object-direct object is fourth in the frequency list. Contrary
to the SV pattern, additional adverbials do not occur within SVOiOd pattern. There are two
kinds of variation on word order, occurring in four clauses altogether. In three clauses direct
object precedes subject-verb-indirect object, each one is in different registers. One is from
academic prose, two of them occur in fiction and news, within reporting clauses.
• “I don’t feel very well,” she told Jack. (Fiction)
The second variation is extraposition:
• It may take four or five years for the economy to get on its feet. (News)
36
Subject-verb-adverbial pattern is most frequent in academic prose and in fiction. In news,
it appears only in one clause. In nine out of ten clauses, there is no syntactic variation. Only
one clause contains syntactic variation with existential there.
• As all know by now, there was no room at the inn. (Fiction)
6.2.2.2 Imperative
Clauses in imperative mood occur only in fiction, within direct speech. Both contain
vocatives; the first one follows the SVOd pattern, the second one SVOiOd
• “Torment me not, Jesus!”
• “Don’t tell me you’ve actually moved out of that nookie house on Entrada, Jack.”
The occurrence of interrogative clauses is similar to that of imperative, there are only two
of them, and yet one of them is questionable, as it is ellipted question, which can be
considered as non-clausal material. If not ellipted, there would appear prepositional object.
• I have suggested that this lack of awareness is particularly unfortunate, since
language’s effects enter into so many areas of our professional and everyday lives,
and that something ought to be done about it. But what? <ought to be done>
The other is yes-no question within direct speech and follows SVOd pattern.
• “Don’t you know that you can’t tell a doctor what to do, Jack?” (Fiction)
6.1.3 Conversation
The grammar of spoken discourse differs markedly from that of writing, as was discussed in
section 4.1.1. Apart from 179 independent clauses in the chosen text, there were 90 non-
clausal units. These non-clausal units included interjections (um, ah), response forms (yes,
no), discourse markers (you know) and also syntactic non-clausal units, which were in
37
minority. No imperative clauses occur, as the conversation took place between two people
who were just sharing information. These will be mentioned in the subsections describing
occurrence of individual patterns. Ellipsis appears in few clauses within all of the patterns and
its occurrence will be discussed as a whole in section 6.4. Sentence patterns are summarized
in the following table.
MOOD CLAUSE PATTERNS No. Comments

1
Declarative: SV / sVS /sVS 19 / 2 / 1 s – existential there
1
169 clauses SVPs / SVPs tag / sVPsS1 54 / 1 / 1 extraposed subject
SVA / SVA tag 10 / 2
SVOd / OdSV / SVOd tag 54 / 3 / 1
SVOp 9
SVOiOd / SVOdOi 4/1
SVOdPo 6
SVOdA 2
Interrogative: vSV / VS 2/5 7 wh-questions
10 clauses vSVOd 3 3 yes-no questions
Table 7: occurrence of patterns in conversation
6.2.3.1 Declarative
Similarly to the other two registers discussed, the most frequent pattern was subject-verb-
direct object, occurring in 58 clauses (32.4%). This time, the leading position is not so strong;
the difference between numbers of SVOd and SVPs is represented only by two clauses.
Variety of word order choices within this pattern is infrequent. Only two clauses showed
clause pattern variation; as in the first example, where the object is fronted. In one clause, the
word order was not changed, but there was a question tag added (2nd example).
• Programming computers, that’s what I do.
• I mean, the fact that you, you study a thing doesn’t mean to say you can’t also
feel it, does it?
38
With the preceding example, the topic of repetition and reformulation emerges; in public
speech and writing reformulation does not appear because of the possibility of preparation in
advance. Repetition of direct object appears in one clause, mentioned below. Certain form of
reformulation occurs once and is showed in one of the examples of adverbial position.
• He’s got two children, two children.
• When I was at school taking in the staff, I could, I would, I had joined the staff
temporarily.
Adverbials within SVOd pattern were also relatively infrequent – preceding example
containing two adverbials is an exception. Additional adverbials occur in one third of the total
number. Mostly, they are placed at the end; less frequent was position after subject and initial
position.
• I knew Malcolm when he was in knickerbockers.
The second most frequent is subject-verb-subject predicative pattern; it occurs in 56
clauses (31.3%). Word order variation occurs only once in the form of extraposed subject;
(dummy subject together with verb are ellipted). Similarly to SVOd pattern, in one case a
declarative clause includes a positive tag, as shows the second example below.
• B: That is only natural.
A: Not quite big enough, to go and say look old chap you were right.
• You’re an LSE product with statistics or something, are you?
The third most frequent pattern is subject-verb phrase, occurring in 22 clauses (13%).
Similarly to the patterns discussed above, word order variation appears in small number of
clauses; two clauses contain existential there (one of them is showed in following example,
underlined) and in one case, there is an extraposed subject (second example).
• Well, one’s a principal lecturer, the head of department, and then there are only
two of us lecturers, and we’re getting another one.
39
• This is where comes smack in the eye for them.
Additional adverbials were relatively frequent in SV pattern (compared to frequency of
adverbials in other patterns); they occur in 63% of the clauses. Adverbial takes final position
in all of the clauses. One clause contains two adverbials – in initial as well as in final position:
• But on the personal level, we get on extremely well.
The remaining clauses mostly represent answers and reactions, such as:
• I don’t know. I can’t remember. I shouldn’t think so.
Subject-verb-adverbial pattern occurs in twelve clauses (6.7%). There is no word order
variation – obligatory adverbial appears in all cases at the end of the clause. Four clauses
contains additional adverbial; in two clauses the adverbial takes initial position in the other
two it is placed after the obligatory adverbial.
• Before that, I was in India.
• And he stayed, did he stayed, at Oxford to do a postgraduate year.
Two sentences contain tags added at the end:
• You were her, were you once? Thorpe’s away, is he?
Next, subject-verb-prepositional object pattern occurs in nine clauses. There is no word
order variation within this pattern, but in six clauses, additional adverbial is added at the end,
and once it is inserted after auxiliary verb as in:
• He would just bring forth the Victor’s views as his own.
Out of 179 clauses, ten were interrogative (5.6%). The most frequent pattern is subject-
verb with seven occurrences, six of which are wh-questions and one yes-no question. Out of
the six wh-questions, only one contains helping verb do, it is the very first sentence of the
conversation:
40
• Where do you come from?
The rest of them contain the verb to be as the primary verb, as in:
• How old is he? Where was it?
The only yes-no question contains helping verb do:
• Did he come immediately here?
Pattern subject-verb-direct object appears in three questions, one of them is wh-question
with modal auxiliary verb, and the other two are yes-no questions, containing do as a helping
verb.
• How can I please these people?
• Do you like this work here? and Do you know Malcolm Bowen?
41
6.2 Position of adverbials
Public speech has the highest numbers of adverbials altogether (118), but written
discourse has reached similar frequency (106). The frequency of adverbials in conversation is
considerably lower than in the other two registers.
80
70
60
50
Frequency
40
30
20
10
0
public speech written discourse conversation
initial 35 37 12
medial 16 22 11
final 67 47 46
Figure 1: Positions of adverbials
Generally, final position, i.e. after all obligatory elements, prevails in all registers.
However, in public speech the frequency of adverbials in final position is remarkably higher;
this is caused mainly by the often use of adverbials of purpose, as in:
• We will come together to promote stability and keep our airlines flying with
direct assistance during this emergency. (Bush)
Public speech resembles writing in the number of adverbials in initial position, but as far
as the medial position is concerned, the texts of addresses appear to be closer to the text of
conversation. However, the medial position includes more than one option: adverbial can go
between the subject and beginning of a verb phrase, or after the operator, or after the main
42
verb - before other obligatory clause elements (complement, object, or obligatory adverbial).
Public speech resembles conversation also in the distribution of places within medial position;
for example, the numbers of adverbials following the subject are equal.
While in public speech there are mainly adverbials of purpose, in written discourse and in
conversation adverbials of time and place which prevail. In conversation, the adverbials show
more variety in their function: in addition to place and time adverbials, there are also
adverbials of manner, often occurring at the end of an utterance.
• No, you see, this is, this is the line to sell obviously.
Distribution of adverbials
120
100
80
final
60 medial
initial
40
20
0
public speech (%) written discourse (%) conversation (%)
Figure 2: Distribution of adverbial position in registers
43
6.3 Ellipsis
Public speech, as well as writing, differs from conversation in the use of ellipsis. While
conversation tends to omit what is not necessary to repeat (e.g. subjects, objects, also verbs in
many cases), public speech tends to use them repeatedly. For example, personal pronouns are
very often ellipted in conversation, but in public speech these are repeated in order to
highlight them. In conversation, the subject together with verb phrase would be definitely
omitted in following clauses:
• We will come together to give law enforcement the additional tools it needs to
track down terror here at home. We will come together to strengthen our
intelligence capabilities to know the plans of terrorists before they act and to find
them before they strike. We will come together to take active steps that strengthen
America's economy and put our people back to work. (Bush)
Nevertheless, ellipsis occurs also in public speech. Mostly, it occurs in compound clauses,
where the first clause contains subject, which is ellipted in the following clause, as in:
• One hundred years later, the Negro is still languished in the corners of American
society and <the Negro> finds himself an exile in his own land. (King)
• United there is little we cannot do in a host of cooperative ventures. (Kennedy)
Ellipsis can be found also in writing (5.2%). An elliptic question But what? in academic
prose is rather an exception. Ellipsis is mostly represented by subject omission in the second
of two compound clauses and it is more frequent in news (7) than in prose (2). As was
mentioned before, ellipsis is very common in conversation. In the text analyzed, it occurs
rather in discrete independent clauses than in compound clauses, which is common in the
written texts. In the text examined it occurred in 7.8% of clauses. Obviously, the frequency is
only slightly higher, but the usage differs.
44
7 Comparison and conclusion
The findings of the analysis are summarized in the following table presenting frequency of
individual sentence patterns for public speech, conversation and written texts; it is divided
into three sections according to the clause types. This part of the thesis aims at a comparison
of the three registers on the basis of the features described in the analysis above. First, it
focuses on the occurrence of sentence patterns in general, and then it treats stepwise different
clause types, word order variations, adverbials, and ellipsis.
Public speech Conversation Written text

DECLARATIVE 151 clause 169 clauses 175 clauses
occ % total% occ % total% occ % total%
SV 2 1.3 8 4.7 3 1.7
21.2 13.0 9.7
SVa 30 19.9 14 8.3 14 8.0
SVA 13 8.6 8.6 12 6.7 6.7 10 5.7 5.7
SVPs 33 21.8 21.8 56 31.3 31.3 45 25.7 25.7
SVOd 47 31.1 58 32.4 70 40.0
SVOp 5 3.3 9 5.3 7 4.0
SVOiOd 12 7.9 5 2.9 13 7.4
47.5 44.9 59.3
SVOPo 4 2.6 6 3.5 8 4.5
SVOdA 2 1.3 2 1.2 2 1.1
SVOdOp 2 1.3 - - 4 2.3
IMPERATIVE 25 clauses 0 clauses 2 clauses
vSV / V 6 24 24 - - - -
vSVOd / vocVOd 17 68 - 1 50
76 100
VOiOd / vSVOiOd 2 8 - 1 50
INTERROGATIVE 2 clauses 10 clauses 2 clauses
vSV / VS - - - 7 70 70 - - -
vSVOp 1 50 - - 1 50
100 30 100
vSVOd 1 50 3 30 1 50
Table 8: Overall distribution of patterns, sorted according to clause types
Examined public speech texts differ from the written text and the text of conversation in
that the sentence patterns are distributed more evenly; the differences between the overall
occurrences are smaller. In writing, the most frequent SVOd pattern has a bigger lead over the
45
other patterns. Similarly, SVPs pattern has a considerably higher frequency than the remaining
sentence patterns. Conversation shows a still stronger preference for the two most frequent
patterns over the others. In public speech the patterns are distributed more evenly, for
example SVPs pattern is almost as equally frequent as SV. Consequently, as far as the
sentence patterns distribution is concerned, public speaking appears to stand aside, and it is
hardly possible to ascertain whether it approximates to written or spoken texts. However, the
pattern distribution differs in the three speeches; for example, while Kennedy uses SVOd
pattern most, King prefers SVPs pattern. While written and spoken discourse prefer two
particular sentence patterns to others, the texts of public speech display a more balanced
distribution of patterns.
A distinctive feature of public speaking is the use of imperative clauses. While in writing,
there are only two imperatives and in conversation none, in public speech we can find 25
imperative clauses. The majority of imperatives contain the form let, which can be also
understood as a specific feature of public speeches. Interrogative clauses are much more
frequent in the text of conversation (ten clauses) than in the texts of public speaking and
writing (two clauses each). In the occurrence of interrogatives, the text of public speech
differs from the conversation text.
In the texts of public speech (except for Bush’s address), there is a considerable variety in
word order choices within individual patterns, i.e. individual patterns include inversion of
some clause elements. This concerns only declarative clauses. Word order variations are more
frequent in written and public speech texts than in the text of conversation. The examined text
of public speech contains 22 clauses with inverted word order, which is 14.6% out of all
declarative clauses in this text. In the frequency of inversion, public speech resembles the
written texts, where 14.3% of the clauses contain a variation on word order. In writing,
reversed word order is most frequent within the SVOd pattern due to direct speech reporting
46
(60% of clauses containing word order variation in written text, cf. Table 9). Conversely,
there are no reporting clauses in public speech, and changed word order is more frequent
within SV, SVA and SVOiOd pattern. In conversation, only 3.5% of the declarative clauses
contain a variation on word order. In some cases, tags are added, which distinguish
conversation markedly from the other two registers.
Public speech Writing

Pattern No. % No. %
SV 6 27 1 4
SVA 6 27 1 4
SVPs 1 5 4 16
SVOd 2 9 15 60
SVOiOd 7 32 4 16
22 100 25 100
Total
out of 151 – 14.6% out of 175 – 14.3%
Table 9: Distribution of word order variations within individual patterns in declarative clauses
As is shown in Figure 1 above (cf. section 6.3), public speech resembles writing in the
occurrence of adverbials. The texts of public speech contain more adverbials (118) than the
written texts (106). The text of conversation contains considerably fewer adverbials (67). In
all of the texts examined, adverbials were most frequent in the SV pattern. In public speech,
93% of clauses following this pattern include adverbials. In written texts, 82% of SV clauses
contain an adverbial. In the text of conversation this percentage is much lower (64%). Next,
adverbials were also frequent in SVPs pattern: in the text of public speech, 54% of clauses
following this pattern contain an adverbial. In clauses containing an object (patterns merged
in Table 8), an adverbial occurs in 47% of them. The distribution is similar in writing: in 44%
of clauses in SVPs as well as in patterns with an object, an additional adverbial is inserted. In
conversation, distribution within the patterns is different: only 19% of clauses following SVPs
pattern contain an adverbial, while 40% of all clauses including an object have an additional
adverbial added. Considering public speech and written text, the percentages of adverbials
occurrence within SV and SVO patterns are very similar. The text of conversation contains
47
much fewer adverbials in comparison with the other registers and also the distribution among
sentence patterns is different. In the distribution of adverbial, the text of public speech
resembles the written text.
Public speech, as well as writing, differs from conversation in the use of ellipsis. Public
speech tends to repeat clause elements, which are often omitted in conversation; for example,
subjects (pronouns in particular), objects, also verbs in many cases. However, ellipsis occurs
in the examined texts of public speeches. Ellipsis can be found in writing, too, and is mostly
represented by subject omission in the second of two compound clauses. The frequency of
ellipsis in conversation is only slightly higher, but the usage differs markedly: In the text
analyzed, it occurs rather in discrete independent clauses than in compound clauses. Besides,
conversation tends to omit larger pieces of the sentences.
From some points of view, public speech is very specific, compared to the other two
registers. The initial assumption of the thesis was that public speech lies on the borderline
between conversation and writing, as it is written, but finally read. Nevertheless, this
assumption has not proved true. The register of public speech tends to differ markedly from
conversation in the distribution of patterns as well as in the clause types frequency. In the
occurrence of word order variations, the text of public speech shows remarkable resemblance
to the written text. Public speech originates in writing, which dominates over the purpose of
being spoken, and consequently, it resembles rather written than spoken discourse.
48
8 Bibliography
Biber, Douglas. (1999). Longman grammar of spoken and written English. Harlow: Longman.
Cameron, Deborah. (2001). Working with spoken discourse. 1st publ. London: SAGE
Publications.
Crystal, David. (1995). The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press.
Crystal, David. (2002). The English Language. 2nd edition. London: Penguin Books.
Leech, Geoffrey. Deuchar, M. (1982) English grammar for today: a new introduction.
Basingstoke: Macmillan.
Stevenson, Marjolyn. (1987). English Syntax. Boston: Little, Brown & comp. 389 p.
“Public opinion” The Oxford Guide to the United States Government. John J. Patrick,
Richard M. Pious, and Donald A. Ritchie. Oxford University Press, 2001. Oxford
Reference Online. Oxford University Press. Masaryk University. 31 January 2008.
<http://www.oxfordreference.com/views/ENTRY.html?subview=Main&entry=t89.e695>.
Analyzed texts
Public speech
Bush, G. W. “Speech to Congress after September 11 (2001)”. The History Place. 22 Nov
2007. <http://www.historyplace.com/speeches/gw-bush-9-11.htm>.
Kennedy, J. F. “Inaugural Address”. American Rhetoric, Online Speech Bank. 22 Nov 2007.
<http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/jfkinaugural.htm>.
49
King, M. L. “I Have a Dream, Address delivered at the March on Washington for Jobs and
Freedom”. American Rhetoric, Online Speech Bank. 22 Nov 2007.
<http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/mlkihaveadream.htm>.
Conversation
Svartvik, J. and Quirk, R. (1991). London-Lund Corpus. In ICAME Corpus Collection on CD-
ROM. Bergen: Humanistisk Datasenter.
Written discourse
Academic prose:
Brinkley, Alan. American history : a survey. 8th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1991.
Crystal, D. Linguistics. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books, 1971.
Wellek, R., Warren, A. Theory of Literature. 3rd ed. San Diego: Harvest/HBJ Book, 1977.
Fiction:
Irving, J. Until I find you. London: Random House, 2005.
Mailer, N. The Gospel according to the Son. London: Abacus, 1997.
Newspaper articles:
Broder, J. M., Zeleny, J. “Democrats Make Populist Appeals Before Contests.” The New York
Times. The New York Times Comp. 2008. Feb 19, 2008.
<http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/19/us/politics/19dems.html?_r=1&hp=&adxnnl=1&or
ef=slogin&adxnnlx=1203430640-2fpp2OIyd/2Xyk6UPMRxEw>.
50
Slavin, B. Violence forces scholars to become refugees. USA TODAY. USA TODAY,
Gannett. 2008. Feb 19, 2008. <http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/life-in-
iraq.htm>.
Wilkinson, T. “Split town reflects the rocky road ahead for Kosovo.” Los Angeles Times. Los
Angeles Times. 2008. Feb 19, 2008.
<http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-divide19feb19,0,7872697.story>.
Winter, B. “Fidel Castro resigns Cuban presidency. USA TODAY. USA TODAY, Gannett.
2008. Feb 19, 2008. <http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2008-02-19-fidel-
castro_N.htm>.
“Proxy Fight Looms for Yahoo.” The New York Times. The New York Times Comp. 2008.
Feb 19, 2008. <http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/19/technology/19cnd-
yahoo.html?ref=business>.
51
9 Appendices
9.1 Analyzed public speeches and sentence patterns
John F. Kennedy: Inaugural Address delivered January 20, 1961 (the whole speech)
SENTENCE PATTERN
We observe today not a victory of party, but a celebration of freedom SVAOd
symbolizing an end, as well as a beginning signifying renewal, as well as
change.
For I have sworn before you and Almighty God the same solemn oath our SVAOd
forebears prescribed nearly a century and threequarters ago.
The world is very different now. SVPsA
For man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human SVAOd
poverty and all forms of human life.
And yet the same revolutionary beliefs for which our forebears fought are still SVAA
at issue around the globe the belief that the rights of man come not from the
generosity of the state, but from the hand of God.
We dare not forget today that we are the heirs of that first revolution. SVAOd
Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the vSVA
torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans born in this century,
tempered by war, disciplined by a hard and bitter peace, proud of our ancient
heritage, and unwilling to witness or permit the slow undoing of those human
rights to which this nation has always been committed, and to which we are
committed today at home and around the world.
Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any vSVOdA
price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe,
to assure the survival and the success of liberty.
This much we pledge and more. OdSV
To those old allies whose cultural and spiritual origins we share, we pledge the OiSVOd
loyalty of faithful friends.
United there is little we cannot do in a host of cooperative ventures. AsVS
Divided there is little we can do for we dare not meet a powerful challenge at AsVS
odds and split asunder.
To those new states whom we welcome to the ranks of the free, we pledge our OiSVOd
word that one form of colonial control shall not have passed away merely to be
replaced by a far more iron tyranny.
We shall not always expect to find them supporting our view. SVOPo
But we shall always hope to find them strongly supporting their own freedom SvAVOPo
and to remember that, in the past, those who foolishly sought power by riding
the back of the tiger ended up inside.
To those people in the huts and villages of half the globe struggling to break the OiSVOd AA
bonds of mass misery, we pledge our best efforts to help them help themselves,
for whatever period is required not because the Communists may be doing it,
not because we seek their votes, but because it is right.
If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who ASVOd
are rich
To our sister republics south of our border, we offer a special pledge: to convert OiSVOd AA
our good words into good deeds, in a new alliance for progress, to assist free
men and free governments in casting off the chains of poverty.
But this peaceful revolution of hope cannot become the prey of hostile powers. SVPs
Let all our neighbors know that we shall join with them to oppose aggression or vSVOd
52
subversion anywhere in the Americas.
And let every other power know that this hemisphere intends to remain the vSVOd
master of its own house.
To that world assembly of sovereign states, the United Nations, our last best OiSVOdA
hope in an age where the instruments of war have far outpaced the instruments
of peace, we renew our pledge of support to prevent it from becoming merely a
forum for invective, to strengthen its shield of the new and the weak, and to
enlarge the area in which its writ may run.
Finally, to those nations who would make themselves our adversary, we offer OiSVOd
not a pledge but a request: that both sides begin anew the quest for peace, before
the dark powers of destruction unleashed by science engulf all humanity in
planned or accidental self-destruction.
We dare not tempt them with weakness. SVOdA
For only when our arms are sufficient beyond doubt can we be certain beyond AvSVPs
doubt that they will never be employed.
But neither can two great and powerful groups of nations take comfort from our vSVOd
present course both sides overburdened by the cost of modern weapons, both
rightly alarmed by the steady spread of the deadly atom, yet both racing to alter
that uncertain balance of terror that stays the hand of mankind's final war.
So let us begin anew remembering on both sides that civility is not a sign of vSVAO
weakness, and sincerity is always subject to proof.
Let us never negotiate out of fear, but let us never fear to negotiate. vSAVA,
vSAVO
Let both sides explore what problems unite us instead of belaboring those vSVO
problems which divide us.
Let both sides, for the first time, formulate serious and precise proposals for the vSAVPs,
inspection and control of arms, and bring the absolute power to destroy other vSVOdA
nations under the absolute control of all nations.
Let both sides seek to invoke the wonders of science instead of its terrors. vSVO
Together let us explore the stars, conquer the deserts, eradicate disease, tap the AvSVO
ocean depths, and encourage the arts and commerce.
Let both sides unite to heed, in all corners of the earth, the command of Isaiah to vSVA
"undo the heavy burdens, and [to] let the oppressed go free.
And, if a beachhead of cooperation may push back the jungle of suspicion, let AvSVA
both sides join in creating a new endeavor not a new balance of power, but a
new world of law where the strong are just, and the weak secure, and the peace
preserved.
All this will not be finished in the first one hundred days. SVA
Nor will it be finished in the first one thousand days; nor in the life of this vSVA
Administration; nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet.
But let us begin. vSV
In your hands, my fellow citizens, more than mine, will rest the final success or AVS
failure of our course.
Since this country was founded, each generation of Americans has been ASVA
summoned to give testimony to its national loyalty.
The graves of young Americans who answered the call to service surround the SVOd
globe.
Now the trumpet summons us again not as a call to bear arms, though arms we SVOA
need not as a call to battle, though embattled we are but a call to bear the burden
of a long twilight struggle, year in and year out, "rejoicing in hope; patient in
tribulation,"² a struggle against the common enemies of man: tyranny, poverty,
disease, and war itself.
Can we forge against these enemies a grand and global alliance, North and vSVAO
South, East and West, that can assure a more fruitful life for all mankind?
53
Will you join in that historic effort? vSVOp
In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the ASVO
role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger.
I do not shrink from this responsibility I welcome it. SVO, SVO
I do not believe that any of us would exchange places with any other people or SVO
any other generation.
The energy, the faith, the devotion which we bring to this endeavor will light SVO
our country and all who serve it.
And the glow from that fire can truly light the world. SvAVO
And so, my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you; ask vocVO
what you can do for your country.
My fellow citizens of the world, ask not what America will do for you, but what vocVO
together we can do for the freedom of man.
Finally, whether you are citizens of America or citizens of the world, ask of us AVOiOd
here the same high standards of strength and sacrifice which we ask of you.
With a good conscience our only sure reward, with history the final judge of our AvSVA
deeds, let us go forth to lead the land we love, asking His blessing and His help,
but knowing that here on earth God's work must truly be our own.
George W Bush - September 20, 2001 (end of the speech)

SENTENCE PATTERN
I know many citizens have fears tonight, and I ask you to be calm and resolute, SVOd,
even in the face of a continuing threat. SVOiOd
I ask you to uphold the values of America and remember why so many have SVOiOd
come here.
No one should be singled out for unfair treatment or unkind words because of SVPs
their ethnic background or religious faith.
I ask you to continue to support the victims of this tragedy with your SVOiOd
contributions.
The thousands of FBI agents who are now at work in this investigation may SVOd,
need your cooperation, and I ask you to give it SVOiOd
I ask for your patience with the delays and inconveniences that may accompany SVOd
tighter security and for your patience in what will be a long struggle
I ask your continued participation and confidence in the American economy SVOd
Terrorists attacked a symbol of American prosperity; they did not touch its SVOd; SVOd
source
America is successful because of the hard work and creativity and enterprise of SVPsA
our people
These were the true strengths of our economy before September 11, and they SVPsA,
are our strengths today SVPsA
And finally, please continue praying for the victims of terror and their families, VOd
for those in uniform and for our great country
Prayer has comforted us in sorrow and will help strengthen us for the journey SVOd(A),
ahead SVOd(A)
Tonight I thank my fellow Americans for what you have already done and for SVOdOp
what you will do
And ladies and gentlemen of the Congress, I thank you, their representatives, SVOdOp
for what you have already done and for what we will do together
Tonight we face new and sudden national challenges SVOd
We will come together to improve air safety, to dramatically expand the number SV(A)
of air marshals on domestic flights and take new measures to prevent hijacking
We will come together to promote stability and keep our airlines flying with SV(A)
direct assistance during this emergency
54
We will come together to give law enforcement the additional tools it needs to SV(A)
track down terror here at home
We will come together to strengthen our intelligence capabilities to know the SV(A)
plans of terrorists before they act and to find them before they strike
We will come together to take active steps that strengthen America's economy SV(A)
and put our people back to work
Tonight, we welcome two leaders who embody the extraordinary spirit of all ASVOd
New Yorkers, Gov. George Pataki and Mayor Rudolf Giuliani.
As a symbol of America's resolve, my administration will work with Congress ASV(A)
and these two leaders to show the world that we will rebuild New York City
After all that has just passed, all the lives taken and all the possibilities and ASVPs
hopes that died with them, it is natural to wonder if America's future is one of
fear
Some speak of an age of terror SVOp
I know there are struggles ahead and dangers to face SVOd
But this country will define our times, not be defined by them SVOd
As long as the United States of America is determined and strong, this will not ASVPs
be an age of terror
This will be an age of liberty here and across the world SVPsA
Great harm has been done to us SVOp
We have suffered great loss SVOd
And in our grief and anger, we have found our mission and our moment ASVOd
Freedom and fear are at war SVA
The advance of human freedom, the great achievement of our time and the great SAVOp
hope of every time, now depends on us
Our nation, this generation, will lift the dark threat of violence from our people SVOdA
and our future
We will rally the world to this cause by our efforts, by our courage SVOd
We will not tire, we will not falter, and we will not fail SV,SV,SV
It is my hope that in the months and years ahead life will return almost to SVPs
normal
We'll go back to our lives and routines, and that is good SV(A)
Even grief recedes with time and grace SV(A)
But our resolve must not pass SV
Each of us will remember what happened that day and to whom it happened SVOd
We will remember the moment the news came, where we were and what we SVOd
were doing
Some will remember an image of a fire or story or rescue SVOd
Some will carry memories of a face and a voice gone forever SVOd
And I will carry this SVOd
It is the police shield of a man named George Howard, who died at the World SVPs
Trade Center trying to save others
It is my reminder of lives that ended and a task that does not end SVPs
I will not forget the wound to our country and those who inflicted it SVOd
I will not yield, I will not rest, I will not relent in waging this struggle for SV, SV, SVOp
freedom and security for the American people
The course of this conflict is not known, yet its outcome is certain SV, SVPs
Freedom and fear, justice and cruelty, have always been at war, and we know SVA, SVOd
that God is not neutral between them
Fellow citizens, we'll meet violence with patient justice, assured of the rightness SVOd(A)
of our cause and confident of the victories to come
In all that lies before us, may God grant us wisdom, and may he watch over the vSVOiOd,
United States of America vSVOd
55
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr: “I Have A Dream” (first half of the speech – 57 clauses)
SENTENCE PATTERN
I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the SVAOp
greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation
Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand ASVO
today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation
This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of SVPsA
Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice
It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity SVPsA
But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free ASAVPs
One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the ASAV
manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination
One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the ASVA
midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity
One hundred years later, the Negro is still languished in the corners of ASVA, SVOPo
American society and finds himself an exile in his own land
And so we've come here today to dramatize a shameful condition SVAA
In a sense we've come to our nation's capital to cash a check ASVA
When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the ASVO
Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a
promissory note to which every American was to fall heir
This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, SVPs
would be guaranteed the "unalienable Rights" of "Life, Liberty and the pursuit
of Happiness”.
It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note, insofar SVPsA
as her citizens of color are concerned
Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people ASVOiOd
a bad check, a check which has come back marked "insufficient funds"
But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt SVOd
We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of SVOd
opportunity of this nation
And so, we've come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand SVA
the riches of freedom and the security of justice
We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce SVAA
urgency of Now
This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing SVPs
drug of gradualism
Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy AVS
Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the AVS
sunlit path of racial justice
Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the AVS
solid rock of brotherhood
Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children AVS
It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment SVPs
This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent will not pass until SVA
there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality
1963 is not an end, but a beginning SVC
And those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be SVOA
content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual
And there will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is sVSAA
granted his citizenship rights
The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation SVOA
until the bright day of justice emerges
But there is something that I must say to my people, who stand on the warm sVS
56
threshold which leads into the palace of justice: In the process of gaining our :
rightful place, we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds ASVPs
Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of vSVOd
bitterness and hatred
We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and SVOd
discipline
We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence SVOd
Again and again, we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force SVOdPo
with soul force
The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must ASVA
not lead us to a distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as
evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is
tied up with our destiny
And they have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our SVOAA
freedom
We cannot walk alone SVA
And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead ASVOd
We cannot turn back SV
There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, "When will you be sVS
satisfied?" We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the SVPsA
unspeakable horrors of police brutality
We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, SVPsA
cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities.
We cannot be satisfied as long as the negro's basic mobility is from a smaller SVPsA
ghetto to a larger one.
We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their selfhood SVPsA
and robbed of their dignity by a sign stating: "For Whites Only.
We cannot be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a SVPsA
Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote.
No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until "justice rolls SVPs,
down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream. SVPsA
I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and SVPs
tribulations.
Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells. SVAA
And some of you have come from areas where your quest, quest for freedom SVA
left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of
police brutality.
You have been the veterans of creative suffering. SVPs
Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive. VOd
Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to South Carolina, go VA
back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our
northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed.
Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends. OdSVOi, voc
And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have ASVOd
a dream.
It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. SVPs
57
9.2 Analyzed texts of written discourse
Wellek, R., Warren, A. Theory of Literature: p. 45, 57, 139, 193, 259
SENTENCE (20) PATTERN
A case in point is medieval literature, especially English medieval literature, SVPs
which – with the possible exception of Chaucer – has scarcely been approached
from any aesthetic and critical point of view.
The application of modern sensibility would give a different perspective to much SVOiOd
Anglo-Saxon poetry or to the rich medieval lyric, just as, conversely, an
introduction of historical points of view and a systematic examination of genetic
problems could throw much light on contemporary literature.
The common divorce between literary criticism and literary history has been SVPs
detrimental to both.
One of the first tasks of scholarship is the assembly of its materials, the careful SVPs
undoing of the effects of time, the examination as to authorship, authenticity, and
date.
Enormous acumen and diligence have gone into the solution of these problems; SVA; SVOd
yet the literary student will have to realize that these labors are preliminary to the
ultimate task of scholarship.
Often the importance of these operations is particularly great, since without them, ASVPsA
critical analysis and historical understanding would be hopelessly handicapped.
Used as a social document, literature can be made to yield the outlines of social ASVOd
history.
Chaucer and Langland preserve two views of fourteenth-century society. SVOd
The Prologue to the Canterbury Tales was early seen to offer an almost complete SvAVOd
survey of social types.
In recent years a healthy reaction has taken place which recognizes that the study ASV
of literature should, first and foremost, concentrate on the actual works of art
themselves.
The old methods of classical rhetoric, poetics, or metrics are and must be SVA
reviewed and restated in modern terms.
New methods based on a survey of the wider range of forms in modern literature SV
are being introduced.
All these terms call our attention to the aspects of a literary work which exactly SVOiOd
bridge and bind together old divisive components, ‘form’ and ‘matter’.
These terms look in both directions; that is, they indicate the pull of poetry SVA; SVOd
towards ‘picture’ and ‘world’ on the one hand and towards religion or
Weltanschauung on the other.
As we survey modern methods of studying them, we can feel that tension. ASVOd
Since older methods treated them as aesthetic devices (albeit conceiving of such ASAVAPs
as merely decorative), the reactionary danger today is perhaps a too heavy stress
on Weltanschauung.
The Scotch rhetorician, writing at the end of the Neo-Classical period, rather SAVOpPo;
naturally thought of similes and metaphors as calculated, elected; today’s analysts, SVOdPo
working after Freud, are disposed to see all images as revelatory of the
unconscious.
It calls for a nice equilibrium to avoid the rhetorical concern on the one hand and SVOp
on the other both psychological biography and ‘message hunting’.
The study of the relationships between two or more works of art leads then to SVA
further problems in the evolution of literary history.
The first and most obvious series of works of art is that of the works written by SVPs
one author.
58
Crystal, David. Linguistics.
If my arguments in Chapter 1 are valid, it seems that as a rule people are ASVPs
unaware of the powerful implications of the skill they have mastered, language.
I have suggested that this lack of awareness is particularly unfortunate, since SVOd
language’s effects enter into so many areas of our professional and everyday
lives, and that something ought to be done about it.
But what? (condensed question – non clausal material) SVOp
I shall argue in the rest of this book that some basic knowledge of the principles SVAOd
of general linguistics, the academic, scientific study of language, while not a
panacea for all linguistic ills, is still of definitive value in our dealings with
practical language matters, and provides a subject whose intellectual and
aesthetic intricacies are a fascination in themselves.
Phonetic research, as we saw in Chapter 2, has long been of interest to a variety SAVPs;
of people: since the Renaissance we have seen the inquiry of elocutionists, ASVOd
language teachers, spelling reformers, shorthand inventors, auxiliary language
enthusiasts, and missionaries, to name but a few.
At the beginning of the nineteenth century, it was given a real boost with the ASVOdA;
discovery of the work of the Indian phoneticians (cf. p. 44); by the end of the ASVOdA
century, the developments in physiology and acoustics, and the accompanying
progress in instrumentation, (such as Alexander Melville Bell’s system of
Visible Speech) had stimulated a considerable amount of experimental research
into all branches of phonetics.
Also in the late nineteenth century, various attempts were made to produce a ASVA; SVA
phonetic alphabet; and the International Phonetic Alphabet, which is still the
system in general use, came to be formulated in 1889.
In other words, at the beginning of the present century, much of the attention ASVA
was taken up with the devising of appropriate techniques for the transcription of
speech.
This emphasis was also to be found, independently motivate, in America, where, SVA
as we have seen, the focus of interest was to make a detailed description of the
dying Amerindian tribes – particularly of their languages.
It is a perfectly understandable emphasis, both then and now. SVPsA
Brinkley, Alan. American history: a survey.

As late as the 1750s, few Americans saw any reason to object to their ASVOd
membership in the British Empire.
The imperial system provided them with many benefits: opportunities for trade SVOiOd
and commerce, military protection, political stability.
And those benefits were accompanied by few costs; for the most part, the SVA; SVOdPo
English government left the colonies alone.
While Britain did attempt to regulate the colonists’ external trade, those ASVAPs
regulations were usually so laxly administered that they could be easily
circumvented.
Some Americans predicted that the colonies would ultimately develop to a point SVOd
where greater autonomy would become inevitable.
But few expected such a change to occur soon. SVOdPo
For many women, especially those who had become committed in the prewar SVPs
years to feminist causes, the war seemed to be an enormously important and
liberating experience.
Clara Barton, who was active during the war in collecting and distributing SVAOd
medical supplies and who later became an important figure in the nursing
profession, said in 1888: “At the war’s end, woman was at least fifty years in
59
advance of the normal position which continued peace would have assigned
her.”
That was a considerable exaggeration. SVPs
But it captured the degree to which many women looked back on the war as a SVOdPo
crucial moment in the redefinition of female roles and in the awakening of a
sense of independence and new possibilities.
The legislative expression of nativism reflected largely the doctrines of SVAOd
progressivism, even if a harsh and narrow progressivism.
Restricting immigration, its proponents believed, would contribute to the ef- SVA
ficient and productive operation of society.
There were, however, other expressions of nativism that reflected very different sVAS
sentiments
To defenders of an older, more provincial America, the growth of large OdSVOi
communities of foreign peoples, alien in their speech, their habits, and their
values, came to seem a direct threat to their own embattled way of life.
This provincial nativism took a number of forms. SVOd
But the most prominent was the rebirth of the Ku Klux Klan as a major force in PsVS
American society.
The first Klan was the product of the years after the Civil War. SVPs
Smith’s opponent, and the victor in the presidential election, was a man who SVPs
perhaps more than any other personified the modern, prosperous, middle-class
society of the New Era: Herbert Hoover.
The business civilization of the 1920s, with its new institutions, fashions, and SVOd; SVPs
values, continued to arouse the animosity of large portions of the population; but
the majority of the American people appeared to have accepted and approved it.
In 1928, at least, the New Era seemed to be permanently enshrined—as the ASVPsA
success of the Republican party, its political embodiment, suggested.
Newspaper
“Democrats Make Populist Appeals Before Contests.” The New York Times.
Senators Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama intensified their populist appeals SVOdAA
on Monday, responding to widespread economic anxiety and pushing the Democratic
Party further from the business-friendly posture once championed by Bill Clinton
Mrs. Clinton, speaking on the eve of the Wisconsin primary but looking forward to SAVOd
primaries in Ohio and Texas on March 4, issued a 12-page compendium of her
economic policies that emphasizes programs aiding families stressed by high oil
prices, home foreclosures, costly student loans and soaring health care premiums
In public appearances here and in her economic booklet, she took aim at hedge fund ASVOp
managers, oil company profits, drug company subsidies and trade agreements that she
says encourage companies to export jobs
Mrs. Clinton told an audience that the Wisconsin primary and subsequent contests SVOiOd
were “a chance for all of you here to help take our country back”
“We need tax breaks for the middle class, not for the wealthy and the well- SVOdA
connected,” she said Monday morning at St. Norbert College in De Pere, Wis.
“We’re going to rein in the special interests and get the $55 billion in giveaways and SVA,
subsidies they’ve gotten under Republicans back into your pockets” SVOdA
Mrs. Clinton referred to the “two oilmen in the White House” and repeated her call for SVOp and
a windfall-profits tax on the oil industry to finance a $50 billion program to develop SVOd
alternate energy sources and create “green jobs.”
Campaigning in Ohio before flying to Wisconsin for an election-eve rally, Mr. Obama ASVOd and
said the wealthy had “made out like bandits” under the Bush administration and called SVOp
for an end to tax breaks for companies that move jobs overseas.
60
It also reflected the dynamics and calendar of the Democratic race over the next two SAVOd
weeks.
Ohio looms particularly large for both Mr. Obama and Mrs. Clinton because it is SVOpA
experiencing many of the troubles afflicting the economy over all.
“Proxy Fight Looms for Yahoo.” The New York Times

In an escalation of its fight for Yahoo, Microsoft will authorize a proxy fight at the OdVS
Internet company this week, people briefed on the matter told DealBook.
The move, expected to cost about $20 million to $30 million, was Microsoft’s SVPs, SVPs
alternative to raising its $44.6 billion bid and is seen as a less expensive way to put
pressure on Yahoo’s board.
Yahoo rejected Microsoft’s original offer as undervalued. SVOdPo
It is only the latest twist in one of the biggest Internet takeover battles in recent years. SVPs
Since announcing its aggressive offer, Microsoft has hinted that it will pursue all ASVOd
avenues to lock up Yahoo as it races to catch up to Google.
As Microsoft’s stock has fallen 12.8 percent since announcing the offer two weeks SVA
ago, so has the nominal value of the deal, to about $41 billion.
Many Yahoo shareholders, including Bill Miller of Legg Mason, have said that SVOd
Microsoft must raise its bid to strike a deal.
But raising the $31-per-share offer would cost Microsoft an additional $1.4 billion for SVOiOd
every dollar added.
“We sent them a letter and said we think that’s a fair offer.” SVOiOd and
SVOd
There’s nothing that’s gone on other than us stating that we think it’s a fair offer,” Bill OdSVOiA
Gates, Microsoft’s chairman, told The Associated Press on Monday.
“Fidel Castro resigns Cuban presidency.” USA TODAY.

Castro’s 2006 surgery prompted street celebrations in Miami, the center of the Cuban SVOdA
exile community in the USA, and perhaps unrealistic hopes that communist rule in
Cuba would quickly crumble upon his demise.
Since then, Castro — a bigger-than-life figure known for his bushy beard, his ASVOd
marathon speeches and his hatred for the "Yankee" leaders of the United States — has
exerted near total control over the tiny island nation.
Castro never gave up his fervent belief in his own unique ability to guide his SAVOpA
homeland into the future, even as the tides of history relegated communism to a relic
of the pre-Cold War past.
"His personality was such that he always saw himself as the man on the horse, the OdSV
only guy who could possibly do what he has done," said Dennis Hays, a former chief
Cuba analyst at the State Department.
"In his mind, he was the only one who could hold back the tides of time and human ASVPs
nature as he has."
In 1962, the discovery of Soviet nuclear missiles placed in Cuba brought the world to ASVOdA
the brink of nuclear war.
Once the Cold War ended and the Soviet Union collapsed, Cuba's status as a security ASV
threat to the U.S. mainland dimmed.
Nonetheless, Castro, backed by his security forces, maintained control. ASAVOd
Even toward the end of his tenure, Castro inspired some hemispheric leaders, as the ASVOdA
region experienced another cycle of left-leaning governments.
Hugo Chàvez, the populist president of oil-rich Venezuela, regularly visits Havana SAVOd and
and hosted Castro in Caracas. SVOdA
The friendship earned Cuba a new patron and precious oil imports. SVOiOd
61
“Violence forces scholars to become refugees.” USA TODAY.
Donny George endured three wars, international sanctions and looting that robbed SVOd
Iraq of many of its ancient treasures.
The university professor, who was director of the National Museum and chairman of SVA
Iraq's Board of Antiquities and Heritage, stayed put until a year ago.
Then an envelope arrived at his home, containing a bullet and a threat to kill his ASV
teenage son for allegedly cursing Islam and teasing Muslim girls.
George's accountant, a colleague and two of his students had already been killed, he OdSV
says.
He and his family fled to Syria and four months later to the USA, where he teaches at SVA
the State University of New York at Stony Brook.
George is among the beneficiaries of a small but growing international effort to SVPs
preserve Iraq's scholars.
Several hundred Iraqi academics have been resettled outside the country with support OdVS
from organizations in the USA, England, Spain and the Netherlands, says Kate
Robertson, deputy executive secretary of the London-based Council for Assisting
Refugee Academics.
Such groups provide professors with financial aid and help them find positions at SVOdOp and
universities. SVOdOp
At least 256 Iraqi professors have been killed since 2003, according to the council. SVAA
Of those, 134 were from Baghdad, including 89 from the University of Baghdad, the OdSV
organization says.
“Split town reflects the rocky road ahead for Kosovo.” Los Angeles Times.
Serbs on one side of Mitrovica vow they'll never accept the declaration of SVOd; SVOd
independence; ethnic Albanians on the other say that's their problem.
Thousands of Serbs rallied Monday in this tense, divided town and vowed never to let SVA
go of a region that they, like ethnic Albanians, consider their homeland.
For all the heated rhetoric unleashed as world powers slowly started recognizing an AsVS
independent nation called Kosovo, it seemed unlikely that large-scale violence would
erupt.
More than 16,000 NATO troops patrol Kosovo, and Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav SVOd
Kostunica, speaking in the Serbian capital, Belgrade, issued a statement Monday night
calling on Serbs to restrain themselves.
Across the bridge, the thoughts of ethnic Albanians turned to what independence SVOp
would mean.
Haxhani, the boxing coach, said he hoped that finally Kosovo would be able to field a SVOd
boxing team in international matches, perhaps even the upcoming Olympics.
Kosovo boxers, as part of the old Yugoslav team, were well known for their prowess. SVPs
"Our leadership is good, but they don't have a magic wand for changing everything OdSV
immediately," he said, smoking cigarettes over small cups of coffee.
"It may take four or five years for the economy to get on its feet." SvOiOdS
His buddy Berat Veliu, 26, a technician in a hospital emergency room, said he hoped SVOd
Kosovo's new full-state relationship with other countries would make it easier for him
to finish graduate studies in Austria.
Fiction
Norman Mailer, The Gospel according to the Son

Joseph was proud of his ancestors; he could claim that he was descended from King SVPs; SVOd
David, who was father to King Solomon.
62
For this reason Joseph wished his wife to bear her child in Bethlehem, since that is the ASVOiPoA
city where King David was born, and where Joseph was born.
Mary was now heavy with me but willing to travel for three days from Nazareth to SVAPs,
Bethlehem; she was proud of Joseph’s ancestry. SVPs
This is the truth of why we took that journey, and it is also true that I was born in a SVPs,
manger by the light of a candle. sVAPsS
As all know by now, there was no room at the inn. AsVSA
“What have you heard?” I asked. OdSV
“That your eyes have a great light,” he said, “and your name is Jesus.” OdSVOd
“Or so I have heard from those who dare to speak to me.” OdSVOp
And by the trembling of his lips I saw that he was ready to call upon his strength but ASVOd
only in the name of blind strength.
“Many speak in terror of who I am,” he said. OdSV
“I contain more devils than any other.” SVOd
“I adjure thee: Torment me not, Jesus!” SVOd
“I give warning.” SVOd
I was not without fear; this man was as powerful as a large bull. SVPs; SVPs
Moreover, the fellow was filthy. ASVPs
His hair grew into his beard, and his locks were like the fardes of thick rope that hold SVA, SVPs
a ship to its mooring.
The guards beat upon me. SVOp
These words by Caiaphas had removed all fear that I might bear witness against SVOd
mistreatment.
So they felt free to beat my face. SVPs
I could still see Peter. SvAVOd
He remained on a bench at the other end of the hall, and when a servant came up to SVA,
him and asked, “Were you not one of those who was with Yeshua of Nazareth in the ASVOd
Temple?” Peter said, “I don’t understand what you say.”
But, at once, he left her and went out onto the porch, even though the night was cold. ASVOd,
SVA, SVPs
There, another maid saw him and said: “This is one of them.” ASVOd and
SVOd
Again he denied me. ASVOd
John Irving, Until I find you.

According to his mother, Jack Burns was an actor before he was an actor, but Jack’s ASVPsA;
most vivid memories of childhood were those moments when he felt compelled to SVPs
hold his mother’s hand.
He wasn’t acting then. SVA
Of course we don’t remember much until we’re four of five years old – and what we ASVOdA,
remember at that early age is very selective or incomplete, or even false. SVPs
What Jack recalled as the first time he felt the need to reach for his mom’s hand was SVPs
probably the hundredth or two hundredth time.
Preschool tests revealed that Jack Burns had a vocabulary beyond his years, which is SVOd
not uncommon among only children accustomed to adult conversation – especially
only children of single parents.
But of greater significance, according to the tests, was Jack’s capacity for consecutive PsVS
memory, which, when he was three, was comparable to that of a nine-year-old.
At four, his retention of detail and understanding of linear time were equal to an ASVPs
eleven-year-old’s.
He would miss each one, every major and minor character in his sea of girls. SVOd
Those girls – those women, at the time – had made him strong. SAVOdPo
63
They prepared Jack Burns for the terra firma (and not so firma) of the life ahead, SVOdOp
including his life with boys and men.
After the sea of girls, what pushovers boys were! ASVPs
After Jack’s older-women experiences, how easy it would be to deal with men! ASVPs
“Jack Burns has a little penis,” the other model said. OdSV
Jack guessed that she did know him, but she still didn’t remember her. SVOs,
SAVOd
Michele just sat there looking glassy-eyed. SAVA
“I don’t feel very well,” she told Jack. OdSVOi
“I think I’m drunk, if you want to know the truth.” SVOdA
“You should try to eat something,” he said. OdSV
“Don’t you know that you can’t tell a doctor what to do, Jack?” vSVOd
“Come on. I’ll take you back to the hotel,” he said. OdSV
“I want to see where you live!” Michelle said plaintively. OdSVA
“It must be fabulous.” SVPs
“It’s a hole in the wall,” the model who knew Jack said. OdSV
“Don’t tell me you’ve actually moved out of that nookie house on Entrada, Jack.” VOiOd
9.3 Text of spoken discourse analyzed
(Structure has been changed to fit the needs of the thesis.)

A:^where do !Y\OU 'come 'from? wh- vSV?
B:((you mean)) ^where 'was 'I BE!F\ORE? wh- VSA
A:*^Y\ES#*
B:*((^H\/ISTORY#))*
B:IM^M\EDIATELY bef/ore I was ^teaching in a !SCH\OOL . {in ^\Egypt#}# ASVA
B:((but)) be^fore TH/AT# I ^was in !\INDIA# - ASVA
A:^\OOH# - . A:ând [?@] !you’re ((an !LS'E 'product)) 'with STA!T\ISTICS or 'something /are
you# - . SVPs, tag
B:^[?]it’s [?] . ^W\ELL# .
B:Î’m . em!{pl\oyed as a} :MATHEMA!T\/ICIAN# - SVPs
B:sta^tistics is what I :SH\/OULD know# SVPs
B:((and)) I ^don’t know 'anything A:B\OUT it# SVOd
B:^PR\OGRAMMING {com^p\uters#}# - ^TH\AT’S what /I do# OdSV
A:*^Y\ES#
A:do* ^you know 'Malcolm B\/OWEN? vSVOd?
A:ôver at the COMP\UTER /unit#
A:^nice B/OY# - <SV>Ps
A:^sure !he’d H/ELP you# if you ^got ST\UCK# ASVOdA
A:Î !I "Î’ve been a :{fr\iend of} :{M\alcolm’s} :M\OTHER for "^D\ONKEY’S *'years#* SVPs
B:*^H\AVE you?
A:ôh I 'knew :M\/ALCOLM# ^when he was in KN/\ICKER'BOCKERS# SVOdA
64
B:*^Y/ES#* -
A:ôh *Y/\ES#*
B:*that’s ^\INTERESTING#* SVPs
B:^how \OLD is 'he? wh- VS?
B:cos Î _found this _very _difficult to !G\UESS on ^L\/OOKING *at him#* SVOdPoA
A:*^M/ALCOLM
B:^[\M]#
A:- . ôh D/\EAR one for:gets 'how !time ^[?]\I 'think 'Malcolm’s 'TWENTY-S/EVEN SVOd
A:^TWENTY-/EIGHT# - per^haps a !bit M/\ORE#
A:^[?]I !don’t KN/\OW# - - - SV
B:Î e!v\entually 'estimated 'TWENTY-/EIGHT# SAVOd
B:^TWENTY-!N\/INE# -
B:((I must . have)) . ^looked at him for :some !T\IME# SVOpA
A:^he *!W/ENT#*
B:*he’s* ^not he’s ^not 'easy to !G\UESS:^/ACTUALLY# SVPs
A:^N\O# he ^got [n] . !BR\ILLIANT f/irst# ^when he was !TW\ENTY# - - . SVOdA
A:and it ^meant he !couldn’t GR\/ADUATE:till he was ^TWENTY-\/ONE# SVOd
A:they ^wouldn’t !G\/IVE it to 'you# SVOdOi
A:ând _he !!stayed ((did he)) . ^stay ((at)) \OXFORD to do a 'post'grad y/ear# SVAA
A:or ^did he _come IMM\EDIATELY 'here? vSVAA?
A:I ^can’t RE!M\EMBER# SV
A:^he’s . !working ((for)) a :PH"!/\D# ^H\/ERE I 'think# - OdSV
B:^[\M]#
A:. but I ^think he gets !so in'volved in 'this COM:P\/UTER 'business# that I ^don’t know :how his
:Ph:D is :G\/OING# SVOd
B:( - laughs) - ^SH\/OULDN’T 'think# he ^had !much T/\IME _left# - <S>VOd
A:Î shouldn’t *!TH\INK 'so#* SV
B:*it’s ^very 'AB*S\ORBING# - SVPs
A:"^\AND of 'course# ((well)) he’s ^now M/ARRIED# ASVPs
A and he’s ^got . B^two CH\IL*DREN#* SVOd
A:*^TW\O* ch/ildren# - - -
A:^S\O# I ^don’t _know _how _much _time _Malcolm !G\ETS# SVOd
A:I be^l\ieve they ^[?]I !had a _letter from his !M\OTHER# ^((from)) a !W\EEK a"go# SVOdA
A:who ^[sei] they’ve !now _got a "!FL\AT# in !Crouch !!/\END# SVOd
A:Î TH/INK#
B:- - ^[@] I !went t\o [@:] - - . there was ône 'Saturday 'morning we were :running 'some of his
!PR\OGRAMMES you s/ee# sVS
65
B:((he)) ^C\/AME# - . SV
B:and he ^took 'Sam and 'I :back to his . to ^where he was !L\/IVING# SVOdA
B:and ^this was a FL/AT# SVPs
B:now ^where W\AS it# - - . wh- VS?
B:^trouble 'is I :don’t !{kn\ow north _London} at !\ALL# SVPs
A:^[\M]#
B:and he ^drove us 'there in a !C\AR# SVOdA
B:*so ( - giggles)*
A:*^Y\ES#* well ^{L\aura} WR\OTE# SV
A:and ^said Malcolm 'has a _new _flat in :{\n} \EIGHT# :well ^N 'eight *:{Cr\ouch} :\END#* SVOd
B:*I’ll ^have a look on the* T\UBE 'map# SVOd
B:Î’ll re!member the T\UBE 'station# - SVOd
B:I ^((don’t)) know 'where :Crouch :\/END 'is# SVOd
B:( - laughs) . but I ^might be [m] I ^think I - ^can’t re'member the :tube *!ST\ATION#* SVOd
A:(*-* - laughs) - ^N\O# -
B:"^wasn’t :very :far A:W\/AY# . <S>VA
B:it ^might have 'been 'Bel:size :P\ARK# SVPs
A:ôh well !that’s 'where his :M\OTHER l/ives# . SVPs
A:^mother 'lives at 'Bel'size P\ARK# SVA
A:^so it’s per"!haps 'his "!PR\/EVIOUS _flat# SVAPs
A:^this is [p] . he’s *"^{r\ecently} "!M\OVED I* g/athered#:from his ^mother’s !L\/ETTER# OdSVA
B:^\AH# :well ^this [w] ( - coughs) is 'probably a :N\EW 'one# :he’s ^got _N\OW 'then# SVAPs
A:^[\M]# - -
B:*^th\is would ^th\is would* have :B=EEN a^bout a . :couple of :M/ONTHS a'go# . SVA
B:((de))^pends !how !soon !R\ECENT 'is# . <S>VOp
A:^Y\ES# Î 'don’t !KN\OW# SV
A:this ^letter 'came *- !L\AST 'week 'from h/er#* SVA
A:and ^she 'said 'Malcolm had arrived at this 'new FLAT which is a ^long way for me to GO# SVOd
B:^[\M]# -
A:^S\/O# - ^there we \ARE# - sVS
A:^do _you !L\IKE 'this 'work h/ere? vSVOd?
A:in ^this DEP/ARTMENT# -
B:^you were !H\ERE# ^{w/ere you} /ONCE# - SVA, tag
A: ^ I was an /UNDER*"GRADUATE 'here of ^very !{r/ipe} !YEARS until ^last JULY# SVPsA
A:[@] ^last J\UNE#
A:^Y\EAH# - -
A:and I ^went 'back to my :old J\/OB# in the ^Civil :S\/ERVICE# SVA
66
A:and I ^found it so ":D\/ULL# that I ^got this !L\ECTURING _job in a ^teacher’s _tr/aining
C\OLLEGE# - SVOdPo
B:^[\M]# .
A:which is ^quite !F\UN# SVPs
A:I ^{m\ean} 'they’re !N\OT# ÛNI:V\ERSITY c/alibre# OBVIOUSLY# SVPsA
A:the ^students 'on the WH/OLE#
A:but - în S\OME w/ays# ^they’re "!M\ORE 'fun: in ^\OTHER 'ways# ASVPs
A:"^S\/OME of them are# . SV<Ps>
A:the ^BR\IGHTER sparks /are {I ^th/ink#} {you ^kn/ow#}: be^cause they’re not "!\AIMING at so
'much in a ^W/AY# SV<Ps>A
A:and ^therefore_they-^they can let their !back !H\AIR 'down a bit m/ore SVOdPo
B:*((^they re!l\ax several sylls))* ^[/\M]# - SV
A:^but [=@M]# the the ^D\IMMER 'ones of c/ourse ^\ARE {r\eally "ah#} ^not very 'good
MA!T\ERIAL# SAVPs
A:^but we’ve !got !quite ((a)) :bright 'lot in 'our ":F\IRST y/ear# SVOd
A:the ^{f\/irst 'year} are :much ":BRIGHTER to ^my 'mind ^than the !S\ECOND 'year# SVPs
B:^[\M]# .
A:^but they !T\ELL me# the ^second _year "\ALWAYS 'go !{\off#}# SVOiOd
A:((and I ^know)) ( - laughs) ^this is [s] h/orrible "!!TH\OUGHT# SVOd
B:^where !\IS 'this? wh- VS
A:*^[/M]#*
B:*^WH/ERE* is 'this? wh- VS
A:**[@m] ît’s** [?]in !L\INCOLNSHIRE# - SVA
A:^{p\art of} :K\/ESTEVEN# - - -
A:^Thorpe’s AW/AY is 'he# SVA, tag
B:^Y/ES#
B:he’s în - _Greece _YUGOSL/\AVIA and 'such 'places# at the *^M/OMENT#* SVAA
A:*ôh* _R/\EALLY#
B:^gone off for a_bout :three !W\EEKS# . <S>VA
A:ôh well :TH\AT’S g/ood:cos I ^haven’t !T\OUCHED# the ^TH\/ESIS I’m sup'posed *to be
'doing#* SVA
A:I ^didn’t par'ticu((larly 'want to !S\EE him#)):^when I 'rang . **"!/\Alec up** al^though I :wouldn’t
'mind :TH\ORPE# SVOdA
A:***you ^KN/OW#
A:âdded to !WH\ICH#*** - if Î '[haet] to :tell TH\ORPE#:we ^really _don’t do _any
!L\ANGUAGE 'work th/ere#:I ^think he’d be "!!H\ORRIFIED#. ASVOd
A:^{s/imply} H/\ORRIFIED#
67
B:( - laughs) *( - - - giggles)* **^[\M]#**
A:*^{m\y} !G\OSH# ^we’re a !SM\/ALL de'partment# SVPs
A:^we’ve !only 'three L\/ECTURERS#* . SVOd
A:^W\ELL# **ône’s** a :PR\INCIPAL l/ecturer# SVPs
A:the ^head of DEP/ARTMENT#
A:and ^then there are ((only)) !TW\O of us l/ecturers# *-* sVS
A:- and we’re ^{g\etting} AN!\OTHER one# ^\/ACTUALLY# SVOdA
A:so I ^shan’t be the :junior !girl any !L\ONGER# SVPs
B:*^[\M]#*
A:. "^but [?] the !head of DE:P\ARTMENT# is a ^L\ITTLE 'bit# ÎDIO'SYN!CR\ATIC# . SVPs
A:an "^{\awfully} :N\ICE 'chap
A:I ^get on 'very :W\ELL with him# SVA
A:I’m ^not . !M\EANING that# ^there’s !\ANY [@m]# -[di] . DIS"^H\/ARMONY# . SVOd
A:we ^get on !F\INE# SVA
A:^B\UT# . in ^his i!deas of :teaching :\/ENGLISH# - a ^little 'IDIOSYN:CR\ATIC# - -
A:ând _he !won’t 'have !!{/any} L/ANGUAGE 'work {^so he s/ays#}# SVOd
A:but he ^lets me 'have this PHI:L\OLOGY cl/ass# SVOiOd
A:^he I !think he 'thinks it’s all a little bit [@:] - :W\ELL# ^ST\/UPID but [@:]# . SVOd
A:^well if it !pleases H/ER#:we’ll ^let it go /ON you 'see# . ASVOiOd
A:^S\O ^funnily E:N\/OUGH# I ^made it com!pletely :V\OLUNTARY with the st/udents#
ASVOdPo
A:^=AND# - Î !know 'Tom and . :J\/ACK# ^the !other 'two 'lecturers :thought it would !{f\old up} in
!NO 'time SVOd
A:you ^KN/OW#
A:^funnily EN/OUGH# ^students !kept C\OMING in and s/aying# ((can I ^do)) PHIL/OLOGY
'please# ASVOd
A:^you KN/OW#
A:( - laughs) ând *'so* it’s +GR/\OWING ^rather than DI!M\/INISHING# SVPs
A:^which !I ((*!feel* PL\EASED))# SVPs
B:+^[\M]#+
A:you ^KN/OW# ((^this is where 1 to 2 sylls ![T\/EN@Z]#)) ^comes 'smack in the :{\eye} for
!TH\EM# sVS
A:( - laughs) that ^students ":\/ARE interested# in ^L\ANGUAGE# SVPs
A:but then ^Tom’s re'action to :TH\IS /is# -^[=@M]# . well they’re ônly 'trying to :D\ISTANCE
thems/elves# from ^L\ITERATURE# - . SVPs
A:^well I mean !this is com'plete H\OOEY# . SVPs
B:^[\M]#
68
A:- de^pending _how you "!L\OOK on 'language# - -
A:and "^TH\EN# ^he S/AYS# you know ^literature should be EX"_P\/ERIENCED# and ^not
!ST\UDIED# - . SVOd
A:well ^this is !!F\INE# un^til you’ve G\OT them# ^writing EX"!\/AMS# SVPs
A:and they’ve ^got to 'write 'down 'these 'bright :F\/EELINGS of 'theirs# SVOd
A:and they ^feel ’em so D/EEP# that they ^can’t EX!PR\ESS ’em# SVOdPo
A:( - laughs) *^you* KN/OW# - - -
A:^\ADDED to _which# "^\I think# it EN"^C\OURAGES# the "^{l\azy} ":ST\/UDENT# to ^go to
H/IM# and say Î I ^S\AY# ^this is ((is)) 'what they !D\O# . SVOd
A: Î !read a B\OOK 'last n/ight and it ^moved me !!S\O m/uch Î _can’t T\ALK a'bout it SVOdPo
A:^now !this is _a a "!G\ORGEOUS# ^lazy _way \OUT# SVPs
A:^you !!S/EE#
A:^he’s t/aken \IN 'by th/is# SVA
A:^dear _S/OUL# ( - laughs) a*^bid*ing 'faith in **'English !!L\IT**ERATURE# <SV>Ps
A:^Y\OU kn/ow#
B:- Î . RE!M\EMBER# - it îsn’t 'quite the 'same TH\/ING# SVPs
B:but a a ^p\erson . ^when I was at !SCH\OOL# - ^taking 'in the ST/AFF# - . [w] Î could Î would Î
had [?] . :J\OINED the st/aff# ^T\EMPORARILY# ASVOdA
A:*^Y\ES#*
B:*^TH\IS* ch/ap# was a ^little bit !J\/UNIOR to 'me# SVPs
B:and was ^still the _S\IXTH 'form# - - <S>VAPs
B:and . Î was TH/ERE# [bi] ^just be'fore going !\ON to univ/ersity# - . SVA
B:Î HEARD the ^HEADMASTER# [?] and the ^history M/ASTER# dis^cussing ESSAYS# SVOd
B:((5 to 6 sylls)) ^they were !quite ST\UNNED# ^by [dhi:] . MAT/URITY# and PRO^F/UNDITY#
and . the "^{d\epth} of his ":V\IEWS# - SVPs
B:and Î !listened to this DIS:C\/USSION# with a - ^sort of !with . ((a !little)) {c\ynical}
"SN\IGGER# IN"^S\IDE me# . SVOpA
B:I ^went to this :\OTHER 'person# ^some 'years !L\/ATER# . SVA
B:and ^C=OMMENTED on _this# <S>VOp
B:and ^said that _I pre!sumed that :what he’d :D\/ONE# was to ^very :C\/AREFULLY# ^note 'down
:[?]every V\IEW# he’d ^heard !TH\EM ex'press# .
B:and ^serve it _up in his own !W\ORDS as "{^th\eir 'views#}# - <S>VOd
B:^which he AD!M\ITTED#
B:it was *EX^\ACT*LY what he’d d/one# SVPs
A:*^Y/\ES#* ((of ^C/\OURSE#))**
B:he **^hadn’t** had !any SIN:C\ERITY in his wr/iting# at ^/\ALL# SVOd
A:^N/\O#
69
B:^he’d _just "!played his ":C\/ARDS# ^C\AREFULLY# SVOdA
A:^Y/\ES#
B:^how can 'I PL\EASE these 'people# wh- vSVOd
A:^Y/\ES#
B:I ^know what :TH\/EY 'think# a^bout [dhi] . :((various !TH/INGS))# SVOd
B:^S\O# I’ll ^show them 'that’s what \I 'think# SVOiOd
A:^[/\M]#
B:and ^they were 'NA!\IVE en/ough# ^to . *be taken !\IN ((by it))#* SVPs
A:*- ^Y/\ES#* ^this is the funny "thing A!!B\OUT 'aca'demics# - . SVPs
A:that ^[?]if you’re [no ?@:] you ^KN/OW#
A:I Î’ve . C\OME to it# f:.:A:^so L\/ATE# . SVOp
A:((I mean)) Î’ve had a !L\IFETIME of exp/erience# ^rolling A:R/\OUND# SVOd
B:^[\M]#
A: and Î’m AST/\OUNDED# ^how 'NA:\IVE 'they 'are# ^R\/EALLY# SVPsA
A:^how !easily 'taken /IN#
A: I ^M/EAN# to ^have a 'student 'come to you and [s] - ((oh)) Î !read a B\OOK# and it’s "^moved
me so 'much I can’t T\ALK a'bout it#
A:^[?]you KN/OW# .
A:"^{\I} should IM":M\EDIATELY _say# "^PH\ONEY# SVOdPo
A:be^cause ((!if it [h])) . ît 'had !moved him :S\O 'much# in ône W/AY# f:.:A:^by *HIMS/ELF#*
A:âll QU/IET# .
A:((and)) **^not** _come ((and !M\ADE#)) DRA"^M\ATIC _statement like _this# . ^W\OULDN’T
'he#
B:^[/\M]# -
A:but ^N\O# ^you S\EE '[@:m]# .[@] ^N/\O# ^this is ^this is the :L\/INE# to ^((S\ELL))#
^\OBVIOUSLY SVPsA
A:- . ând he 'thinks that !\I kn/ow# SVOd
A:[?@] Î’m . "!too 'much con:cerned with :W\ORDS# - . SVPs
A:Î’m !weak on AES:TH\ETIC as he p/uts it# SVPs
A:( - - . giggles) which ^seems to M/E# . ^quite 'quite L\OONEY# SVOPs
A:I ^mean *the !fact* that 'you 'you - :ST\UDY a 'thing# ^D\OESN’T mean to s/ay# you ^can’t also
!!F\EEL it#: ^D\OES it# . SVOd, tag
B:^[\M]# .
A:^B\UT# ^\ANYWAY# ^this is _his !L\INE# SVPs
A:and ^he’s ST/\ICKING 'to it# at the ^M\/OMENT# ^till he 'changes 'next :Y\/EAR# SVOpA
A:*( - laughs)* ^which I :gather is 'quite _P\/OSSIBLE# SVPs
B:*( - laughs)*
70
A:I ^TH\INK 'we you ^kn\/ow [@:m]# ^we 'have "F/ASHIONS# and "^M\/ODES# in [@] ap^proach
to Ênglish TH/ERE# - - - SVOd
A:(murmurs) ^but !on the :P\ERSONAL l/evel# ^we !get on ex:tremely :W\ELL# ASVA
A:^which is "!G\OOD# because âfter :\/ALL# ( - laughs) . [?]if we ^[di] . if we "^D\/IDN’T# ît
would be !H\ORRIBLE#
A:with our ^views 'being !somewhat !D\IFFERENT# ôn the !teaching of !\/ENGLISH# AASVPs
B:((yes)) Î !D\ID 'know _once# a ^FR\ENCHMAN# . SVAOd
B:or ^TW\O 'Frenchmen# ^R\/EALLY# -
B:and they ûsed to 'have !great \ARGUMENTS# a^bout S\/OME ((things))# - SVOd
B:and ^they’d !B\OTH 'go a_way# ^holding to their 'own V\IEWS# - SVA
B:and ((then)) the ^second would !H\EAR the f/irst#
B:ex^pounding the !S\/ECOND’S 'views# as his ^/\OWN# ((with)) ^great CON!V\ICTION# ((the))
^next !D\AY# SVOd
A:( - *-* laughs)
B:*he would* ^never ad'mit he was WR\/ONG# . SvAVOd
A:^N\O#
B:^he would !just 'bring 'forth . the !V\/ICTOR’S _views# as his ^\OWN# SvAVOp
B:((^[@m] and)) PRE!T\ENDING# as it ^W\/ERE# that ((^he’d !always !H\ELD them#))
A:^[?]Y\ES#
A:*^[?]Y\ES#*
B:^but *OF!F\/IC*IALLY# he ^never 'changed his !M\IND# ASAVOd
A,^this ((I think :PR\OVES#) that . ((that’s)) a ^ra*ther 'weak CH\ARACTER# SVOd
B,*((but . ^that !is only :N\/ATURAL#))* SVPs
B,^M\AY'be#
A,*^not 'quite B\IG e'nough to ^go* and 'say L\OOK old 'chap ^Y\OU were r/ight# <sV>PsS
A, or per^haps not _even _big e_nough _to . R\ECOG'NIZE# <SV>Ps
B,I ^got the IM:PR\/ESSION that he ^didn’t !R\ECOG'NIZE it# . SVOd
A,^N\O#
A,*^PR\OBABLY#*
B,*^that '[@:](([m]))* - he ^just DI!G\ESTED the 'id/eas# SAVOd
B,and ^then _came _out with _them _quite spont_aneously and without RE!FL\ECTION# SVOpA
B,*((but it’s a)) ^bit* D/\IFFICULT in a ^W\/AY that a ^person could be "!S\O unre"fl/ective as ^not
to _R/\EALIZE that he’d ^CH\ANGED his m/ind# sVPsS
B,but he "^L\OOKED 'that 'sort of p/erson# SVPs
B,he ^l\ooked '[@:m] - COM^PL\ETELY unrefl/ective# SVPs
B,as ^though he _just _had . [?] a !pattern in his :H\EAD# . SAVOd
B,and . ((he)) ÊX"!P\OUNDED with ^great "!FL\UENCY at a ^moment’s *!N\OTICE* SVA
71
A,*^Y\ES#*
B,ând as !though he 'wasn’t 'really :C\ONSCIOUS of ^what the !pattern !W\AS# SVAPs
B,he’d ((^been EX:P\OUNDING#)) SV
B,^that was the IM":PR\ESSION *((he 'gave#))* SVPs
B,^spoke in !beautifully 'fluent _French :\ENGLISH# <S>VA
B,it was ^quite F\UNNY# SVPs
B,if you ^TRANS!L\ATED the 'words ^back !literally 'into :FR\/ENCH you ^found the con'struction
was :P\ER'FECT# ASVOd
B,as ^far ((as)) . _{m\y 'French} could !T\ELL# -
B,((^kn\owledge of 'French _which)) - - was ^rather 'strange !\ENGLISH#
B,^haven’t _thought of H/IM For ^Y/\EARS# <S>VOpA
A, "ôur M/\ATHS 'chap ôur !junior !M\ATHS 'chap up th/ere ^he’s an :/\INDIAN# . SVPs
A,^{h\e’s} only 'just . :been APP\OINTED 'this t/erm# SVPs
A,I’ve ^just travelled !D\OWN with him /actually# - SVA
72

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Masaryk University

English Language and Literature

Supervisor: PhDr., Jana Chamonikolasová, Ph. D.

2 Analysis procedure ............................................................................................................ 7

2.1 Text selection ......................................................................................................................... 7

3 Linguistic background ...................................................................................................... 9

3.1 Overview of sentence elements.............................................................................................. 9

3.1.1 Subject ...................................................................................................................................... 10

3.1.2 Verb phrase............................................................................................................................... 10

3.1.3 Complements ............................................................................................................................ 10

3.1.4 Object ....................................................................................................................................... 10

3.1.5 Adverbials ................................................................................................................................ 11

3.2 Sentence patterns ................................................................................................................. 11

3.2.1 Subject – verb phrase................................................................................................................ 12

3.2.2 Subject – verb phrase – subject predicative .............................................................................. 12

3.2.3 Subject – verb phrase – direct object ........................................................................................ 13

3.2.4 Subject – verb phrase – prepositional object ............................................................................ 13

3.2.5 Other patterns ........................................................................................................................... 14

3.3 Major types of clauses – mood ............................................................................................ 15

3.3.2 Interrogative ............................................................................................................................. 16

4 Spoken and written discourse ......................................................................................... 18

4.1 General differences in grammar ........................................................................................... 18

4.1.1 The grammar of conversation ................................................................................................... 19

4.2 Prosody and punctuation ...................................................................................................... 21

4.3 Interaction and distance ....................................................................................................... 22

4.4 Inexplicitness and explicitness ............................................................................................. 22

5 Public speech .................................................................................................................... 23

5.2.1 Sentence structure in general .................................................................................................... 24

5.2.2 Prosody ..................................................................................................................................... 25

5.2.3 Interactivity .............................................................................................................................. 25

5.2.4 Explicitness .............................................................................................................................. 26

6.3 Sentence patterns ................................................................................................................. 27

6.3.1 Public speech ............................................................................................................................ 27

6.2.1.1 Declarative ..................................................................................................................... 29

6.2.1.2 Imperative ...................................................................................................................... 32

6.2.1.3 Interrogative ................................................................................................................... 32

6.3.2 Written discourse ...................................................................................................................... 33

6.2.2.1 Declarative ...................................................................................................................... 34

6.2.2.2 Imperative ....................................................................................................................... 37

6.2.2.3 Interrogative .................................................................................................................... 37

6.3.3 Conversation ............................................................................................................................. 37

6.2.3.1 Declarative ..................................................................................................................... 38

6.2.3.2 Interrogative ................................................................................................................... 40

6.4 Position of adverbials ........................................................................................................... 42

6.5 Ellipsis ................................................................................................................................. 44

7 Comparison and conclusion ............................................................................................ 45

9.1 Analyzed public speeches and sentence patterns ................................................................. 52

9.2 Analyzed texts of written discourse ..................................................................................... 58

9.3 Text of spoken discourse analyzed ...................................................................................... 64

this topic. Non-conversational speech is represented by lectures and seminars, public

speeches, sermons, courtroom discourse, debates, public meetings, interviews, broadcasting,

TV documentaries or news reading (Biber, 1999: 33).

newspaper websites, academic prose books and fiction.

of written discourse and spoken discourse.

registers (conversational speech or written texts) is closer to non-conversational speech.

2.1 Text selection

179 main, single or coordinated, clauses.

of clauses are described, namely interrogative, declarative and imperative mood.

3.1 Overview of sentence elements