Friday, 27 May 2022

A Serious Problem That Invalidates The 'Dimensional' Subtype Of Focus

 Martin, Matthiessen & Painter (2010: 170):

The Focus element can have a range of functions, which are outlined in Table 5.7 below.


Blogger Comments:

To be clear, not one of examples of the 'dimensional' subtype of Focus is a nominal group with the Head and Thing out of phase. That is, in every single case, the Head conflates with Thing:

This can be demonstrated by the fact the Head is also the entity that functions as participant in the transitivity system (Halliday & Matthiessen 2014: 394). For example, the Head element is the Thing to which Attributes are assigned:
The size of X is enormous.
The shape of X is irregular.
The colour of X is crimson.
The height of X is 2 m.
The weight of X is 4 kg.
The length of X is 40 km.
The texture of X is silky smooth.
The taste of X is like syrup.
The smell of X is like coal gas.
The nose of X is floral.
The aroma of X is fragrant.
The feel of X is unpleasant.
The look of X is modern.
The sound of X is mellifluous.

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