2.1 Various senses and dichotomies in grammar
2.2.1 Broad sense and narrow sense of grammar
The term ‘grammar’ has been used in two senses: broad and narrow. In its broad sense, it embraces the whole study of language. To be specific, it includes phonology (the study of sounds and their combinations), morphology (the study of morpheme and their combinations), syntax (the study of sentence structure), and semantics (the study of meaning). Unlike in narrow sense, words are not the units of linguistic analysis. Components of language like phonology, morphology, syntax and semantics are considered to be interrelated and there is no watertight division between these levels. The grammar is used in this broad sense in generative grammar; it is a model of the native speaker’s competence. Grammar in this broad sense is synonymous with the term ‘linguistics itself’.
In its narrow sense, the term ‘grammar’ refers to a level of structural organization which can be studied without the help of phonology and semantics. It generally consists of morphology and syntax. Thus, grammar in its narrow sense deals with morphemes and word formation and also their combinations into sentences. It is the classical, traditional and popular sense in which grammar has been understood. In narrow sense, grammar refers to a level of structural organization which can be studied independently of phonology and semantics, and generally divided into the syntax and morphology. A grammar, in this sense, is a device for generating finite specification of the sentences of a language. In other words, words are considered as units of linguistic analysis. Inflexion or morphology deals with the structure of words, and syntax deals with the structure of sentences. Phonology and semantics are excluded from the study of grammar.
2.2.2 Notional grammar and formal grammar
a) Notional approach/grammar
"A characteristic of much TRADITIONAL grammatical analysis, which assumed that there existed EXTRALINGUISTIC categories in terms of which the UNITS of GRAMMAR could be defined. Well – known notional definitions are of the NOUNS as the name of a 'person', 'place' or 'thing' of the VERB as a 'doing word', of SENTENCE as a 'complete thought', and so on. A grammar which makes regular use of such definitions is a notional grammar." (Crystal, D. 2008, p. 333)
A description based on meanings rather than forms is called notional or philosophical grammar. In the notional grammar, categories are defined in terms of 'notions'. For example, noun is defined as the name of a person, place or thing, verb as a doing word and sentence as a complete thought. Here, grammatical categories are defined in terms of notion (concept). This has been an approach practiced in traditional grammar. Notions are extra linguistic categories which have nothing to do with the facts of a language. They exist only in theory or as an idea but in reality. They are assumed to apply to all languages or they are universal.
Linguists are critical of notional grammar. They argue that notional definitions are not satisfactory. For example, considering the definition of noun as the name of a person, place or thing. According to this definition, words like red, white, etc are the names of colors; hence they should be nouns. But honesty, virtue, etc. are noun but they are not the names of a person, place or thing.
b) Formal Approach/grammar
In formal grammar, categories are defined in terms of formal criteria. A grammatical description which is based entirely on the observable forms of a language may be called formal grammar. It should be borne in mind that the term ‘formal’ has been used in a special sense, i. e. it refers to linguistic forms or units such as sentences, phrases, lexemes, nouns, etc. Structural linguists such as Bloomfield and his followers have introduced formal grammar.
A formal definition of noun in English might be a word which distinguishes between singular and plural and possibly has a possessive form. Formal grammar is contrasted with notional grammar or traditional grammar on the one hand and with functional grammar on the other. Modern grammatical theory is said to be formal in contrast with traditional grammar which is notional. So formal grammar came as a reaction against notional grammar and contrast with functional grammar.
"Formal grammar is grammar that both in theory and in method is concerned solely with the observable forms, structural functions and interrelations of the components of sentences or stretches of utterance." -Robins (1967 p.152) Formal grammar studies language as a mirror of culture and believes that since no two cultures are alike, no two languages are alike either. Since meaning is very complex phenomenon, it ignores meaning. It is concerned only with rules of sentences and ignores communicative function of grammar. Structural grammar and Transformational Generative grammar are formal approaches to grammar. Based on Lyons (1971 p. 137 – 157) the major features of formal grammar are given as follows:
· Formal grammar specifies which utterances are acceptable and which are not in the language in terms of some theory of language structure.
· It accounts not only for the utterances which have actually occurred in the past, but also form many others which might occur in the future.
· It is said to have generative power.
· It adopts a distributional approach to grammatical analysis. [distribution: - total set of linguistic contexts or environments, in which a unit (a phoneme, a morpheme or a word) can occur]
· It adopts discovery procedure for the establishment of the rules of particular language.
· It uses formal criteria rather than notional criteria.
Differences between notional and traditional grammar:
|
|
Notional grammar |
|
Formal grammar |
|
1 |
It is traditional |
1 |
It is modern (structural linguistics) |
|
2 |
Categories are defined in terms of notions. |
2 |
Categories are defined in terms of formal criteria. (morphological & syntactic) |
|
3 |
There is existence of extralinguistic categories in notional grammar which are used in linguistic analysis. |
3 |
There is no existence of extralinguistic categories in formal grammar but there are linguistic criteria |
|
4 |
Notions are universal categories |
4 |
Notion are not universal categories |
|
5 |
Rules are prescriptive |
5 |
Rules are descriptive |
|
6 |
Categories involve subjective judgement. |
6 |
Categories involve objective judgement |
|
7 |
It is pre-scientific |
7 |
It is scientific |
|
8 |
It is a bit philosophical |
8 |
It is a bit empirical |
|
9 |
It is of explanatory type. |
9 |
It is of observational type. |
