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Article published In: Language, Context and Text
Vol. 6:2 (2024) ► pp.262–301

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The function of Theme in Spanish

Towards a systemic description

ORCiD logo with link | Universidad Nacional Guillermo Brown, Argentina | Universidad de Flores, Argentina
Published online: 3 December 2024
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/langct.00073.moy
Abstract
The main objective of this paper is to outline the system of theme in Spanish starting from its realisation in texts ( 2013. Systemic functional grammar: A next step into the theory. Axial Relations. Beijing: Higher Education Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar). In order to do this, Halliday’s definition of Theme is revised and the distinction he proposes between the definition of a function and its means of realisation is followed ( 1985. An introduction to functional grammar. London: Edward Arnold.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar, 1994. An introduction to functional grammar (2nd edition). London: Edward Arnold.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar). Then, a brief corpus of text instantiating different genres is analysed, considering different options of mood in the clause. The perspective assumed is language typology in systemic functional linguistics (Martin, J. R. 1983. Participant identification in English, Tagalog and Kate. Australian Journal of Linguistics 3(1). 45–74. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar; Caffarel, Alice, J. R. Martin & Christian M. I. M. Matthiessen. 2004a. Introduction: Systemic functional typology. In Alice Caffarel, J. R. Martin & Christian M. I. M. Matthiessen (eds.), Language typology: A functional perspective, 1–76. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar; . 2013. The interpersonal and experiential grammar of Chilean Spanish: Towards a principled systemic-functional description based on axial argumentation. PhD dissertation. University of Sydney, Australia.; Martin, J. R., Beatriz Quiroz & Pin Wang. 2023. Systemic functional grammar: A text-based description of English, Spanish and Chinese. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar), which highlights the peculiar characteristics of the language at stake based on patterns found in actual discourse and observes the phenomenon under study from above, from around and from below (Matthiessen, Christian M. I. M. & M. A. K. Halliday. 2009. Systemic functional grammar: A first step into the theory. Beijing: Higher Education Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar).
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
    • 1.1The textual metafunction
    • 1.2Meaning of Theme and New
    • 1.3Means of realisation of Theme and New
    • 1.4The extension of Theme
    • 1.5The discourse semantic system of periodicity
  • 2.Theme in Spanish
    • 2.1Methodology
    • 2.2The realisation of Theme in Spanish
      • 2.2.1Starting with declarative clauses
      • 2.2.2Interrogative clauses
      • 2.2.3Imperative clauses
  • 3.A system network for Spanish experiential Theme
  • 4.Final remarks
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • References
  • Primary data
References (63)
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2025. Italian verbal groups: A systemic functional perspective. Lingua 324 ► pp. 103963 ff. DOI logo

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