TEXT AND GRAMMAR: AN INTRODUCTION TO SYSTEMIC-FUNCTIONAL LANGUAGE

The purpose of the text is to introduce the reader to the theoretical framework of systemic functional linguistics, by systematizing some of the key concepts and milestones in the development of this theory of grammatical description. After introducing some general aspects related to the nature of language and its the role in human life, the text explores the notion of language function and the way it contributes to the building up of the theory. The text continues with the description of the relationship between language and the linguistic system, claiming the importance of language use in any linguistic description and foregrounding text both as a unit of use and as a unit of description, that is, as an instantiation of the system and the sole means of shedding light to it in terms of descriptive knowledge. The text proceeds with the description of the relationship between text and context, putting forward the concepts of register and genre, and then describes the network of lexicogrammatical choices realizing the meaning potential of language. The text ends with a short systematization of the types/levels of analysis and the metalanguage used.