From: pwiles (pwiles@mail.usyd.edu.au)
Date: Tue Jul 07 1998 - 17:49:34 EDT
George
dalmatia@eburg.com wrote:
> Perry ~
>
> Could you provide a simple little example of what this idea might
> mean?
Halliday ditinguishes between Theme(T), Subject(S) and Actor(A). The following
examples from Halliday I think illustrate the distinction:
The duke(T,S,A) gave my aunt this teapot.
This teapot(T) my aunt(S) was given by the duke(A).
My aunt(T,S) was given this teapot by the duke(A).
This teapot(T) the duke(S,A) gave to my aunt.
By the duke(T,A) my aunt(S) was given this teapot.
and so on.
These are all simple Themes involving only participants, but serve to illustrate
the way Theme/Rheme choice in English organises the discourse as message. For
example although all these statements contain in one sense the same information, it
is organised differently so that eg statement 1 has its starting point with the
duke, while statement 2 has its starting point with the teapot. The two will then
function differently in the wider (hypothetical) discourse from which they are
taken. (In spoken English intonation also contributes significantly)
In English the Theme is in initial position and is unmarked when it coincides with
Subject, and marked otherwise. The Theme begins at the beginning of the clause and
runs up to an including either the first particpant, process or circumstance
constituent of the clause, and thus may include conjunctions, modal adjuncts etc.
Marked Themes usually either express some kind of setting for the clause or express
a feature of contrast.
Now Greek has even more flexibility than English re word order (note all the above
statements have the typical SV order of English), but presumably word order in any
particular clause is not completely arbitrary but as above is dependent at least
partially on the discourse function of the clause considered as message.
My question is does the Theme in Greek also occupy initial position in the clause?
Hope that clarifies my original post.
Thanks
Perry Wiles
Moore Theological College
1 King St
Newtown NSW 2042
Australia
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