English grammar - Roger Berry 2012

B9.6 Conclusion
B9 Clause types
Section B Development

Traditional accounts of English assumed that there was a one-to-one relationship between form and function, especially with regard to types of clause. Even nowadays, if you ask students what the function of an imperative is (if they know the term) they will tell you ’an order’, ignoring the fact that they regularly use imperatives for other functions. So this assumption is unjustified. This diagram summarises the relationships described above (it should be noted that there are other possibilities):

Figure B9.6.1 The relationship between form and function

Comments

Activity B9.1:

1. Did you bring the money? You brought the money, didn’t you?

2. Hasn’t she brought the money? She hasn’t brought the money, has she?

Activity B9.2: In 1 and 2 the underlined elements are objects; in 3 and 4 they are predicatives. How in 5 represents an adverbial.

Activity B9.3:

1. What have you bought?

2. When is the concert?

3. Where did you go this summer?

4. What caused this damage?

5. Whose car is this?

6. How long did the fire last?

7. Who did I see you with? (or With whom did I see you?)

Activity B9.4:

In all four cases, A is the normal response. B would only be made if there was a misunderstanding (perhaps deliberate). Question 1 would normally be an offer, to be accepted or declined; 2 is a request for action, i.e. a directive (people who live in barns have no experience of doors); 3 is a request for information, not an enquiry about ability; and 4 is a means of maintaining social relationships, not an enquiry about health.