Halliday Functional Grammar Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Halliday Functional Grammar - Essay Example An example would be "otter" and "odder" or "prints" and "prince". (Suber & Thorpe 2001). Linguistic Determinism is a theory of language that contends that all our thoughts are defined by language. Without words to define an idea or object, the mind can have no understanding of it. It was first proposed in 1950 and has remained a controversial subject (Biever 2004). A recent discovery of the numeric system of the Pariah tribe, whose language only contains words for the numbers one and two, is an example of linguistic determinism. A study revealed that they could not tell the difference between 4 objects and 5 objects since they did not have a word for them (Biever 2004). The study seems to support the theory that human languages determine the conclusions that we reach, the concepts we have of our lives, and all our emotional make up. A simplified language that develops when two languages combine is called a pidgin. First contact with English speaking settlers resulted in Native languages combining with the settler's language to form "pidgin English". It is formed as a basic, and usually temporary, means of communication between two distinct cultures. However, if the pidgin is used over the span of generations it develops into a more complex language with a wider vocabulary. It then becomes known as a Creole. The Creole spoken in Louisiana by the Cajuns is an example of the combination between the French and African languages. When the language is spoken of as being "Cajun", it is a dialect of Louisiana Creole. (Pidgins and Creoles 1997). Antonyms Antonyms, are words that have opposite meanings such as "high" and "low" or "good" and "bad". There are 4 types of antonyms. Gradable antonyms are ends of a graduated spectrum that express opposite qualities such as "hot" and "cold". Complementary antonyms are absolute opposites such as "moral" and "immoral". Relational antonyms describe an opposite relationship between two words such as "cop" and "robber" or "take" and "give". An auto-antonym is the same word that has two opposing meanings. "Fast" (move swiftly) and "fast" (to hold firmly) are auto-antonyms as well as "sanction" (to sponsor) and