Trassformational-
Generative Grammar (TGG)
What is Grammar?
It is a system for generating sentences in a
language. It includes rules for producing
grammatical sentences and transforming
them into new sentences. Generative
grammar refers to the set of rules that can
generate all possible sentences in a language.
Components of Grammar
Phrase-Structure Rules
-Define the structure of phrases and sentences.
Lexical-Insertion Rules
-Specify how words are inserted into structures.
Transformational Rules
-Modify structures to produce different sentence
forms.
Kinds of Sentences:
Purpose, Tense and Complexity
Purpose
-Declarative: Statements that provide information.
Example: The cat sat on the mat.
-Interrogative: Questions that ask for information.
Example: Can you help me with this?
-Imperative: Commands or requests.
Example: Close the door.
-Exclamatory: Sentences that express strong emotion.
Example: What a beautiful sky!
Tense:
1. Past Tense: Actions that happened in the past.
• Simple Past: The newspapers refused to report the murder.
• Past Continuous: The newspapers were refusing to report the murder.
• Past Perfect Continuous: The newspapers had been refusing to report the murder.
2. Present Tense: Actions happening now.
• Simple Present: The newspapers refuse to report the murder.
• Present Continuous: The newspapers are refusing to report the murder
• Present Perfect: The newspapers have refused to report the murder
• Present Perfect Continuous: The newspapers have been refusing to report the murder.
3. Future Tense: Actions that will happen.
• Simple Future: The newspapers will refuse to report the murder.
• Past Future: The newspapers said they would refuse to report the murder.
• Future Perfect: The newspapers will have refused to report the murder by the end of the week.
• Future Continuous: The newspapers will be refusing to report the murder.
• Future Perfect Continuous: The newspapers will have been refusing to report the murder for several days by the
time the investigation concludes.
Complexity:
1. Simple Sentence: Contains one independent clause.
• Example: The newspapers refused to report the murder.
2. Compound Sentence: Contains two or more independent clauses joined by a conjunction.
• Example: The newspapers refused to report the murder, and they were afraid.
3. Complex Sentence: Contains one independent clause and at least one dependent clause.
• Example: The newspapers refused to report the murder because they were afraid.
4. Compound-Complex Sentence: Contains two or more independent clauses and at least
one dependent clause.
• Example: The newspapers refused to report the murder because they were afraid, and they
decided to stay silent.
Language and Parole:
• Langue: The underlying system of a
language, including grammar, vocabulary, and
pronunciation.
• Parole: The actual use of language in
concrete situations.
Linguistic Competence vs.
Linguistic Performance:
• Linguistic Competence: The speaker's and
hearer's knowledge about the language.
• Linguistic Performance: The actual use of
the language, which can be directly observed.
Deep Structures and Surface
Structures:
Deep Structure: Provides the explicit
meaning of a sentence.
• Surface Structure: Provides the form
of the sentence.
Transformation - The process that converts
deep structures into surface structures.
1. Interrogative Transformation: This transformation changes a declarative sentence
into a question.
• Deep Structure: Anyone can solve this problem.
• Interrogative Transformation: Can anyone solve this problem?
2. Negative Transformation: This transformation changes a positive sentence into a
negative one.
• Deep Structure: "Undergraduates should study Plato."
• Negative Transformation: "Undergraduates should not study Plato."
3. Passive Transformation: This transformation changes an active sentence into a
passive one.
• Active Sentence: Frank distrusted Karamazov.
• Passive Transformation: Karamazov was distrusted by Frank.
4. Reflexive Transformation: This transformation involves the use
of reflexive pronouns when the subject and the object of the
sentence are the same.
• Deep Structure: I shot I.
• Reflexive Transformation: I shot myself.
5. Imperative Transformation: This transformation changes a
sentence into a command or request.
• Deep Structure: "(You) wash the car."
• Imperative Transformation: "Wash the car!"
6. Particle Movement Transformation: This transformation
involves moving particles (like prepositions) around in a sentence.
• Original Sentence: "The detective looks up the address."
• Particle Movement: "The detective looks the address up."
7. Adverbial Phrase-Movement Transformation: This transformation
moves an adverb or adverbial phrase to different positions in a sentence.
• Original Sentence: "He opened the present eagerly."
• Adverbial Movement: "He eagerly opened the present." or "Eagerly, he
opened the present."
8. Indirect-Object Transformation: This transformation changes the
position of the indirect object in a sentence.
• Original Sentence: "Father gave me some money."
• Indirect-Object Transformation: "Father gave some money to me."
9. Joining Sentences: This transformation combines two or more sentences
into one.
• Original Sentences: "The man is my brother. The man came to dinner."
• Joining Transformation: "The man who came to dinner is my brother."
Ambiguity:
Transformational-Generative Grammar can help resolve
ambiguities by making explicit the relations between
sentences.
Example of Ambiguity:
• Sentence: The shooting of the hunters occurred at dawn.
• Meaning 1: The hunters were shot at dawn.
• Meaning 2: The hunters went shooting at dawn.
