[B-Greek] Predicate as Topic
Elizabeth Kline
kline-dekoning at earthlink.net
Sat Jun 25 14:40:22 EDT 2005
Helma Dik has a new proposal (new in '95) but first we must define the key
term, skip ahead if you know this already:
TOPIC
R.L. Trask - A Dict. of Grammatical Terms in Linguistics, 1993
Topic- That element of a sentence which is presented as already existing in
the discourse and which the rest of the sentence (the comment) is in some
sense 'about'.
SIL -- GlossaryOfLinguisticTerms
"A topic is a noun phrase that expresses what a sentence is about, and to
which the rest of the sentence is related as a comment.
http://www.sil.org/linguistics/GlossaryOfLinguisticTerms/WhatIsATopic.htm
The element of an utterance which is the focus of the speaker's
attention and about which something is said (the comment). The topic
of a sentence is often information which is already known about ( given
information).
http://www.lrc.salemstate.edu/linguistics/linguistics-terms.htm#topic
--------
Now lets get on with the subject of this post:
Helma Dik (Word Order in Ancient Greek, 1995 sections 4.2, 7) suggests that
one weakness in 'standard' Functional Grammar (before '95) is limiting topic
function to nominal elements ("terms"). Dik explains how this leads to
strange results with ancient Greek where the predicate is often the initial
element in a clause. In 'standard' Functional Grammar the analysis of a
predicate initial clause requires an explanation for topic placement after
the main verb. Another alternative is to conclude that a predicate initial
clause has no pragmatic marking for topic. Dik finds both approaches
questionable.
She argues that a predicate can function as topic, suggesting that a clause
initial verb which repeats the verbal idea from the preceding context may
function as topic.
Her first example (p.207) is very simple and the language should not prove
difficult for readers of the Greek NT.
Herod. Hist. 1.114
EPAIZE EN THi KWMHi TAUTHi EN THi HSAN KAI hAI BOUKOLIAI [hAUTAI],
EPAIZE DE MET' ALLWN hHLIKWN EN hODWi.
"He was playing in the village where these herdsmen's quarters were:
there he was playing in the road with others of his age." trans. LCL
Here we have a repetition of the verb EPAIZE which functions as topic in the
second line. It ties the comment to the preceding idea "playing" by means of
repeating the main verb. Absolute repetition like we see here is not
required for the predicate to function as topic.
Dik's proposal is a departure from 'standard' Functional Grammar which I
have not seen discussed in the literature on NT Greek. But I have not read
everything :-)
Elizabeth Kline
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