32.3302, Review: English; Syntax: Haselow (2020)

[The LINGUIST List]

LINGUIST List: Vol-32-3302. Wed Oct 20 2021. ISSN: 1069 - 4875.

Subject: 32.3302, Review: English; Syntax: Haselow (2020)

Moderator: Malgorzata E. Cavar (linguist at linguistlist.org)
Student Moderator: Jeremy Coburn, Lauren Perkins
Managing Editor: Becca Morris
Team: Helen Aristar-Dry, Everett Green, Sarah Robinson, Nils Hjortnaes, Joshua Sims, Billy Dickson
Jobs: jobs at linguistlist.org | Conferences: callconf at linguistlist.org | Pubs: pubs at linguistlist.org

Homepage: http://linguistlist.org

Please support the LL editors and operation with a donation at:
           https://funddrive.linguistlist.org/donate/

Editor for this issue: Jeremy Coburn <jecoburn at linguistlist.org>
================================================================


Date: Wed, 20 Oct 2021 22:29:03
From: Ulrike Stange-Hundsdörfer [stangeu at uni-mainz.de]
Subject: Spontaneous Spoken English

 
Discuss this message:
http://linguistlist.org/pubs/reviews/get-review.cfm?subid=36731637


Book announced at http://linguistlist.org/issues/31/31-1544.html

AUTHOR: Alexander  Haselow
TITLE: Spontaneous Spoken English
SUBTITLE: An Integrated Approach to the Emergent Grammar of Speech
PUBLISHER: Cambridge University Press
YEAR: 2020

REVIEWER: Ulrike Stange-Hundsdörfer, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz

SUMMARY

“Spontaneous Spoken English” is an important textbook offering new
perspectives on the perception of how and why spoken English is structured the
way it is. Measured against the parameters of formal written English, the
grammar of spoken English is often described as deficient and as lacking
well-formed sentences. The author uses an Interfield Approach in which he
combines methods and findings from three different research areas (viz.
grammatical analysis, conversation analysis, cognitive psychology and
neurolinguistics) to account for a range of phenomena observed in spontaneous
speech (e.g., hesitation markers, interjections, formulaic language,
“incomplete” sentences, restarts). The examples used to illustrate the
phenomena in question are all taken from the ICE-GB conversational data
(subsets S1A and S1B, private and public dialogues, c. 377,000 words). The aim
of the book is worded as follows: “[…] the present study offers an analysis of
empirical data of spontaneous spoken English in which the structural
properties are explained from an emergentist perspective and linked to the
cognitive conditions under which speech is produced, which include, above all,
limitations in working memory capacity and the quasi-simultaneousness of
speech planning and production” (p. 3).

1 Introduction (pp. 1-42)

In the first part of the introduction, the author presents the aim of the
study, contrasting his novel approach with two established, predominant
approaches to grammar (Saussurean and American structuralism, and Generative
Grammar). He describes an alternative view on how “grammar” works in which
“speakers […] create structure in a piecemeal way, based on moment-by-moment
decisions on how to continue a syntactic trajectory underway, thereby creating
structures that are not readily classifiable as the kinds of configurations
postulated in sentence-based grammars” (p. 1). In his study, Haselow aims at
explaining features observed in spoken data that elude categorisation using
traditional grammatical concepts and at detecting patterns in the data that
help understand the processes underlying the production of spontaneous speech.
The second part of the introduction prepares the theoretical background for
the study and provides relevant context for why it is important. The author
first contrasts product-based and process-based views of grammar, highlighting
how the written language bias (Linell 2005, 20009) influences our conception
of what well-formed speech is. In a next step, Haselow describes the
challenges involved when trying to apply grammatical modelling to spontaneous
speech. Relevant examples include unintegrated expressions (e.g.,
interjections, vocatives, tags) as well as “disintegrated” and “defective”
syntax (p. 15; e.g., elliptical replies, condensed questions, directives),
where the sentences appear incomplete. The third part of the introduction is
dedicated to grammatical dualism, viz. the assumption that speakers need to be
able to process both adjacent linear sequences as well as hierarchically
structured linear sequences. The concept of dualism thus refers to adjacency
and hierarchy in linguistic processing. Furthermore, the author introduces the
terms microgrammar and macrogrammar in an attempt to “account for the
different ways in which smaller segments are combined into a coherent whole”
(p. 25). Haselow briefly outlines previous research in which the (potentially)
dual nature of grammar played a role and formulates the Grammatical Dualism
Assumption, which states that “Linguistic processing and linguistic activity
exhibit a dualistic organization, which is reflected in linguistic discourse.
‘Grammar’ [encompasses] two different domains, […] one dealing with the
internal linearization and hierarchization, the other one with the
organization of language based on cognitive, discourse-structural and
interactive principles of language use outside hierarchically organized
structures and on mere linearity” (p. 30).  In the final part of the
introduction, the author offers information regarding the data used and the
methodology employed for the present study. He sketches the structure of the
book and in the conclusion, he states that, from the perspective taken in this
book, “the role of the speaker changes […] to one who performs a creative
activity and whose agency affects the language system” (p. 41). 

2 Toward an Interfield Approach to the Study of Spontaneous Speech (pp. 43-79)

In the second chapter, the author presents all three of the research fields
that are considered in this Interfield Approach, including relevant
theoretical frameworks. Haselow starts with Gidden’s (1984) Structuration
Theory. Originally a sociological theory used to describe “human action in
relation to social systems” (Haselow 2020: 44), it can also be applied to
linguistics: “human beings acquire the system of a language […] as a
by-product of socialization […]. As speakers, […] they contribute to
structuration in the sense that they reinforce existing structures, but also
alter them in minute ways” (p. 45), which also raises question where language
variation and change are concerned.

Second, the author outlines Harris’ (2021) Integrationalist Theory, which
offers a usage-based perspective on language. Rather than viewing language as
a fairly fixed, rule-based system that all speakers follow blindly, this
theory considers the language user and the communicative settings. Rules are
conceived of as regularities or tendencies observed in language use, and
speakers as performing creative acts when they use language.

Haselow prefaces the description of the three research fields relevant to his
Interfield Approach (grammatical analysis – language as a system, conversation
analysis – language as a means to organize conversational interaction,
cognitive neuroscience of language – language as a window to the mind and the
architecture of the brain) by a short section on the benefits and issues of
using such a method.  He then lists characteristics of spontaneous speech that
have been identified in previous research, complete with short explanations
and relevant examples where appropriate. 

3 A Dualistic Approach to Grammar: Microgrammar and Macrogrammar (pp. 80-123)

In the third chapter, the author describes how “grammar” is conceptualized in
the current approach, viz. as “a phenomenon emerging in the flow of time,
based on moment-by-moment decisions taken by the speaker […]” (p. 84).
Accordingly, descriptions of grammar should focus on the process rather than
the product where speech production is concerned. The term Microgrammar is
used to refer to linguistic structures (or “syntactic segments”, p. 89) that
involve linearization and hierarchization, and which, depending on the
context, may resemble, e.g., phrases or clauses as we know them from
‘traditional’ grammar. The term ‘macrogrammar’ is used to describe “forms and
distributional patterns that are not involved in and determined by binary
hierarchical relationships” (p. 99). Relevant macrogrammatical expressions
include, for instance, interjections (wow), cognitive planning markers (uhm)
and general extenders (and stuff). It is argued that the occurrence of
macrogrammatical expressions coincides with a variety of communicative tasks
that arise during the production of speech. These are concerned with cognition
(e.g., the use of fillers to gain planning time for the next stretch of
speech), text-organization (e.g., the use of transitions to link syntactic
segments) and the relationship between speaker and addressee (e.g., the use of
vocatives to attract the addressee’s attention) and may occur in three
different temporal phases (initial, continuing/mid, final) of a unit of talk.
In speech, both microgrammar and macrogrammar are at work (hence the dualistic
nature of the emergent grammar of speech) in that microgrammatical expressions
(syntactically integrated expressions with hierarchical relationships)
alternate with macrogrammatical expressions (whose forms and distributions are
determined by the communicative tasks at hand) in order “to produce structured
speech that can be understood by the addressee” (p. 117). In a way,
microgrammatical expressions are the bricks and macrogrammatical expressions
the mortar to build communication bridges from one speaker to the next. 

4 Linearization and Macrogrammatical Fields (pp. 124-208)

In Chapter Four, the author presents an analysis of so-called ‘fields’`.
Depending on their occurrence in time during a unit of talk, they are referred
to as initial, medial or final fields. They coincide with specific
communicative functions and may host a variety of macrogrammatical expressions
which are listed and explained using concrete examples from the corpus.  As
relevant communicative tasks differ depending on where we zoom in on the
production of a unit of talk, we find distributional patterns as regards which
macrogrammatical expressions are likely to occur at which point (e.g.,
vocatives typically occur in the initial or the final field). The author
describes the functions of the different fields and provides process-based
explanations for the distribution of the different kinds of macrogrammatical
expressions.  

5 Macrogrammar and the Linearization of Structural Segments (pp. 209-261)

The fifth chapter is concerned with the processability of speech and how this
relates to the observed linearization of structural segments. In spontaneous
speech, efficient real-time processing is necessary to allow for successful
communication on both the speaker’s and the addressee’s side. The author
explores three major principles of efficiency in real-time syntactic
processing: minimal structures (aka ellipses; e.g. Isn’t this soup delicious?
– It is.), chaining syntactic segments (viz. creating transitions between
different, syntactically autonomous units), structural units based on
far-reaching projections (i.e., structures that consist of two parts that are
complete only if both segments are verbalized; e.g., when …, then …).
Accordingly, both microgrammar and macrogrammar play a role here: the former
provides the contents, and the latter organises the narrative into a coherent
whole, taking into consideration the different communicative tasks that are
relevant for each phase in a unit of talk. Again, the author uses clear
examples throughout the chapter to illustrate the different principles at
work. 

6 Neurolinguistic Evidence for the Grammatical Dualism Assumption (pp.
262-287)

Chapter Six explores the question whether macrogrammar and microgrammar are
processed in different areas of the brain, given that there is evidence that
the two hemispheres (right hemisphere – RH; left hemisphere – LH) are involved
in different language functions. The author first sketches what is known about
linguistic representation in the brain, citing relevant studies, and then
proceeds to discuss the differences between novel and formulaic speech and the
implications these differences have for neurolinguistic activity (creativity
vs. routine).  It appears that novel speech (associated with microgrammatical
expressions) involves LH-activity, and formulaic speech (associated with
macrogrammatical expressions) RH-activity, which provides further (physical)
substance to the concept of Dualistic Grammar. Of course, the boundaries
between novel and formulaic speech are not always clear cut, and the
attribution of different language functions to specific brain areas is not a
matter of black and white, but there is variation, too. This chapter also
contains more information about the role of the RH in discourse organization
and the organization of speaker-addressee interaction, which are aspects of
macrogrammar. It concludes with some critical remarks on the nature of
neurolinguistic evidence, as there is a need for more research to verify the
association between RH/macrogrammar and LH/microgrammar.

7 Conclusions (pp. 288-295)

In the last chapter, the author summarizes the main points of the book,
stressing the inadequacy of “traditional categories and concepts of
sentence-based syntactic description” (p. 288) when applied to spoken English.
By expanding the notion of grammar to also include ‘unintegrated’ segments, it
is possible to explain the structures observed in spoken English (p. 288). The
Grammatical Dualism Assumption formulated early on in the book has proved a
valuable concept to account for the grammar of spoken English. In essence, the
Emergent Grammar of Speech is characterised by macrogrammar and microgrammar.
The former is concerned with the organisation of text, text cohesion,
speaker-oriented aspects, and holding the floor-activities (all of which are
associated with neuronal activity in the right hemisphere (RH)), while
microgrammar covers what we commonly refer to as “sentences”, “clauses” and
“phrases” (these are associated with neuronal activity in the left hemisphere
(LH)). The author also raises two points of critique (the full potential of
the interfield approach might not have been fulfilled and, in some places, the
analysis was not process-based but rather product-based) and provides
suggestions for further research.

EVALUATION

Given the nature of the topic and the selection of an interfield approach, the
contents of the book are rather complex. Having said this, it is written in a
very accessible way, important aspects are repeated again and again (to the
extent that all of the seven chapters could also be read in isolation without
missing out on any crucial information), and the examples (of which there are
plenty to help the reader understand the matters at hand) are explained in
detail. As a result, it is suitable both for linguistics students (advanced
undergraduate or postgraduate) and linguists (no matter the preferred research
area). In fact, I’d say this is required reading for all linguists because
this book not only offers a plausible and practical approach to the analysis
of the grammar of spoken English, but it also fosters tolerance towards the
‘anomalies’ of spoken English that are often cast aside as irrelevant or
errors, etc. This book clearly shows how everything the speaker produces is
there for a reason (typically either because it contributes meaningful
discourse or because it serves a communicative function) and it helps us
understand how speech production in real-time works, which constraints are
relevant (e.g., working memory) and which strategies (efficiency principles,
communicative tasks) underly the distribution of macrogrammatical structures
to put order in what seems chaotic. The author’s aim was to “offer[] an
analysis of empirical data of spontaneous spoken English in which the
structural properties are explained from an emergentist perspective and linked
to the cognitive conditions under which speech is produced, which include,
above all, limitations in working memory capacity and the
quasi-simultaneousness of speech planning and production” (p. 3), and he has
definitely achieved this aim. Furthermore, this book presents “an alternative
to such ‘fixed-code’ approaches to language, questioning the assumption that
categories exist prior to concrete uses of language and highlighting the
openness and the emergent character of structure that derives from the
speaker’s creativity” (p. 292). In sum, a highly recommendable book! 

REFERENCES

Giddens, Anthony. 1984. The Constitution of Society: Outline of the theory of
structuration. Oxford: Polity Press.

Linell, Per. 2005. The written language bias in linguistics: Its nature,
origins and transformations. New York: Routledge. 

Linell, per. 2009. Rethinking language, mind, and world dialogically:
Interactional and contextual theories of human sense-making. Charlotte, NC:
Information Age Publishing.


ABOUT THE REVIEWER

Ulrike Stange-Hundsdörfer is a lecturer/assistant professor at the JGU in
Mainz, Germany, where she instructs prospective teachers of English as a
foreign language in the intricacies of English. Her research interests are
sparked by encounters with “oddities” in the English language, such as the use
of pseudo-passives in British English and innovative uses of the intensifier
so. She is the author of Emotive Interjections in British English (Benjamins,
2016) and holds a Ph.D. in English Linguistics from the Johannes
Gutenberg-Universität in Mainz, Germany.





------------------------------------------------------------------------------

***************************    LINGUIST List Support    ***************************
 The 2020 Fund Drive is under way! Please visit https://funddrive.linguistlist.org
  to find out how to donate and check how your university, country or discipline
     ranks in the fund drive challenges. Or go directly to the donation site:
                   https://crowdfunding.iu.edu/the-linguist-list

                        Let's make this a short fund drive!
                Please feel free to share the link to our campaign:
                    https://funddrive.linguistlist.org/donate/
 


----------------------------------------------------------
LINGUIST List: Vol-32-3302	
----------------------------------------------------------