Course title: English Syntax 1: Word Classes
Course coordinator: Irena Zovko Dinković, PhD, assistant professor
Instructor: Anđel Starčević, teaching assistant
Status: mandatory
ECTS credits: 6
Semester: 2nd (summer)
Enrollment requirements: passed exam in Introduction to the Study of the English Language
Objectives: to introduce the students to lexical categories and constituent structure of sentences in the English language, as well as the syntactic function of particular constituent and sentence parts and the interplay between syntax and semantics
Week by week schedule:
Obligatory reading is set in boldface.
| Week | Topic |
| 1. | General information about the course. Brief historical overview of syntactic studies. Prescriptive vs. descriptive. Exercises. (Crystal, 194-195 (1), 400-401 (2), Trask, 187-211) |
| 2. | Morphology: problems in identifying words, morphemes and allomorphs. Lexical words and function words. Lexical categories. Inflection and derivation. Paradigmatic and syntagmatic relations. Exercises. (Longman, ch. 2, Van Valin, pp. 6-8, 13-17, 86-87, Miller, ch. 4) |
| 3. | Phrases and Clauses. Clause elements and clause patterns. Grammatical relations: subjects and objects. Exercises. (Longman, ch. 3, Burton-Roberts, pp. 78-90, Miller. ch. 9) |
| 4. | Noun classes in English. NPs: determiners. Exercises. (Longman, ch. 4; Burton-Roberts, pp. 55-58, 154-160; Miller, pp. 53-55) |
| 5. | Pronouns. Exercises. (Longman, ch. 4; Burton-Roberts, pp. 171-173). |
| 6. | NPs: premodification and postmodification. Exercises. (Longman, ch. 9; Burton-Roberts, pp. 160-164, 166-171) |
| 7. | REVIEW OF NOUNS AND NPs. |
| 8. | Adjectives and adjective phrases. Exercises. Prepositions and PPs. Exercises. (Longman, ch. 7; Burton-Roberts, pp. 62-66, 202, 206, 259) |
| 9. | Adverbs and adverbials. Exercises. (Longman, ch. 7; Miller, pp. 65-66) |
| 10. | Verb classes in English. Lexical, modal, and primary verbs. (Longman, ch. 5) |
| 11. | Phrasal and prepositional verbs. Exercises. (Longman, ch. 5, Miller, pp. 51-53; Burton-Roberts, pp. 126-132) |
| 12. | VPs: tense, aspect, voice and modal use. Non-finite clauses. Exercises. (Longman, ch. 6, Miller, pp. 81-85) |
| 13. | REVIEW OF VERBS AND VPs. |
| 14. | Grammatical categories: Gender, Tense, Mood, Aspect (Miller, pp. 133-142) |
| 15. | FINAL REVIEW and COURSE ASSESSMENT. PREPARATION FOR THE EXAM. |
Course description:
After each unit, the students solve a number of tasks in the class, which they check with the instructor. They are also expected to read at home the relevant parts of the obligatory readings and then solve exercises and assignments that they are given as homework.
Course requirements:
Students should attend the classes regularly and actively participate in class. During the semester, there are two to three reviews. The last week of the course is dedicated to the preparation of students for the exam. The exam is written.
Obligatory reading (selected chapters and pages):
– Biber, Douglas; Susan Conrad; Geoffrey Leech (2002). Student Grammar of Spoken and Written English, Harlow: Longman
– Crystal, David (2003). (1) The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language,
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
– Van Valin, Robert D. Jr. (2001). An Introduction to Syntax, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
Suggested reading:
– Burton-Roberts, Noel (1997). Analysing Sentences: Introduction to English Syntax, Harlow: Longman
– Crystal, David (2004). (2) The Stories of English, London: Penguin Books
– Huddleston, Rodney & Geoffrey Pullum (2005). A Student’s Introduction to English Grammar. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
– Lyons, John (1981). Language and Linguistics, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
– Miller, Jim (2001). An Introduction to English Syntax, Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press
– Palmer, Frank R. (1995). (second edition). Semantics, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
– Robins, Robert H. (1997). A Short History of Linguistics, Longman
– Trask, R. L. (1999). Language: the Basics, London, New York: Routledge
– Wekker, Herman & Haegeman, Liliane (1996 [1985]). A Modern Course in English Syntax, London, New York: Routledge