T-O is the transformation of interrogation, it transforms an affirmative sen­tence into a question, hence the symbol T-Q.

A question is easier derived from the T-A. The operation of transforming it into a T-Q consists in changing the arrangement of the units in the underlying sentence. The function word 'do' changes positions with the NP, standing now before it, thus the product will be the transform: "Do you love summer?" "Do you know it?" "Did he say it?" "Does she love sweets?"

Thus the contour of the sentence changes.

The operation used in this transformation, is called permutation.

There are several colloquial variants of questions which are the products of different operations:

(1)the change of the intonation contour of the statement, "You know it?"

(2) the change of the intonation contour and the addition of the interjection. "You know it, eh?"

(3) the adding of a disjunctive question to the statement, which repeats the T-AUX elements of the statement. "You met my people, didn't you?" "She loves sweets, does she not?"

(4) the adding of some modal expression. "You are waiting for her, I suppose?"

The word BE has a special rule here, and also the verb HAVE: they are put before the NP in the same way as 'do'. In American English 'do' is used in T-Q transforms of kernel sentences with V-HAV'E. "Do you have any more questions?" "Does he have any friends?"

T-W is the sign of the transformation of a sentence into a special question. Special questions are introduced with special interrogative words, most of which begin with Wh; hence the sign T-W. The interrogative function word substitutes one of the form-words in the kernel sentence, thus in the trans­form the word does not appear.

There are two cases to distinguish:

(1) The form-word Wh- substitutes the NP the subject to the V, then the other function word 'do' is not needed. "Peter has come." "Who has come?"

"I know it." "Who knows it?" The wind is singing in the trees." "What is singing in the trees?" '

(2) The interrogative function word substitutes any element of the under­lying sentence other than the subject. The underlying sentence must be the T-Q. "Do you know the song?" The NP standing after V, that is the object to the V, is replaced by 'what'. The product of the transformation is: "What do you know?" "Do you live in the country?" " Where do you live?" ('in the coun­try' is substituted by 'where').

"He is a teacher." "What is he?"

In both cases the intonation contour of the transform is the same as that of the kernel sentence.

The interrogative function words are simple and compound, such as: 'how old', 'how many', 'how much', 'what time', 'what size', 'what number', 'where from', and others. T-EX Any sentence may be exclamatory if it is pro­nounced with an emphatic intonation. However there are special transforma­tions which produce exclamatory sentences.

To my mind there will be exclamatory transforms.

 

Kernel

 

S

 

(declarative)

                           
   
 
   
 
T-A (affirmative)
 
   
 
     
N-Q
 
T-W
 
 
T-Q
 
T-W
 

 


(1) "The girl is pretty". "How pretty the girl is!" Here A is put after the introductory 'how' (a function word).

(2) "He is a boy." " What a boy he is!"

"The man is genius." " What at a genius the man is!" Here the second N is put after the introductory word 'what'.

(3) "The rain is beautiful. " " How beautiful is the rain!" This is transformed from the first exclamatory structure by permutating NP and 'is'. This structure is very emphatic.

There is still another type of T-EX produced on the morphemic level by the change of the finite V into V-to. "He marry her!" "You tell such lies!" "A man not know it!"

The T-Q and T-W transformations are based on the T-Aand T-not trans­forms but not on the kernel sentence directly.

Thus the optional (syntactic) transformations on the word class level may be represented by the following diagram:

 

 

I love summer

           
   
     
 
 
Do I love summer? Why do I love summer? Don't I love summer? Why don't I love summer? Who (does) love(s) summer? Who doesn't love summer''

 


T-W may again be made more affirmative by embedding the function 'do'. "Why do I love summer?"

 

* * *

Some transformations can be applied only to sentence containing certain subclasses of V. To such belongs the transformation of the passive. It can be applied to sentences with four transitive subclasses: TAKE-type, GIVE-type, LOOK AT-type, PUT-type.

T-PASSIVE The passive transformation as presented on the level of the classes of words ( NP1 vV NP2) has the following procedures: NP2 takes the position before V, the V is expanded into 'be -en', the V is followed by a 'by-phrase' which is optional and so put into parentheses, the final formula of the transform is:

NP1 tense (be -en) (by N1)

The 'by-phrase' is generally deleted according to whether the NP, is in­definite or general personal.

1. V-TAKE

"He took the lottery ticket hesitantly." "The lottery ticket was taken hesitantly."

"People always admire his pictures." "His pictures are always admired."

"We must teach children to cross the street." "Children must be taught to cross the street."

2. V-GIVE "This gave me good advice." "I was given good advice." "Good advice was given me."

"They gave the student a prize." "The student was given a prize." "A prize was given the student."

3. V-LOOK AT "Everybody looked at the flyer." "The flyer was looked at."

"They listened to him." "He was listened to."

4. V-PUT "The man put the book aside." "The book was put aside." "The girl threw her coat on the sofa." "The coat was thrown on the sofa (by the girl)." T-SEP This transformation can be applied only to the V having a postpositional element called 'particle' (prt). The particle can be separated from the V and put after the second NP.

"They brought in the prisoner." " They brought the prisoner in."

"He turned off the radio. " " He turned the radio off."

T-TO This transformation can be applied to the V of the GIVE-type. The op­eration consists in permutating the second and the third N, introducing the preposition 'to' between them.

"He gave his mother some money." "He gave some money to his mother."

The transform seems to lay emphasis on the NP introduced by 'to'. Its use may also depend on the sequential parts. "He gave some money to his mother who immediately went to the shops."

* * *

As has been shown above, the same transformations are applied to BE as to the V.

The differences in transformations between V and BE sentences have been shown in the domain of each transformation.

There are some special transformations applied to BE and hardly ever applied to V.

T-ART The kernel construction NP is NP with the indefinite determiner in the second NP bears the structural meaning 'person (or thing) as belonging to a class'. "Mr. West is an artist." "This is a lizzard." "A lizzard is a reptile." The substitution of the definite determiner in the second NP transforms the 'Class of things' sentence-structure into the 'Identity' sentence-structure. "This is the teacher." "Mr. Brown is the monitor in our group."

Besides the T-ART we can observe some other substitutions in the BE sentences.

The kernel construction NP is A bears the meaning "person (or thing) and his (its) quality". "The voice is soft." "The man is kind." "The car is powerful." "The girl is pretty."

The word BE can be substituted by 'become', 'grow', 'turn'. This kind of transformation changes the meaning of the sentence. It now expresses that the 'person or thing' changes his (its) quality for that indicated by the A. "The girl grew pretty." "The voice became soft."

The substitution of BE for 'seem', 'look', 'appear', 'smell', 'sound', 'taste' expresses a degree of certainty of the existence of the quality.

The substitution of these V is sometimes possible in the N is N structure but with certain restrictions, that is, the introduction of the .function word 'like' or 'as'.

 

"She sounded as a teacher."

"She was a teacher."

 

"She looked like a teacher."

 

 

"This is milk." "This looks like milk."

After 'seem' the word BE may be retained: "This seems to be milk." "The man seems to be busy."

T-INTRODUCER Sentence structures with BE more readily than the V con­structions are transformed by means of introducers 'there' and 'it'. Harris writes the following: "There are a number of individual words or word se­quences which occur before any sentence, so that we have a transformation S Introducer + S." And then "Examples: for V which do not occur with ob­jects, N vV There vV N ("A boy came "

" There came a boy.")

A sentence like "A cup is on the table" cannot be regarded as a regular English sentence. It must undergo the transformation with the introducer 'there' and permutation to become grammatical. "There is a cup on the table."

The introducer can rather be viewed as a grammatical element transform­ing an NP into an S: "A lecture " "There will be a lecture". "A cup on the table" "There is a cup on the table." Thus the second introducer is 'it'. "A lecture" "It's a lecture." "Winter" "It's winter." "Fine" "It's fine."

This introducer is also extensively used to transform two sentences into a sequence: "It's me speaking." "It's the boy who has done it." "It's here that we parted.", etc. T-REDUCTION This transformation may be applied to the commands and requests. "Open your books." But the 'command' with the NP (you) also exists, and is more intent than the VP command. The V in the VP may further be reduced, and we have the following scheme of the imperative sentence structures:

 

You give me your hand! You come here!
Give me your hand! Come here!
Your hand! Here!

The transform "Give me your hand!" can be further transformed-into T-A: "Do give me your hand!" - into T-NOT: "Don't give me your hand!"

- into T-NOT with a different aspect: "Don't be giving me your hand!"

There are two function words 'please' and 'lets' which are used as introducers to 'commands' and 'requests'. "Ship sails today" ceases to be ambiguous when introduced by 'please': "Please ship sails today;" by 'lets': "Lets ship sails to­day." The construction with the introducer 'Lets' can be transformed into T-NOT, as "Don't lets ship sails today," "Don't lets do it," "Don't lets speak about that," and further with the application of T-A: "Do don't lets say it."

Some T-W expressing suggestion or asking for instruction can also be reduced.

What am I to do? What to do?

Where are we to go? Where to go?

Why should I say it? Why say it?

The outline of the transformations of the simple sentences gives the whole syntax of simple independent sentences in a nutshell. Brevity is one of the merits of the T-grammar.

II. Practical tasks