THE GRAMMAR OF INTERPERSONAL MEANING: MOOD

Halliday (1984, 1985a: 68-71) approaches the grammar of interaction from semantic perspective. He points out that whenever we use language to interact, one of things we are doing with it is establishing a relationship between us: between the person speaking now and the person who will probably speak next.

The mood structure of the clauses refers to the organization of asset of functional constituents including the constituent Subject. The component that gets bandied back and forth is what we call the MOOD element of the clause (we use capital letters to differentiate the MOOD constituent of the clause from the general term, Mood, which describes the overall structure of the clause) The other component is called the RESIDUE. We can already, then suggest thet propositions can be divided into two functional constituent.

We have therefore identified two essential functional constituents of the MOOD component of the clause: the Subject and the Finite. the Subject offered by Halliday (1985a: 76) is that it realizes the thing by reference to which the proposition can be affirmed denied. It provides the person or thing in whom is vested the success or failure of the proposition, what is “held responsible”. The second constituent of MOOD element is the Finite. Halliday (1985a: 75) defines the Finite in terms of its function in the clause to make the proposition definite, to anchor the proposition in a way that we can argue about it.

We have suggested that the RESIDUE component of the cause is that part of the clause which is somehow less essential to the arguability of the clause than is the MOOD component. The RESIDUE component can also contain a number of functional elements: a predicator, one or more Complements, and any number of different types of adjuncts.  The PREDICATOR is the lexical or content part of the verbal group. The COMPLEMENT is defined as a non essential participant somehow effected by the main argument of the proposition.

Adjuncts can be defined as clause elements which contribute some additional (but non - essential) information to the clause. they can be identified as elements which do not have the potential to become subject.

ž  Summary of types of Adjuncts

Type	Sub-type	Meanings	Class of item	Location in Analysis
Interpersonal (modal)	manner	Intensity Probability Usuality presumption	Adverb	In MOOD
	Polarity	Positive or negative	Yes/ No (elliptical)	In MOOD
	Comment	Speaker’s Assessment Of whole message	Adverb Prepositional phrase	Not in MOOD or RESIDUE
	vocative	Nominating Next speaker	name	Not in MOOD or RESIDUE
textual	Conjunctive	Logical linking of messages	conjunctive	Not in MOOD or RESIDUE
	continuity	Message coming	Minor clauses adverbs	Not in MOOD Or RESIDUE

ž  WH- Interrogatives

Who	wrote		“The Bostonians”?
Wh/ Subject	Finite	Predicator	Complement
MOOD		RESIDUE

Then the answer is:

Henry James (Subject, MOOD)

ž Exclamatives which are used in interaction to express emotions

 such as surprise, disgust, worry.

What a great writer	Henry James	was !
WH/ Complement	Subject	Finite
RESIDUE	MOOD

ž Modality: Modalization is the expression of the

speaker’s attitude towards what she/he’s saying.

Judgement

Halliday points out:

ž  LOW: I reckon, I guess

ž  MEDIAN: I think, I suppose

ž  HIGH: I’m Sure

I reckon	Henry James	might	Possibly	Have written	“The Bostonians”
I think	Henry James	could	Probably	Have written	“The Bostonians”
I‘m sure	Henry James	must	certainly	Have written	“The Bostonians”
Adjunct: mood	Subject	Finite: mod	Adjunct: mood	Predicator	Complement
MOOD			RESIDUE

Reference:

Eggins, Suzzanne, 1994, An Introduction to systemic Functional Lingustics.Printer Publisher Ltd. United Kingdom. P: 146-197.