I. Brainstorming

Think about some ways to approach to syntax.

II. Traditional grammar

 It was based on European languages, particularly on Latin and Greek.

 It is the most widespread and elaborate grammar and is widely used in language teaching thus termed pedagogic grammar.

 The method adopted in analyzing sentences is called parsing. This generally involves five aspects: (1) identifying the elements of sentence, labeling the parts as subject, predicates, object, attribute, adverbial, etc.; (2) identify part of speech of each word; (3) pointing out the inflection of the words; (4) describing the relationship between the words; (5) generalizing the order of words.

 Weakness:

 It is descriptive in nature, attempting to lay down rules for speakers of a language.

 Its grammatical categories are closely based on European languages and are found inadequate in describing other language.

 It lacks a theoretical framework and thus fails to account for the nature of language.

III. Structural grammar

 Definition:

Structural grammar arose out of an attempt to deviate from traditional grammar. It deals with the inter-relationships of different grammatical units. In the concern of structural grammar, words are not just independent grammatical units, but are inter-related to one another. •

 Form class 

Form class is a wider concept than part of speech in traditional grammar. Linguistic units which can appear in the same slot are said to be in the same form class. For example, a(n), the, my, that, every, etc. can be placed before nouns in English sentences. These words fall into one form class. 

These linguistic units are observed to have the same distribution. This approach to syntactic categories is more practical in observing and analyzing an unknown language. •

 Immediate constituent (IC) analysis 

 Definition

Structural grammar is characterized by a top-down process of analysis. A sentence is seen as a constituent structure. All the components of the sentences are its constituents. A sentence can be cut into sections. Each section is its immediate constituent. Then each section can be further cut into constituents. This on-going cutting is termed immediate constituent analysis. 

 Examples:

Old men and women: old | men and women, old || men | and women

The ||| little || girl | speaks || French. 

In this way, sentence structure is analyzed not only horizontally but also vertically. In other words, IC analysis can account for the linearity and the hierarchy of sentence structure.

I will suggest | that this || in itself reflects ||| a particular ideology |||| about gender ||||| that deserves to be re-examined. 

Two advantages of IC analysis:

It can analyze some ambiguities.

It shows linearity and hierarchy of one sentence.

 Evaluation

While structural grammar represents a departure from traditional grammar and an attempt to describe all languages objectively, it has its limitations. Practically it is not comparable to traditional grammar in achievement in that no pedagogical grammar of language has been written following this approach. Theoretically, no breakthrough is made in understanding the nature of language. Methodologically, immediate constituent analysis, with all its merits, has met challenge from the new linguistic data which it fails to account for.