Aspects of Sentence Analysis in the Theory of Functional Grammar of Arabic

Abstract

Functional Grammar Theory is one of the pragmatic theories that emerged from the need to study different forms of discourse while taking into account the external contexts in which they are produced. In accordance with this conception, functionalists developed a descriptive apparatus that brings together structure and function, gives priority to function, and recognizes its role in determining the particular structural properties of an utterance. They adopted a specific view of the sentence, inspired by what pragmatic theory had proposed: the sentence is a linguistic act characterized by structural properties reflected in pragmatic-semantic properties. The Moroccan researcher Ahmed al-Mutawakkil adopted its theoretical framework and employed it in the study of various aspects of Arabic, initially focusing on the sentence with all its elements and circumstances, in what came to be known as Functional Grammar of Arabic. This article seeks to clarify the various aspects addressed by al-Mutawakkil that are relevant to the analysis of the Arabic sentence. If both General Functional Grammar Theory and Functional Grammar of Arabic maintain that linguistic structure must be treated together with the function that gives rise to it, what new contribution has this theory made in comparison with earlier linguistic theories? Is it legitimate to explain different structural patterns on the basis of function? What aspects does this theory emphasize in its analysis of different sentences? And does it encompass all the elements of the sentence?.