Investigating Pro.Making Topicalization of Possession Construction And Complementary Object in Persian Language Based on Functional Discourse Grammar

The purpose of this study is to investigate Persian pro.making topicalization of possession construction and complementary object and how pronominal clitics appear according to "Functional Discourse Grammar". Thus, in this study the method of mapping Persian pro.making topicalized elements was explained based on this grammar. The results of the study and analysis of a number of selected sentences from speech and written texts of Persian language indicate that in this construction, considering communicative intention of the speaker, various elements such as possessor in possession constructions and complementary object can be topicalized, so the dynamic method of determining the word order of this approach is suitable to explain it. On the other hand, due to the fact that the topicalized constituent in the interpersonal level, based on the principles of this grammar, is given priority in entering morphosyntactic templates, the pro.making topicalization process is not the result of movement, but is produced in base-generated procedures. The most important result of this study is to determine the cause of the appearance of pronominal clitics in Persian pro.making topicalization process and to determine whether it is obligatory or non- obligatory, which is done for the first time by applying the mechanisms of this approach.
 
1. Introduction
Topicalization is a linguistic mechanism that alters the unmarked arrangement of the sentence structure and constructs a "non-fundamental (marked)" structure; That is, it creates a structure that is a modified form of "fundamental" construction. In topicalization process, part of the information desired by the speaker takes the first place in the paragraph to facilitate the information status of the audience. In this study, the topicalization of possession construction and complementary object in Persian language is examined based on "Functional Discourse Grammar".
Up to now, linguists have presented a variety of functional approaches in the form of a continuum, based on the importance of function over form. Functional Discourse Grammar (FDG), introduced by Kees Hengeveld and Lachlan Mackenzie (2008), is a typological-functional approach, which lies in the middle of the continuum of functional approaches. Although this grammar is in the continuum of functional approaches, it also considers the structural features of language units. The present study will investigate Persian pro making topicalization based on Functional Discourse grammar and seeks to find answers for the following questions:
1- Considering the fact that no movement is allowed for the constituents in Functional Discourse Grammar, how does it explain the Persian pro.making topicalization?
2- How can the principles of Functional Discourse Grammar determine the order of pro.making topicalized constituents in Persian at the beginning of the clause and the appearance of pronominal clitic in their main positions?
 
2. Theoretical framework
The theoretical framework of the present study is one of the newest approaches in functional linguistics. The construction of language in this grammar is considered to be done in four levels, Interpersonal, Representational, Morphosyntactic and Phonological ones. This grammar, has a dynamic method of determining the order of constituents. Thus, the position of any linguistic element in the clause is not predetermined in the sentence structure, but is determined based on the layer in which it is produced, its functional and semantic role (linguistic context), and according to other upstream elements in the hierarchy of layers of interpersonal and representational levels. Therefore, in FDG, instead of three categories of subject, object, and verb, the concepts of actor, undergoer, and predicate, respectively, determine the word order of the languages of the world.
The mapping operation of interpersonal and representational levels on morphosyntactic templates in FDG is performed under the rule of three principles of iconicity, domain integrity and functional stability. The principle of iconicity oversees the maintenance of correspondence in the mapping of the sequence of the formation of the contents of interpersonal and representation levels on the morphosyntactic level. According to the principle of domain integrity, linguistic elements that belong to each other at the interpersonal and representational levels should also be mapped adjacent to each other at the morphosyntactic level. According to the principle of functional stability, constituents that have the same characteristics, both at the interpersonal level and at the representational level, should be placed at the same position in morphosyntactic level in relation to other categories.
 
3. Methodology
This study is based on a descriptive-analytical method and the examples are taken from pro.making Persian topicalized samples. The main purpose of this study is to explain the process of pro.making persian topicalization based on FDG. Since this grammar does not believe in concepts such as movement, we will seek to explain this process in base-generated procedures. Therefore, the method of mapping the linguistic elements of sentences containing pro.making Persian topicalized constituents was considered in morphosyntactic templates in four absolute initial, second, medial and final positions and infinite relative ones and the three principles of iconicity, domain integrity and functional stability used in FDG.
 
4. Results & Discussion
The results indicate that in marked constituents such as Persian pro.making topicalization, considering the communicative intention of the speaker, various elements such as the possessor in possession constructions and complementary object can be topicalized, thus the dynamic method of determining the word order of this approach is a suitable and efficient method to explain this type of topicalization. On the other hand, due to the fact that the topicalized constituent in the interpersonal level, based on the principles of this grammar, is given priority in entering morphosyntactic templates, so the topicalization process is not the result of movement, but is produced in base-generated procedures. The most important result of this study is to determine the cause of the appearance of the pronominal clitics in Persian pro.making topicalization process and to determine whether it is obligatory or non- obligatory, which is done by applying the mechanisms of FDG.
The results also showed that the production of linguistic elements in the layers of hierarchical levels of FDG and the way they are arranged in absolute and relative positions in marked constituents such as pro.making Persian topicalization is done by violating the three principles of iconicity, domain integrity and functional stability, which was analyzed in several  Persian examples.
 
5. conclusions & Suggestions
By investigating the mechanisms of FDG, it was found that this approach is appropriate in determining the word order of pro.making topicalization process and that pro.making topicalization is not the result of movement but the tropicalized constituent is produced in its original position by violating the principles of FDG.
Examining the principles of FDG in other Persian marked and unmarked structures is recommended for the future studies.
 
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