Extent: Interval And Frequency

Halliday (1994: 152):

Extent vs Range

Halliday (1994: 152):

Extent And Location

Halliday (1994: 152):

Relationship Of The Range To The Process: Projected vs Enhancing

Halliday & Matthiessen (1999: 170):

[The projected type of Range] is like [the enhancing] type in that in both types the agnate expression takes the form of a circumstantial element (grammatically, a prepositional phrase). But in the projected type the circumstance is one of Matter, whereas in the enhancing type it is typically one of Extent or Location. This corresponds in process type to the distinction between saying and sensing on the one hand and doing and being on the other.

Nominal Group & Prepositional Phrase: Functional Overlap

Halliday & Matthiessen (2014: 364):

There is also some overlap between nominal groups and prepositional phrases. … the distinction between participants and circumstances is less clear in the ergative organisation of the clause, and this means that certain participants (Agent, Range, Beneficiary) are realised by prepositional phrases to indicate a special status in the clause as message (when they are presented as early or late news … ). At the same time, circumstances of location and extent may be realised by nominal groups without a preposition marking the circumstantial relation … .

Circumstances Without Prepositions: Extent And Location

Halliday & Matthiessen (2014: 349):

… just as those elements which are treated essentially as participants can sometimes occur with a preposition, so at least some elements which are treated essentially as circumstances can sometimes occur without one. With expressions of Extent and Location there is often no preposition as in they stayed two days, they left last Wednesday.

Agent, Beneficiary And Range From Transitive And Ergative Perspectives

Halliday & Matthiessen (2014: 348):

These, seen from a transitive perspective, are circumstantial: Agent is a kind of Manner, Beneficiary is a kind of Cause and Range is a kind of Extent; and they can all be expressed as minor processes. But seen from an ergative point of view they are additional participants in the major process: the nucleus of ‘Process + Medium’ has an inner ring of additional participants as well as an outer ring of circumstances surrounding it …

Definite vs Indefinite Extent And Location

Halliday & Matthiessen (2014: 317):

Parallels Between Temporal & Spatial Expressions

Halliday & Matthiessen (2014: 316-7):

There are close parallels between temporal and spatial expressions, the most significant ones being the following.

(i) … both incorporate the notions of extent and location … 

(ii) In both time and space, extent is measurable in standard units … 

(iii) In both time and space, both extent and location may be either definite or indefinite … 

(iv) In both temporal and spatial location, the location may be either absolute, or relative to the ‘here–and–now’; and if relative, may be either near or remote … 

(v) In both spatial and temporal location there is a distinction between rest and motion; and within motion, between motion towards and motion away from …

However, this spatio-temporal parallelism is far from complete; and in recent centuries the language seems to have been moving away from it.

Extent Vs Scope [Diagnostics: Measure & Subject]

Halliday & Matthiessen (2014: 316):

There is no very sharp line separating (circumstantial) expressions of Extent from (participant) expressions of Scope of the enhancing type; but there is a distinction between them: Extent is expressed in terms of some unit of measurement, like yards, laps, rounds, years, whereas Scope in terms other than measure units (contrast they walked five miles with they walked the streets); and being a participant, the Scope has the potential of being able to serve as Subject.

Extent: Frequency Vs Usuality [Diagnostic]

Halliday & Matthiessen (2014: 315-6):

In the temporals there is an additional category of ‘frequency’, how many times?. This is related to the interpersonal category of usuality, but it is not identical to it; usuality is a modal assessment referring to position on a scale between positive and negative (always/never), whereas frequency is the extent of the repetition of the process. The categories of extent and usuality may, however, work together, as in a narrative where habitude is established.

Extent: Interval

Halliday & Matthiessen (2014: 315):

The category of Extent includes ‘interval’, which has the corresponding question form how often?, in the sense of ‘at what intervals?’.

Extent: Structural Realisation

Halliday & Matthiessen (2014: 315):

The typical structure is a nominal group with quantifier, either definite,  e.g. five days, or indefinite, e.g. many miles, a long way; this occurs either with or without a preposition, the most usual preposition being for

Extent: Spatial Or Temporal [Diagnostic: Interrogative Probe]

Halliday & Matthiessen (2014: 315):

Extent construes the extent of the unfolding of the process in space-time: the distance in space over which the process unfolds or the duration in time during which the process unfolds.  The interrogative forms for Extent are how far?, how long?, how many [measure units]?, how many times?.

Extent And Location

Halliday & Matthiessen (2014: 315):

The circumstantials of Extent and Location construe the unfolding of the process in space and time. They form a four-term set as shown in Table 5-29.

Enhancing Circumstances

Halliday & Matthiessen (2014: 314):

Enhancing circumstances augment the configuration of process + participants through the specification of extent or location in time or space of the unfolding of the process, the manner of the unfolding of the process, the cause of the unfolding of the process, or the contingency of the unfolding of the process.

Relating Circumstance Types To Process (& Logical) Types

Halliday & Matthiessen (2014: 312, 314):

We could illustrate the principles as follows:

(a) relational: circumstantial Jack was building a house ...

1. when? (‘it was during’) throughout the year Extent: duration
2. where? (‘it was at’) near the river Location: place
3. how? (‘it was by’) out of brick Manner: means
4. why? (‘it was for’) for his retirement Cause: purpose
5. under what conditions? despite his illness Contingency: concession

(b) relational: possessive Jack was building a house ...

6. who with? (‘he had’) with his daughters Accompaniment: comitation

(c) relational: intensive Jack was building a house ...

7. what as? (‘it was’) as a vacation home Rôle: guise 

The other two, Matter and Angle, can be related to verbal processes:

(d) verbal: Verbiage Jack told his friends

8. what about? (‘said ...’) about the sale Matter

(e) verbal: Sayer the price was good

9. says who? (‘... said’) according to Jack Angle: source

The Set Of Functions Construed As Circumstantial

Halliday & Matthiessen (2014: 312-4):

What, then, is the set of functions that is construed as circumstantial in the grammar of the clause as representation? We can start from time, place, cause and manner; but we need to realign them somewhat, to add to them, and to interpret them in relation to the process types as a whole. The list of circumstantial elements will then be as in Table 5-28.

Circumstantial Elements Agnate With Enhancing And Projected Ranges

Halliday & Matthiessen (1999: 170):

… in both types the agnate expression takes the form of a circumstantial element (grammatically, a prepositional phrase). But in the projected type the circumstance is one of Matter, whereas in the enhancing type it is typically one of Extent or Location. This corresponds in process types to the distinction between saying and sensing on the one hand and doing and being on the other.