Discourse Analysis

Assignment Topic:
Substitution
Submitted to Ms. Fizza
Aslam

Submitted By Ms. Naveen

Zahra
Ms. Humaira Allahditta
Ms. Amna Ejaz

Substitution

There are three general ways of substituting in a sentence: nominal, verbal, and clausal.
In nominal substitution, the most typical substitution words are one and ones . In
verbal substitution, the most common substitute is the verb do which is sometimes
used in conjunction with so as in do so.
Whereas referencing functions to link semantic meanings within text, substitution and
ellipsis differ in that they operate as a linguistic link at the lexicogrammatical level.
Substitution and ellipsis are used when a speaker or writer wishes to avoid the
repetition of a lexical item and draw on one of the grammatical resources of the
language to replace the item.

In grammar, the replacement of a word or

phrase with a "filler" word (such as one, so,
or do) to avoid repetition.
Substitution
is
one
of
the
methods
of cohesion examined by M. A. K. Halliday and
Ruqaiya Hasan in their influential text Cohesion
in English (Longman, 1976).

Examples and Observations:

"Don't you ever read the Times, Watson? I've often advised you to do so if you
want to know something."
(Christopher Lee as Sherlock Holmes in Sherlock Holmes and the Deadly Necklace,
1962)

"When I quote others I do so in order to express my own ideas more clearly."

(Michel de Montaigne)

Niles: I'll have a decaf latte, and please be sure to use skim milk.
Frasier: I'll have the same.
(David Hyde Pierce and Kelsey Grammer in "You Can't Tell a Crook by His
Cover." Frazier, 1994)

"Any people anywhere, being inclined and having the power, have the right to
rise up, and shake off the existing government, and form a new one that suits them
better."
(Abraham Lincoln)

"All generalizations are false, including this one."

(Mark Twain)
Alan Garner: Hey guys, when's the next Haley's comet?
Stu Price: I don't think it's for like another sixty years or something.
Alan Garner: But it's not tonight, right?
Stu Price: No, I don't think so.
(Zach Galifianakis and Ed Helms in The Hangover, 2009)

What is the Purpose of Substitution?

The main reason to use this technique in English is to eliminate repetitions. Most people
find that when words or phrases are quickly repeated, it is distracting. They focus on the
fact they have just seen the word or phrase, and for a moment, they are pulled away
from the flow and meaning of the text or speech. This disruption of attention is
undesirable, because writers and speakers generally want to immerse their readers and
listeners in a memorable experience with an effective message. Substitution also
provides variety in your work, demonstrating your ability to say things in more than one
way.

The Process of Substitution

"In substitution, there are two expressions [A] . . . [B] in the text: [A] could be repeated
(as in [A] . . . [A]) but instead we 'replace' it with a substitute word or phrase [B].
"An example of substitution:
I bet you get married [A] before I get married [A]. - repetition
I bet you get married [A] before I do [B]. - substitution, using do as a substitute
for get married"
(Geoffrey Leech, Benita Cruickshank, and Roz Ivanic, An A-Z of English Grammar &
Usage, 2nd ed. Pearson, 2001)
Three Types of Substitution
"Substitution comes in three flavours: nominal, verbal or clausal, depending on the
item being substituted. In (133) below, one is a substitute term for meeting, an example
of nominal substitution.
One or Ones are the terms most commonly used for nominal substitution in English.
Verbal substitution is realized through an auxiliary verb (do, be, have), sometimes
together with another substitute term such as so or the same. Example (134) shows the
substitution oflooks pretty good in the first clause with so does in the second one. The

next example, (135) is one of clausal substition, where so substitutes the previous
clause. The terms used in clausal substitution are so and not.
Thursday the sixth looks pretty good, and, so does Monday the tenth. | how 'bout
for you.
do you think we'll need an hour? | if so, how 'bout, the twenty sixth, three to four?
The examples above are all from the English corpus . . ..
Let's go and see the bears. The polar ones are over on that rock.
Did Mary take that letter? She might have done.
In clausal substitution, an entire clause is substituted.
substituted.
If youve seen them so often, you
get to know them very well.
I believe so.
so.
Everyone thinks hes guilty.
guilty. If so,
so, no doubt hell resign.
We should recognise him when we see him.
him.
Yes, but supposing not: what do we do?

"Ellipsis is a special instance of substitution, in that it involves substitution by zero.

Instead of one of the lexical items mentioned for substitution, no item is used, and the
hearer/listener is left to fill in the gap where the substitute item, or the original item,
should have appeared." (Mara Teresa Taboada, Building Coherence and Cohesion:
Task-Oriented Dialogue in English and Spanish. John Benjamins, 2004)
The Differences Between Reference and Substitution
"It is important to point out differences between reference and ellipsis-substitution.
One difference is that reference can reach a long way back in the text whereas ellipsis
and substitution are largely limited to the immediately preceding clause. Another key
difference is that with reference there is a typical meaning of co-reference. That is, both
items typically refer to the same thing. With ellipsis and substitution, this is not the case.
There is always some difference between the second instance and the first. If a speaker
or writer wants to refer to the same thing they use reference. If they want to refer to
something different they use ellipsis-substitution (Halliday 1985)."
Types of Clausal Substitution

There are three types of clausal substitution.

Substitution of reported clause
Substitution of conditional clause
Substitution of modalized clause
Substitution of Reported Clause
The reported clausal that is substituted by so or not is always declarative
whatever the mood of the presupposed clause is whether interrogative or
imperative.
Example

Has everyone gone home? I hope not.

I didnt think so.

(I hope not (that) every one has gone home)
Is this mango ripe? It seems so.
The essential distinction to be made here is that between reports and facts.
Reports can be substituted whereas facts can not, reason is that facts are
encoded at semantic level while clausal substitute works at lexicogrammatical
level only.
Substitution of Conditional Clause
Conditional clause are also substituted by so and not especially following if /

assuming so / suppose so etc.

Example

Everyone seems to think hes guilty. If so, no doubt hell offer to

resign
We should recognize the place when we come to it. Yes, but supposing not then
what do we do?
Substitution of Modalized Clause

So and not also occur as substitute for clauses expressing modality.

Example

May I give you a slice? she said.

Certainly not the red queen said.