Lesson 2c

Coordination – cont.

 

Simple coordination

- the usual kind of coordination

- a single clause or clause constituent is linked to others that are parallel in meaning, in function, and (generally) in form = the coordination of single grammatical constituents such as clauses, predications, phrases, or words.

- the coordinated units are conjoins, and the resulting combination is a conjoint

- there are two ways of analysing simple coordination of clause constituents:

a) the construction can be examined as an elliptical version of clause coordination = we note what elements are ellipted, e.g.:

David has washed the dishes and --- cleaned all the windows. = the sentence is viewed as the coordination of two clauses in which the subject Susan and the operator has have been ellipted from the second clause

b) the construction can be examined in terms of the units themselves = we note what elements are present, e.g.:

David has [[washed the dishes] and [cleaned all the windows]]. = the sentence is viewed as a single clause containing two coordinated predications, which together constitute the predication of the clause

For simple coordination, there are advantages in adopting the coordination analysis (b) above) rather than the ellipsis analysis.

 

Types of simple coordination

a) coordination of clauses

- complete independent clauses may be coordinated, e.g.:

The winter had come at last, and snow lay thick on the ground.

- subordinate finite clauses may be coordinated, provided that they belong to the same function class, e.g.:

If you pass the examination and (if) no one else applies, you can get the job.

- nonfinite clauses of the same type and verbless clauses:

I’ve asked her to come tonight or (to) give us a call tomorrow.

b) coordination of predicates

e.g.: John ate the fruit and drank the wine.

c) coordination of predications

e.g.: Most people will have seen the film or read the book.

In both types of coordination (b) and c)) the subject is shared. The most reduced form of the sentence will be preferred.

 

Coordination of noun phrases and their constituents

 - two or more NPs may be conjoined to form a conjoint noun phrase, e.g.:

[Some of the staff and all of the students]have attended the lecture. – the conjoint NP [some of the staff and all of the students] functioning as S (subject)

a) combinatory coordination of NPs

- when the coordination is combinatory, we cannot paraphrase it by clause coordination, because the conjoins function in combination with respect to the rest of the clause, e.g.:

Tom and Lucy make a nice couple. (It is not possible to say that Tom makes a nice couple, and Lucy makes a nice couple.)

b) segregatory coordination of NPs

- when the coordination is segregatory, we can paraphrase it by clause coordination, e.g.:

Tom and Lucy can help me. = Tom can help me, and Lucy can help me.

Many conjoint noun phrases can be ambiguous between the two interpretations, e.g.:

Tom and Lucy won a prize. can suggest that

{C}a)      they each won a prize (independently of each other) = segregatory coordination

{C}b)      they won the prize (one prize) together / jointly = combinatory coordination

 

Complex coordination

= coordination in which the conjoins are combinations of units rather than single units; in the clause, for instance, it is possible not merely to coordinate objects or to coordinate complements; but also to coordinate one combination of object and complement with another combination of object and complement (see sentences below)

- such coordination usually requires a strong parallelism between the conjoins

- it is mainly associated with formal, written English rather than informal conversation

Examples:

- a conjoin consists of contiguous elements and the conjoins are combined in final position in the clause:

a) O_i + O_d

I gave John a bottle of Bushmills and Lucy a bottle of Baileys.

b) O + C_o

Tim painted the kitchen green and the bathroom yellow.

c) O + A

You should serve the tea in a cup and the wine in a glass.

Gapping

= a type of complex coordination in which a second or subsequent conjoin contains a medial ellipsis, so that the elements in these conjoins are not contiguous

a) S + O

One student has written a short story, and the other --- a poem.

b) S + A

Jack completed the test in thirty minutes, and Tom --- in thirty-five.

c) S + C

Nikki has looked more beautiful, and Tim --- more relaxed since their holiday in Spain.

Other types of coordination are as follows:

appended coordination, pseudo-coordination, and quasi-coordination

 

Appended coordination

- typical of informal speech

- occurs when an elliptical clause (involving one element or contiguous elements) is appended to a previous clause:

Julius sings really well – and Frank, too.

My boyfriend plays tennis, and sometimes also football.

She got a book for her birthday, and a bunch of flowers and  a painting.

 

Pseudo-coordination

- there are several types of ‘pseudo-coordination’, mostly found in informal speech:

a) idiomatic structures:

Please try and come to my office tomorrow. = try to come

They’ve gone and upset her again.

They sat and talked about the old times. = sat talking

 

b) the coordination of two adjectives of which the first functions as an intensifier:

This apartment is nice and warm. = nicely warm

c) the coordination of identical comparative forms of adjectives, adverbs, and determiners that expresses a continuing increase in degree:

She felt more and more tired. = increasingly tired

She spoke faster and faster.

d) the coordination of two or more identical forms of verbs and adverbs that expresses continuation or repetition:

They talked and talked and talked. = talked for a very long time

He talked on and on and on. = continuously

e) the coordination of two identical nouns to indicate different kinds:

There are doctors and doctors. = good and bad doctors

f) the coordination of three or more identical nouns to indicate a large number or quantity:

We saw cats and cats and cats all over the place.

 

Quasi-coordination

- most of the quasi-coordinators are related to comparative forms: as well as, as much as, rather than, more than

- these quasi-coordinators are not fully coordinative (that is why they are called ‘quasi’), since in subject position they normally do not cause plural concord if the first noun prhase is singular:

Andrew, as much as his brothers, was responsible for breaking the window.

- in this they resemble prepositions such as with, in addition to and after more than coordinators like and:

Andrew, with his brothers, was responsible for breaking the window.

 

References:

Greenbaum, S., & Quirk, R. (1990) A Student’s Grammar of the English Language. Harlow: Pearson Education Limited, pp. 271-282.

Chalker, S. (1992) A Student’s English Grammar Workbook. Harlow: Addison Wesley Longman Limited, exercises 125-128.