'A Further Problem About Trying To Use IFG For Text Analysis'

Fawcett (2010: 145n):

There is a further problem about trying to use IFG for text analysis. This is that it is not in fact easy to use (even with the addition of an index in the 1994 edition). Analysing language is of course inherently problematical, so it is hard to judge how far the difficulties in using IFG are inherent in the nature of language, and how far they are the result of (1) the theory and description used in IFG and/or (2) how it is presented. Certainly, many students have been helped to understand it better by reading introductory works such as Eggins (1994), Bloor & Bloor (1995) Thompson (1996) and Martin, Matthiessen & Painter (1997).

Blogger Comments:

[1] To be clear, here Fawcett cites his own difficulty in using IFG (Halliday 1994) as a problem with the theory and/or its presentation — though he doesn't identify any of the difficulties he faced.

[2] To be clear, these publications were made possible by their authors being able to use IFG (Halliday 1985, 1994) for text analysis.