Fawcett's Second Major Type Of Evidence For Abolishing The Verbal Group

Fawcett (2010: 335):

Part 2 of the paper begins by presenting a set of reasons for dispensing with the 'verbal group' that are all based on the generation of the internal morphology of the elements concerned (e.g., be + en) and the portmanteau forms of some of the elements (e.g., is can function simultaneously as both Operator and Auxiliary, or as Operator and Main Verb). So this evidence too shows that the Operator, Auxiliaries and Main Verb should be in the same unit. In principle this could be either the 'verbal group' or the clause, but after the decision to promote the Finite to the clause it must clearly be the clause.

Blogger Comments:

[1] To be clear, here again, contrary to SFL Theory, Fawcett is arguing 'from below' — from form instead of function.

[2] To be clear, there has been no decision to "promote" the Finite. In SFL Theory, the Finite is an element of both clause and verbal group structure, as previously explained.