A Case Study Of Metafonction Analysis Of J.K.Rowling's Commencement Address At Harvard University From The Perspective Of Systemic Functional Grammar

J.K.Rowling is well recognized as a master of art and her achievements in writing have profound significance to Br:itain and the world.Hence,it is important to explore the commencement addresses given by distinguished writers.It is different from the previous analysis which is made by presidents or other celebrities,because the ideological world of writers is distinct.Therefore,the style,content and structure of J.K.Rowling's speech are quite different from those before.The thesis analyzes J.K.Rowling's Commencement Address at Harvard University from the perspective of Halliday's Systemic Functional Grammar.Halliday's Systemic Functional Grammar is considered the analysis framework of this thesis.Based on this framework,the author utilizes quantitative method to analyze the commencement address from three different perspectives:ideational function,interpersonal function and textual function.First,this thesis analyzes the structure of the speech from the transitivity system and the logical structure of each paragraph from the logical meaning of the ideational function.Second,this thesis analyzes the appeal and resonance of the speech from mood and modality system of interpersonal function.Third,this thesis analyzes the theme and rheme structure of textual function.Based on the analysis,the following three conclusions are drawn.1.The material process accounts for 64.30/to state facts and express ideas from the transitivity system of ideational function.From the logical meaning,the speech includes two themes--the benefits of failure and the importance of imagination.The logic of her speech is clear and the relations between paragraphs are closely related.Rowling uses long complex sentences to give the audience guidance and encouragement by sharing her struggle experience and life stories.2.From the interpersonal function,Rowling mostly adopted declarative mood(96.6%)to give suggestions and express expectations for graduates.The percentage of imperative sentences is 0.83%which plays a direct role in appealing to and motivating the audience's enthusiasm.The percentage of interrogative sentences is 2.43%which attracts people's attention to achieve the interactive effect.Next,low value modal verbs are used frequently,which accounts for 49%.It can convey information and moderate tone to highlight Rowling's wisdom and calmness.Lastly,the first person "we" and "I"are used most frequently which takes up 65.4%.It can improve the persuasiveness of the speech and shorten the distance between Rowling and the audience to express feelings and achieve the purpose of the speech.3.From the viewpoint of textual function,unmarked themes appear frequently,accounting for 54%.The use of unmarked themes could make the audience understand the speaker's intention directly.The thesis analyzes J.K.Rowling's speech by utilizing Halliday's Systemic Functional Grammar.It reveals the logical relationship and significance of the speech and how the speaker expresses her views to the audience,conveys information and fulfills the speech effectively.It enables readers to have a deep understanding of the speech from a new perspective.