| In systemic functional linguistics(SFL),evaluation is a critical means of realizing interpersonal meta-function,and the study of evaluation involves a great deal of study of evaluative lexicogrammar resources in different types of discourse.Functional linguists,represented by Martin and White,believe that evaluation includes three subsystems:attitude,engagement,and graduation(Martin & White,2005).The attitude system is the core of evaluation,while engagement and graduation systems play a supportive and moderate role and cannot express attitudinal meaning independently.However,Sinclair(1987)argues that the resources outside the appraisal system are also able to realize the attitudinal meaning.The evaluative meaning realized by these resources is implicit and imperceptible.At present,most of the studies on evaluative resources(ER)have analyzed the explicit lexicogrammar resources in discourse based on Martin and White’s appraisal theory and have yielded fruitful results,but problems remain to be addressed in the following two aspects:(1)The lack of analysis on the description,explanation and selection of the operation mechanism of implicit evaluative resources(IER);(2)The lack of the study on IER of each Move in a certain part of the discourse,such as the analysis of IER of each Move in the Discussion section of research articles(RA).On these grounds,the present study explores the connotation and denotation of IER based on the theories and paradigm of SFL,establishes a framework for analyzing IER in the Discussion section of RA,and presents an attempted explanation of selection and cooperation between them.Besides,the present study moderates the existing framework of Move analysis and establishes a proper framework for analyzing Moves,and then,finds out the selection and cooperation of IER in each Move in the Discussion section of RA.The present study starts with a description and explanation of IER and the construction of a framework for analyzing IER.The study probes into IER by combining the concept of IER in SFL with Jiang’s research results.He(2020)suggests that the evaluative meaning in IER is testified as being substantially involved in value creation,namely,the result of a particular value judgement.The present study selects the Discussion section of RA from the journal Applied Linguistics,published between 2016 and 2020(99discourses in total).According to the results of data analysis,IER mainly comprise(1)processes and adjuncts that indicate the concept of introduction and explanation;or(2)verbal and mental processes and participants that indicate the concept of plans and suggestions;or(3)material processes,participants,and adjuncts that indicate the concept of attribution and identification;or(4)modal operators;or(5)gradable adjectives and adverbs and comparative structures with the concept of comparison;or(6)conjunctions(groups),adjuncts and structures with the concept of concession;or(7)material processes,conjunctions(groups)and adjuncts with the concept of causality;or(8)quotations in the Discussion section of RA.Second,the present study moderates the existing framework of Move analysis and establishes a framework applicable to the study.The adjusted framework comprises three Moves: restating background information,reporting and commenting results,and commenting research.Move 2 also includes four steps: summarizing and reporting results,explaining the main results,comparing the results,and commenting on the results;and comparing the research,commenting on the research,pointing out the limitations of the research and providing advice for future research are involved in Move 3.Finally,the present study analyzes the selection and cooperation of IER in the three Moves of the Discussion section in detail,and finds that IER are distributed differently in the three Moves of the Discussion section,and even if the same IER used in different Moves can express different rhetorical and interpersonal meaning.The study of the IER in each Move of the Discussion section of RA enriches and extends the theoretical and applicational studies of ER in SFL.Theoretically,it reveals the relationship among IER,and explains the linguistic and psychological factors of choosing different IER.In terms of the application,it provides some strategies and linguistic expressions for writing the Discussion section of RA and enables researchers to realize their writing purposes. |
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