Theoretical Interpretation of Ontogenesis in SFL: Connotation, Origins and Implications

Abstract

Abstract:

The systemic-functional school innovatively employed the biological term ontogenesis, with a view to revealing the characteristics and patterns of language development. Most of the previous research has been undertaken in the form of case study, while few attempts have been made to interpret the theory itself. From the semogenetic perspective, the connotation of ontogeny has been greatly enriched. The systemic-functional school has absorbed ideas from linguistic anthropology, evolutionary biology and constructivist psychology to build a solid foundation for the ontogenesis theory. Ontogenesis in SFL is not merely a theory about language, but also a metatheory concerning the interrelation between human, language and society. It is argued that ontogenesis has positive implications for accounting for the nature of grammar and its function of construing experience.

Key words:systemic-functional school,ontogenesis,theoretical interpretation

CLC Number:

H0-0

ZHOU Haiming. Theoretical Interpretation of Ontogenesis in SFL: Connotation, Origins and Implications[J]. Contemporary Foreign Languages Studies, 2022, 22(5): 70-79.

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