Structural Syntax: Immediate Constituents

Structural Syntax: Immediate Constituents

All grammatical constructions can be analyzed into
Immediate Constituents (ICs).

In the case of grammatical coordination, constructions may have
three or more ICs. The construction pie, cake, cookies, and
candy, for example, has four ICs and the coordinating conjunction and
to connect them. Except in such cases, structural grammar analyzes syntax by
dividing grammatical constructions into exactly two ICs.

Structural Syntax: Immediate Constituents Syntax1

More complex structures can be analyzed by means of "Chinese
boxes."

Structural Syntax: Immediate Constituents Syntax2

Structural grammar analyzes the suntax of a sentence by dividing the whole
sentence into its ICs, and then dividing those ICs into
their ICs, and so on--until the analysis reaches the level of individual
words.

Structural Syntax: Immediate Constituents Syntax3

Structural Syntax: Immediate Constituents Syntax3

A more perspicuous way of diagramming this same structure uses a
"tree."

Structural Syntax: Immediate Constituents Syntax4

Here the "equals" sign ( = ) indicates grammatical coordination.

The concept of the Immediate Constituent (IC) is one of
two fundamental concepts in the structural analysis of syntax. The other fundamental
concept is the concept of the Grammatical Tie.

Click here for a brief explanation of the concept
of the "grammatical tie."

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