Johanna,
   My understanding of "ergative" comes through Halliday, and his 
emphasis seems somewhat different. Perhaps not. He gives clear examples 
of transitive/ergative pairs:  Mary sailed the boat/ The boat sailed . 
 The nail tore the cloth/ The cloth tore.  Pat cooked the rice/The rice 
cooked.  and so on.  In each of these, the one indispensable element is 
boat, cloth, and rice respectively, and he calls each of these the MEDIUM.  
   It's interesting that each of these has a passive version, though 
those can seem somewhat awkward.  (The boat was sailed by Mary.  The 
cloth was torn by the nail.  The rice was cooked by Pat.)  The ergative 
version allows us to put the medium (not the direct object or, in his 
terminology goal because the clause is no longer transitive) in subject 
position without making the sentence passive. The sentence almost seems 
to be saying that the affected participant (boat, cloth, rice) is the 
source of its own change.
     He presents this as a pattern of historical change (slow and 
gradual) within the language, moving toward a textual orientation and 
away from an experiential one.  I'm still pondering that position.

Craig
Johanna Rubba wrote:

> Bill and Craig,
>
> Thanks for the elucidation of Halliday's view of subjects/actors.
>
> I don't understand the term 'ergative' as you are using it, Craig. 
> Ergative is a case that appears in languages in which an 
> agent-subject  (in a transitive clause) is marked rather than default. 
> This is how the term is used in linguistics. As you rightly point out, 
> the shirt and car are not agents in your examples of tearing and 
> exploding. Those are not transitive clauses.
>
> Halliday's "definition" of subject is just what I use in my classes. 
> It would be nice if we could get a discourse-based definition of the 
> term.
>
> Is anyone else on this list familiar with Givon (or others') work on 
> American functional syntax? I'd be interested in your thoughts on what 
> it might contribute to grammar instruction in the context of writing.
>
> Dr. Johanna Rubba, Associate Professor, Linguistics
> Linguistics Minor Advisor
> English Department
> California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
> E-mail: [log in to unmask]
> Tel.: 805.756.2184
> Dept. Ofc. Tel.: 805.756.2596
> Dept. Fax: 805.756.6374
> URL: http://www.cla.calpoly.edu/~jrubba
>
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