We must bear in mind that the connection of grammar with other disciplines comes from the systemic conception of language.

Units of language are divided into segmental and suprasegmental. Segmental units consist of phonemes, they form phonemic strings of various status. Suprasegmental units do not exist by themselves, but are realized with segmental units and express different modificational meanings reflected on the strings of segmental units.

The segmental units of language form a hierarchy of levels. Units of each higher level are formed of units of the immediately lower level. But this hierarchical relation is not reduced to the mechanical composition of larger units from smaller ones, as units of each level are characterized by their own, specific, functional properties which provide the basis for the very recognition of the corresponding language levels.

The lowest level of lingual units is phonemic: it is formed by phonemes. The phonemic has no meaning, its function is purely differential.

The second level, located above the phonemic level, is morphemic. The morpheme is the elementary meaningful part of the word built up by phonemes. The morpheme expresses abstract, “significative”, meaning.

The third level is lexemic. Its differential unit is the word. The word realizes the function of nomination.

The fourth level is denotemic, its constituent unit is denoteme (notional part of the sentence).

The fifth level is proposemic. It is built up by sentences. As a sign, the sentence simultaneously fulfils two functions – nominative and predicative.

The sixth level is the level of topicalization, its constituent element is the “dicteme” (“utterance”). The function of the dicteme is to build up a topical stretch of some text. Being an elementary topical unit of text, the dicteme fulfils four main signemic functions: the functions of nomination, predication, topicalization, and stylization.

Taking into consideration the hierarchy of levels in language, the place of grammar in it can be described as follows:

1) With phonetics grammar is connected not only by the fact that every grammar form is performed first orally but also that:

a) phonetic devices (stress) can be used to distinguish different parts of speech (conduct - to conduct, export – to export)

b) to distinguish different words and word combinations

` Mad ` doctor – сумасшедший врач, ` mad doctor – врач, лечащий душевнобольных людей, психиатр.

c) intonation helps to form the difference between statements and questions with the same structure

You know him. – You know him?

2) The connection with the lexicology is not that they have the same object – word, viewed from different angles, but also in the sphere that the study of word from the lexicological point itself. The constant reciprocal action between vocabulary and grammar makes itself quite evident in contextual restrictions of word meanings. Examples: the verb to mean + infinitive means “to intend”, to mean + gerund means “to signify, to have as a consequence” or

    He treated my words as a joke.

    The book treats of poetry.

    They treated us to sweet wine.

    He is treating my son cruelly. In homonymic patterns the meaning of the verb is generally defined by the immediate lexical context, which is always explicit enough to make it clear.

3) Studying grammar in its relation to style presents a special point of linguistic interest. Grammatical devices may differ greatly in their connotative power and stylistic aspect. On the grammatical level expressive means may be obtained, for instance, through different types of intensifiers, through intonation and word – order or through the use of grammatical forms endowed with a distinct expressive function and stylistic colouring, through special transpositions, i.e. metaphoric extension of grammatical meanings that aims to express the speaker’s attitude towards his collocutor or to the thing spoken about.

Thus, grammatical forms must be investigated in all the variety of their use. In any language both obligatory and variable features are present at all levels of its structure. The study of grammatical aspects of style must be reasonably associated with the problem of functional transpositions leading to the development of secondary syntagmatic meanings of grammatical forms.

References

1. Bloch M.Y. A Course in Theoretical English Grammar. - M., 2000. – p.6-26

2. Блох М.Я. Теоретические основы грамматики – М., 2000

3. Iofik L.L., Chakhoyan L.P. Readings in the theory of English Grammar