TOPICALIZATION
People make choices about the order of words that they use. In ASL (as in other languages such as Mandarin and Tagalog) signers often choose to first indicate what they want to talk about and then make a statement, question or comment about it. For this reason ASL is described as having a "topic-comment" structure.
Topic-comment sentences require use of non-manual signals:
· The topic (with or without) phrase: raise eyebrows, tilt head & pause on the last sign
· The comment phrase: adjust eyebrows, head head tilt, eye-gaze for statement, question, etc.
Topicalized sentences often contain the following components:
The
Topic:
One sign that identify the topic of the sentence.
This phrase often includes the pronoun or object of the sentence. Example:
BOOK ME BUY TOMORROW
ME MUST BUY BOOK FOR CLASS
(topic)
The Topic
Phrase:
One or more signs that identify the topic of the sentence. This phrase
often includes the object of the sentence.
Example:
BOOK
FOR CLASS, TOMORROW
ME BUY MUST
Time
Indicators:
In
ASL,
signs
used to determine the tense of the verb or in other words to identify when the
event occurred either in the past, present or future. Time indicators (TI)
are often placed at the beginning of either the
topic phrase or the comment phrase.
Not all time signs are used as time indicators e.g. clock
time.
Example: TOMORROW
ME MUST
BUY BOOK FOR CLASS
(topic) BOOK FOR
CLASS,
TOMORROW
ME BUY
MUST
(topic
phrase)
The
Comment Phrase:
One sign
or several signs that make comment about the "topic". This often
includes the verb of the sentence.
Example:
BOOK FOR
CLASS
TOMORROW
ME BUY MUST
TOPICALIZED SENTENCES - PRACTICE SENTENCES
Using the English sentences below, create ASL topicalized sentences.
IMPORTANT:
Read the English, then
think
only about the concepts,
and throw-out the English!
Topic phrases (1) require raised eyebrows,
(2) often starts with SEE or KNOW signs, and
(3) end with a slight hold or pause.
Comment phrases (1) usually contain the verb sign, and
(2) make a comment about the topic.
Easy Sentences
Group A Group B
1. My shoes are red. 1. Their chairs are brown.
2. That paper is yellow. 2. Her cup is broken.
3. The apple is sweet. 3. The coffee is black.
4. My watch is slow. 4. My car is pink.
5. His earring is gold. 5. I am a man.
Harder Sentences
1. I have 5 brown chairs. 1. The broken cup is orange.
2.
The woman with 4 gold earrings is French. 2. My 2 apples are
different.
3. I remember your red purse. 3. Those three apples are red.
4. The french man drinks lattes. 4. I know that English teacher.
5. I see the black dog. 5. I am enrolled in three classes.
Sentences Using Whole Entity Classifiers
1.
The 2 green candy sticks are side by side.
2. My house has an A-frame shape.
3. The clock on the wall is slighty askew.
4. The blue dish is upside down.
5. My books are piled one upon the other.
6. The man is tip-toeing.
7. Two students are sitting facing each other
8. The girl's dog's ears are pointing up.
9. .The small white box's lid is open.
10. Five pennies are lined up on their sides.
Sentences Using Whole Entity Classifiers as Locatives
(Clue: in this kind of sentence there are 2 topic phrases and one comment (verb) phrase.)
Group A
1. My brown books are on the seat of the pink chair.
2. My yellow car is next to John's purple house.
3. The four black buttons are behind the blue cup.
Group B
1. The book on the table is mine.
2. The blue car broadsided the red car.
3. The woman's purse is under her chair.