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Figure .1.2
Burns,1992:5 The figure above shows the relationship between most spoken and
most written language. The term most spoken reflects language as accompanying action such as in badminton game, basketball game etc. The
term most written reflects the language as reflection. For example, a short story, novel etc. It is a reflection because the distance between the speaker
and the addressee is maximal.
2.4. Text and Context
It has been explained in the preceding section that text is language which is functional. Functional means a text has a certain job in a certain
context. The text itself can be oral or written text. To do its job, a text must occur in a context which is clear. For that reason, the addressee can
understand what the text refers to. Butt 1995:10 said that the language which surrounds us is not always the same but it changes when the situation
is different. Different situation will reveal different purpose upon the text which is produced. Where and when a written text is read is quite different
from where and when it was actually produced. What we think when we Most Spoken
Most Written Language as accompanying action Language as reflection
Spoken Language Written Language
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think an utterance “The chalk is over there”. In this case, people make sense of what is said by making a connection between the language and the
physical context. The expression “over there” refers to the position of the chalk. “Over there” can be anywhere. Probably, the chalk is on the table by
the window. The expression “Over there” reflects the position of the chalk. “Over there” is the context of the sentence “the chalk is over there”.
Based on the preceding statements, it is known that the role of context in interpreting text is very essential. When people use language to
communicate, they create and interpret text. The language itself occurs within a context. All contexts are all those things which influence act and are
connected with the language choices made when creating or interpreting texts. In any context we use language for three main functions. The first
function is we use language to understand our experiences of the world. We call this the ideational function, because it is concerned with the construction
of ideas and information. The second is we use language to interact in the world. We call this interpersonal function, because it is concerned with the
ways in which we use language to interact with human beings. The last one is we use language to build up texts that are coherent and cohesive. This is
called the textual function of language because it is concerned with how texts are organized. We use language for these functions in different contexts. In
fact, we can distinguish two important aspects of a context. These are the contexts of culture and contexts of situation. Both of these aspects will be
discussed clearly in the following section.
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2.5. Context of Culture
