A Transformational- Generative Approach towards Understanding Al-Istifham

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to analyse the formation of interrogative sentences in Arabic through the application of the basic linguistic concepts and to explain the derivation of those sentences with their transformations via the employment of the Transformational-Generative tools and concepts.

This paper attempts to examine the ways and manners which

al-Istifham could be understood through a transformational-generative approach. It begins with an introduction with a sketchy overview of the origin and development of Arabic grammar in the Arab world. Effort is made to explain the theoretical framework used in the paper. Basic terms and concepts are carefully explained. We have been able to show that, Arabic, as a language with VSO word-order, allows a right hand movement. It is discovered that it is categorized mainly into two, viz: (1) al-Istifham al-Lughawi (linguistic question) and (2) al-Istifham al-Adabi (literary question). The formal is characterized by abhathun lughawiyyah (linguistic analysis) but the latter is characterized by aghradun balaghiyyah

(rhetorical objectives). The study shows that where two particles of Istifham Hal and Hamzah are  used they both have a syntactic and semantic markers which would be answered by any of Adawatul-Jawab (answer tools).