Hybridisation in Texts: Where Spoken and Written Language meet

Abstract

This study emphasizes the possibility of exploring spoken texts in the framework of Systemic Functional Linguistics, a language theory and linguistic approach developed by M.A.K. Halliday in the early sixties. We analyse some text messages (SMS, whats app or messenger) received from undergraduate students who are preparing for a thesis under our supervision in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Maîtrise at the English Language Department, University of Abomey-Calavi. The claim is that by exploring the mode continuum of Systemic Functional Linguistics (henceforth SFL) in those texts, it is possible to come to cogent conclusions about the linguistic features of such messages which are now becoming one of the major means of communication among teachers and students. The findings of this study show a hybridation of spoken and written language in communication and therefore, create a new position which can be located at the middle of the two poles (spoken and written) of the mode continuum.