The aim of this post is to restore register in strict Hallidayan terms, purging non-canonical sociological, environmental, or misstratal interpretations, and situating it clearly in the relational ontology.
1. Register as Functional Variety of Language
Canonical SFL defines:
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Register = functional variety of language
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Registers exist within the semantic stratum (language), not the contextual stratum.
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Register realises situation types: subpotentials of context.
This is crucial:
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Situation types = context subpotentials (F/T/M configurations)
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Register = semantic subpotential that construes and realises these situation types in language
2. Register is Not Context
Common misinterpretations:
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Register as “variable of context”
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Register as sociological category
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Register as “style” imposed on text
Canonical Halliday + relational ontology reject these:
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Registers do not instantiate context; they are semantic construals.
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They are subpotentials of meaning, not event properties.
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They exist inside the cline of instantiation of language, not above it.
3. Register and the Perspectival Cut
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Situation type → register potential
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Situation type: the context subpotential
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Register: semantic-level subpotential constraining the wording of texts
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instance: text construed as an instance of the semantic subpotential realising the situation type
This preserves the relational-ontological framing:
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Perspectival: each movement is a cut, not a process
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Non-temporal: no sequence or derivation is implied
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Canonical: fully aligned with Halliday’s strata
4. Register as Subpotential of Semantics
Visualising the structure:
| Stratum | Subpotential | Instance |
|---|---|---|
| Context | Situation type | Situation |
| Semantics | Register | Text |
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Contextual subpotential → situation
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Semantic subpotential → text
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Register exists strictly at semantic level, realising contextual subpotentials
This resolves historical conflation of context and language, and prevents drift into sociological or environmental readings.
5. What This Post Secures
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Register is restored to canonical status
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Register is inside semantic stratum, not context
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Situation types remain context subpotentials
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Texts are perspectival instances of semantic subpotentials
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The relational ontology ensures all cuts are explicit and non-temporal
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Misinterpretations that treat register as a variable of context or as sociological category are eliminated
Next Post
Post 6 will address the Metaphysics of Realisation:
Explain realisation as a cross-stratal relation,
Situate it within relational ontology as perspectival descent, not temporal pipeline,
Show how semantic construal → lexicogrammar → phonology operates as a solidary, relational cut.
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