Seminar 4

1. Classification of functional styles.

Functional Style is a system of interrelated language means serving a definite aim in communication. It is the coordination of the language means and stylistic devices which shapes the distinctive features of each style and not the language means or stylistic devices themselves.

Each style, however, can be recoquized by one or more leading features which are especially conspicuous. For instance the use of special terminology is a lexical characteristics of the style of scientific prose, and one by which it can easily be recognized.

A style of language can be fined as a system of coordinated, interrelated and inter-coordinated language means intended to full-fill a specific function of communication and aiming at a defined effect. Style of language is a historical category.

They are:

1) Official(documents and papers);

• 2) Scientific...

(brochures, articles, other scientific publications);

• 3) Publicistic (essay, public speech);

• 4) Newspaper style(mass media);

• 5) Belles-lettres style(genre of creative writing);

Each of mentioned here styles  can be expressed in two forms: written and oral.

• 1) scientific style is employed in professional communication to convey some information. It’s most conspicuous feature is the abundance of terms denoting objects, phenomena and processes characteristics of some particular field of science and technique. Also precision clarity logical cohesion.

• 2) Official style is the most conservative one. It uses syntactical constructions and archaic words. Emotiveness is banned out of this style.

• 3) Publicistic style is famous for its explicit pragmatic function of persuasion directed at influencing the reader in accordance with the argumentation of the author.

• 4) Newspaper style — special graphical means are used to attract the readers attention.

5) Belles-lettres style — the richest register of communication besides its own language means, other styles can be used besides informative and persuasive functions, belles-lettres style has a unique task to impress the reader are aesthetically.

3. The Newspaper Functional Style.

a) brief news items;

b) advertisments and announcements;

c) headlines;

4. The Scientific Prose Style.

a) exact sciences;

b) humanitarian sciences;

c) popular- science prose;

1. The Belles - Lettres Functional Style.

a) poetry;

b) emotive prose;

c) drama;

2. Publicistic Functional Style,

a) oratory;

b) essays;

c) articles in newspapers and magazines;

5. The Official Documents Functional Style.

a) diplomatic documents;

b) business letters;

c) military documents;

d) legal documents;

2. Peculiarities of colloquial style.

The main function is communication, realization of practical activity of a person. It is used in everyday life. Extra-linguistic features: informality, spontaneous character of speech, interpersonal contact and direct involvement in the process of communication, attraction of paralinguistic means of communication (gestures, expression of the face, movements). Stylistic features: familiarity, ellipsis, concrete character of speech, interruption and logical inconsistency of the speech, emotiveness, efficacy. Secondary stylistic features: idiomatic and pattern character, “personal” type of speech presentation. Oral and written (epistolary) varieties. Two forms of speech: dialogue (simple dialogue and polylogue) and monologue.

Inner differentiation, i.e. genre and style distinctions, caused by the communicative status, mood, aims, relations between the speakers, situation and theme of the conversation. Substyles and genres: literary conversational style / talks, conversations, interviews /, familiar-conversational style / communication between family members, friends, intimate communication, children's talk /, low colloquial / quarrels, abuse, scandal, squabble, insult /.

Language peculiarities: high activity of non-bookish means of the language ( with stylistic conversational and familiarity colouring, the use of non-bookish low colloquial elements on all language levels, incomplete constructions ( at phonetic, syntactical and partially morphological levels), the use of language units of concrete meaning at all the levels, non-characteristic use of means with abstract and generalized meaning, weak syntactic connections between the parts of a syntactic structure, active use of means of verbal imagery, means of expressing subjective appraisal, emotional and expressive means at all the levels, patterned speech, specific phraseology , personal forms, nonce-words.

Galperin denies the existence of this functional style. He thinks that functional style can be singled out in the written variety of language. He defines the style as the result of a deliberate careful selection of language means which in their correlation constitute this style.

Maltzev thinks that style is a choice but this choice is very often done unconsciously, spontaneously He thinks that the main aim of functional style is to facilitate a communication in a certain sphere of discourse. But the rigid lay outs of business and official letters practically exclude the possibility of deliberate, careful selection. One more example the compression in the newspapers headlines where there is a tendency to abbreviate language.

There's a descrepancy in Galperin's theory. One of the substyles of the publicistic style is oratory which is its oral subdivision. Kuznetz and Skrebnev give the definitions of bookish and colloquial styles. The bookish style is a style of a highly polished nature that reflects the norm of the national literary language. The bookish style may be used not only in the written speech but in oral, official talk.

Colloquial style is the type of speech which is used in situation that allows certain deviations from the rigid pattern of literary speech used not only in a private conversation, but also in private correspondence. So the style is applicable both to the written and oral varieties of the terms "colloquial" and "bookish" don't exactly correspond to the oral and written forms of speech. Maltzev suggests terms "formal" and "informal" and states that colloquial style is the part of informal variety of English which is used orally in conversation.