Лексические средства создания образности и выразительности речи.

A word can be defined as a unit of language functioning within the sentence or within a part of it which by its sound or graphical form ex­presses a concrete or abstract notion or a grammatical...notion through "one of its meanings and which is capable of enriching its semantic struc­ture by acquiring new meanings and losing old ones.

It is now common knowledge that lexical meaning differs from grammatical meaning in more than one way. L e x i c a l meaning refers the mind to some concrete concept, phenomenon, or thing of ob­jective reality, whether real or imaginary. Lexical meaning is thus a means by which a word-form is made to express a definite concept.

G г а m m a t i с a l meaning refers our mind to relations be­tween words or to some forms of words or constructions bearing upon their structural functions in the language-as-a-system. Grammatical meaning can thus be adequately called "structural meaning".

Three types of meaning can be distinguished: logical, emotive and nominal.

LOGICAL meaning is the precise naming of a feature of the idea, phenomenon or object, the name by which we recognize the whole of the concept. This meaning is also synonymously called referential meaning or direct meaning. Referential meanings are liable to change. As a result the referential meanings of one word may denote different concepts. It is therefore nec­essary to distinguish between primary and secondary referential, or logical, meaning.

E.G. adverb inwardly has the primary logical meaning of ‘in­ternally', or ‘within'. Its secondary logical meanings are: 'towards the centre', 'mentally', 'secretly', which are to some extent derived from the primary meaning. Some dictionaries give a very extended list of pri­mary and secondary logical meanings, and it is essential for stylistic purposes to distinguish them, as some stylistic devices are built on the interplay of primary and secondary logical meanings.

All the meanings fixed by authoritative English and American dic­tionaries comprise what is called the semantic structure of the word. The meanings that are to be found in speech or writing and which are accidental should not be regarded as components of the semantic structure of the word. They may be transitory, inasmuch as they depend on the context. They are contextual meanings. Such meanings are therefore also called derivative meanings.

Imagery is mainly produced by the interplay of different meanings. Concrete objects are easily perceived by the senses. Abstract notions are perceived by the mind. When an abstract notion is by the force of the mind represented through a concrete object, an image is the result. Imagery may be built on the interrelation of two abstract notions or two concrete objects or an abstract and a concrete one.

A verbal image – is a pen picture of an object, person, idea, expressed in a figurative way by words, used in their contextual meaning.

The structure of a verbal image:

a) the tenor – the subject of a thought

b) the vehicle – the object, subject is being compared to

c) the ground of comparison – the common feature

d) the relation between tenor and vehicle

e) the type of a trope

E.g. The old woman a) is sly d) like a fox b).

Trope – is the figurative use of a word or a phrase that creates imagery.

Classification of LSD.

Group 1. Interaction of different types of lexical meaning:

· dictionary and contextual meaning (metaphor, metonymy, irony)

· primary and derivative (zeugma, pun)

· logical and emotive (oxymoron, epithet)

· logical and nominal (antonomasia)

Group 2. Intensification of a feature (simile, periphrasis, hyperbole)

Group 3. Peculiar use of set expressions (clichés, proverbs, epigrams, quotations, allusion, decomposition of set phrases)

LSD: metaphor, metonymy, irony.

Metaphor -is the transference of some quality from one object to another.

All the world is a stage.

The night whispered to him.

Noun Metaphor can be classified depending on the type of identification of tenor and vehicle:

1. T is V 2.T turns into V 3.something makes T into V 4.V replaces T

Metaphor can be classified semantically and structurally:

1)Genuine, trite (fixed in dictionaries), traditional

2)Simple (realized in 1 word), sustained (several words)

Functions of M.:

1.to create images 2.to reveal the writer’s views indirectly 3.to make discourse more vivid and poetic

Metonymy -is a deliberate use of words in 2 meanings: dictionary and contextual and based on the possible associations:

1.a part for the whole (synechdoche)

2.the container names the content

3.a symbol for a thing/person nominated

4.the leader names the party

5.the material for the object made of it

6.author for his works

7.the instrument for the action performed with this instrument

8.the concrete is put for the abstract

9.a significant feature of a person for its possessor

10. the name of the place for something connected with it.

Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears!

The White House will be announcing the decision around noon today.

Irony -it is SD which is based on simultaneous realization of two meanings (dictionary, contextual), but its 2 meanings stand in opposition to each other.

Nice weather, isn’t it?

How clever of you!

The function of irony is to express a feeling of irritation, displeasure, pity and regret thorough a positive statement. The types of irony: verbal (the type when it’s possible to indicate the exact word whose contextual meaning opposes its dictionary meaning). Sustained (the type when we feel irony, but can’t single out one exact word.

LSD: zeugma, pun, antonomasia.

Zeugma -the use of the word in the same grammatical but different semantic relations to two adjacent words in the context. These semantic relations on the one hand literal, on the other figurative.

He took his pistol and his life.

Verb+ Object(literal meaning)+Object(figurative meaning)

Adj+2 object

Pun – a play of words. 2 types:

1.Is based on similarity of sounds between of two different words.

2.Is based on interaction of different meaning of one and the same word.

hijack-Hi, Jack!

The main function is to create a humorous effect.

Antonomasia - is a using a proper name as a common noun and vice versa using a descriptive word-combination instead of a proper noun.

Her husband is Othello.

Mr-Know-All

The main function 1)is to name the person an characterize him simultaneously. 2)to avoid naming a person again. 3)to denote the characteristics of the name.

LSD: periphrasis, simile, hyperbole.

Periphrasis - is a SD which consist in renaming an object or phenomenon by a phrase or sent. with the aim of bringing out and intensifying some features or qualities of that object. Logical P- is based on some basic features of the object or general knowledge about some cultural phenomena. Figurative P- is based on similarity or association that can exist between objects.

my better half (wife)

instruments of destruction – weapon

to tie the knot – to get married

Simile - an expressed imaginative comparison based on the likeness of 2 subjects or ideas belonging to different classes. Semantically: 1 fresh; 2 trite Structurally: 1 simple; 2 sustained

He has always been as love as a bird

Hyperbole- is a deliberate exaggeration which means to be understood as exaggeration with the aim to intensify one of the features of an object to such an extent that will show its absurdity.

to be scared to death

He has written a barrel of stories

2 types:

1. trite (избитый)

2. fresh (original)

LSD: set expressions.

Allusion is an indirect reference or a hint by a phrase or word to a historical, literary, mythological or biblical fact which is presumably known to the listener/reader. The function is to explain or clarify a complex phenomenon to make the reader become active by reflecting and to make the message stick in the reader’s mind.

It was his Achilles [ə'kɪliːz] heel

Decomposition of set phrases –consists in violation of set phrases with the aim to revive the independent meaning of each element and acquire new expressiveness. There are several types of violation of set expressions: prolongation, interaction, substitution.

A Cliché is a word or expression which has lost its originality because it has been used too often. The effects achieved using clichés includes expressing emotions and attitudes, evaluation and brevity.

Proverbs are short, well-known, wise sayings usually in a simple language. They are usually didactic and involve imaginary.

Epigram is a short clever amusing saying or a poem. In most cases they are witty statements by some individuals whose names we know.

Quotation – is a phrase or sentence taken from a work of literature or other piece of writing in order to prove a view point or support an argument.