Lecture 13. Phraseological units in different styles

13.1. Phraseological units in student textbooks

13.2. Phraseological units in commercial advertising

13.3. Phraseology in prose fiction

Objectivbes: to introduce phraseologisms in various styles: textbooks, commerce and fiction

13.1. Phraseological units in student textbooks

Textbook authors who write for schoolchildren, students, and adult learners (including those who attend courses at the

Open University) tend to enliven their presentation of a specialist subject by a variety of stylistic devices (in particular,

figures of speech) which enhance the intelligibility and memorability of a textbook unit. The following examples have been

drawn from student textbooks on history, psychology, and physical geography. The history textbook The Early Modern

Age (Snellgrove 1979) has been chiefly designed for 'pupils aged about thirteen or fourteen'. The author stresses that

'great care has been taken to keep the language clear and simple' (p. vii).

(10) (a) London was in a violent and angry mood that Christmas. Armed bands roamed the streets, often with

drawn swords. Mobs ran wild and rumours spread like a forest fire [sic]. For the first time two abusive nicknames were heard. Royalists called their opponents 'roundheads' because so many were short-haired

apprentices. Parliamentary mobs shouted 'cavalier', comparing their opponents to the brutal Spanish caballeros

who had slaughtered the Protestant Dutch in the days of Alva. Charles felt the time was ripe to hit back.

(Snellgrove 1979: 150)

(b) Lilburne was a Leveller. This group demanded something quite extraordinary for those days -- a vote for

most males over twentyone years of age. . . . Cromwell did not see eye to eye with them. (Snellgrove 1979:162)

The idioms occurring in this text are everyday usage, and can be assumed to exist in the pupil's vocabulary: to spread like

a forest fire -'to spread rapidly'; to hit back -- 'to retaliate'; to see eye to eye -- 'to agree'.

The textbook Psychology -- an Outline for the Intending Student (J. Cohen 1972) sets out 'to introduce the subject of Psychology to pupils in the upper forms of secondary schools interested in taking it up at university or in becoming familiar

with its problems, methods and goals as part of what has come to be called General Studies'. The author uses occasional idioms like the following: 'We can see even with the naked eye that it is not uniform in structure' (i.e. 'quite easily') (J.Cohen 1972: 23). Or again: 'The actual relations of Tom, Dick and Harry or the behaviour of Jack and Jill may go down in

our field notebooks . . .' (J. Cohen 1972: 147-8). Here, the phrase Jack and Jill refers to the well-known nursery rhyme;

Tom, Dick and Harry means 'everyone'. A further example is:

(11) In general, friendship patterns tend to develop among people with similar personality characteristics and

attitudes, a fact already enshrined in proverbial wisdom -- ' Birds of a feather flock together'. (J. Cohen 1972:167)

Here, the author aptly uses a proverb meaning 'people of the same character associate together', but certainly does not

imply the negative connotation of 'unscrupulous attitudes'.

The textbook Processes and Patterns in Physical Geography (Keith 1983) deals with 'recent changes in the scope or nature

of physical geography and caters for the changing needs of the student population in the 16-19 range . . . it covers

concepts, facts and skills necessary for modern A-level syllabuses'. Examples of phraseological units include: 'Solid as a

rock is a well-used phrase, particularly by advertising copy writers, but is it the earth that is solid?' (Keith 1983: 4). Here

the author has recourse to the young person's general knowledge. Or again: 'What causes its rebirth and transformation

into Plate Tectonics? In a nutshell, new ideas and new facts' (Keith 1983: 7). Here, in a nutshell means 'in short', 'in the

fewest possible words' (from the Latin phrase: in nuce).

Correspondence texts of the Open University -- the following examples come from teaching materials on English literature

-- use phraseological units at the colloquial stylistic level, chiefly phrasal

verbs, proverbial sayings, and routine formulae, a range which indicates the author's explicit dialogue with the adult

addressee:

(12) PHRASAL VERBS: to back up . . . his thought; to come up with some thoughts about . . . ; jot down

answers; to round off this Introduction; to rule out any points that do not have a direct bearing on . . .; 'skim'

through the relevant chapters.

OTHER VERBAL PHRASES: it would be hard to put one's finger on any specifically socialist ideas in it; the first

question which springs to mind; tackle your work for this course.

IRREVERSIBLE BINOMIALS: not to expect everything to be cut-and-dried; I am not wishing to propose a hard

and fast dividing line; and persuasion is part and parcel of their enterprise; the issue of winning and losing.

PROVERBIAL SAYINGS: Just to get the ball rolling; I am going to suggest . . .; we have to take more care to

strike the right note; Wyatt is kicking against the pricks of the courtly conventions of aristocratic love-making.

(Gläser 1986c: 343)

A special characteristic of correspondence course materials are 'routine formulae', which authors use in their written

dialogue with the adult student as an expression of personal opinion: I feel . . ., I should think . . ., I would say It seems

to me that . . ., my own conclusion is . . .