The Passive Voice and the lexical meaning of the Verb.

There is a close connection between the category of voice and the lexical meaning of the verb in M. E. Verbs of weak dynamic force (belong, fail, lack, own, possess, resemble) are not used in the passive construction because they do not express action and consequently the object to them is not acted upon: the child resembles his mother. All the English subjective verbs (verbs that combine only with the subject) are not used in passive construction either, e.g. she usually sits here; because the voice member is always combined with object words. Objective verbs connected with the object directly are called transitive and all others are intransitive verbs. Sometimes the English active voice acquires passive meanings: the book sells well. The play reads better than acts. The figures would not add.

The Cateory of Tense

The category of aspect

The category of aspect shows the manner in which the action is presented. The members of the aspect opposition are the Indefinite and the Continuous forms. The Indefinite form presents an action as a mere fact. That’s why it is used to denote habitual, recurrent actions, well-known facts succession of events, etc. The Continuous form presents an action as a developing process. It is used to denote an action going on at a given moment or period of time.

Category of Correlation

Many scholars are of the opinion that the English perfect – non-perfect forms represent a special grammatical category – the category of correlation which is expressed in the system of two-member opposemes: writes – has written; wrote – had written; writing – having written; to be written – to have been written, etc. showing whether the action is viewed as prior to (perfect forms) or irrespective of other actions or situations (non-perfect forms)

The category of mood

The category of mood expresses the character of connection between the process denoted by the verb and the actual reality, either presenting the process as a fact that really happened, happens or will happen or treating it as an imaginary phenomenon.

12. Lexical stylistic devices. Lexico-syntactical stylistic devices.

A stylistic device may be defined as a pattern according to which the peculiarities of the language may be materialized.

Lexical stylistic devices reveal (?) the following pattern:

• Interplay of different types of lexical meaning;

• Intensification of characteristic traits of the phenomena described;

• Contamination (нагнетать) intentional mixing of word of different stylistic aspects.

Metaphor is a transference of meanings on the basis of similarity. It’s a semantic process of associating two referents, one of which in some way resembles the other.

E.g.: the land shouted with grass.

England has two eyes, Oxford and Cambridge.

Metonymy – contiguity (?) of meaning, it’s a semantic process of associating two referents, one of which makes part of the other or is closely connected with it.

E.g.: to read Agatha Christy.

She saw around her red lips poor dear cheeks.

Irony is based on interplay of two logical meanings: dictionary and contextual which stand in opposition to each other.

E.g.: As the champion of freedom he (the Englishman) annexes (завоевывает) half of the world.

She turned with the sweet smile of an alligator.

Epithet expresses a characteristic of an object existing or imaginary. Describes the object basing on images.

E.g.: a pretty young girl.

A lipsticky smile.

Oxymoron is a variety of epithet. It is also an attributive or rarely adverbial word joined with an antonymic word in one combination.

E.g.: crowded loneliness.

An ugly beauty.

To shout silently.

Antonomasia is the use of a proper name in the function of common noun and vice a versa – the use of a common noun as a proper name.

E.g.: Miss Simplicity.

Some Tom-cat entered our room.

I want to meet Count Something.

Zeugma is a stylistic device of using a verb or adjective in the same grammatical, but different semantic relations to two abjection nouns in the context, the semantic relation being on the one hand literal and on the other – metaphorical. Zeugma is a figure of speech, using a verb or adjective with two nouns, to one of which it is strictly applicable, while the word appropriate to the other is not used.

E. g.: And the boys took their places and their books.

With wiping eyes and hearts.

Pun is a figure, which consists in a humorous use of words identical in sound, but different in meaning or the use of different meanings of the same word.

E.g.: Have you been seen any spirit? Or taken any?

Did you hit a woman with a child? – No, I hit her with a stick.