The category of the article

The article is a determiner (определитель), a unit which determines a noun. Unlike other determines (the lexical means of determination: that, some, any, etc.) it is so general that it has become the grammatical means of determination. When no lexical determiner is used a noun is obligatory modified either by a definite article (the) or an indefinite article (a, an) or by a zero article. The English articles maybe considered at least from two different points of view.

The situational estimation (ситуативная оценка) of the article.

The basic principle of differentiation of the article here is associated with the disclosing of the informational characteristics that the article conveys to its concrete contextual conditions (Основной принцип разделения артиклей в рамках этой теории это раскрытие информационных характеристик артикля которые передаются в конкретном контексте). Examined from this angle the definite article serves as an indicator of the type of nounal information which is presented as the facts already known. It is the starting point of the communication or it’s “theme” (тема). In contrast to this the indefinite article or the zero article introduces the central communicative nounal part (соотносящаяся с существительным) of the sentence, the part rendering new information to be conveyed from the speaker to the listener another words it is called the “rheme” (рема) of utterance (высказывание). There are two main sources by means of which the subject of speech (agent) is able to estimate whether of addressee should treat the nounal information as the theme or the rheme (есть два источника за счёт которых говорящий может оценить следует ли адресату интерпретировать к информации соотносимой с существительным как к теме или как к реме).

1) The previous context. For example, I bought a book yesterday. The book is interesting.

2) The situation itself. For example, Open the door, please.

The semantic evaluation of the article.

The definite article expresses the individualization of the reverent of the noun (индивидуализацию (т.е выделяет на фоне всех других референтов этого класса) референта который соотносится с существительным). The object that the noun denotes is treated as concrete individual or definite. This meaning of the definite article can be demonstrated in a substitution test: “the” is substituted by lexical determiners, for example, the man – this man. The indefinite article expresses classification which means that this article refers (соотносит) the objects denoted to a certain class. The classified meaning of the indefinite article can be demonstrated by substitution with classifying lexical determiners, for example, a book – some book. The semantic difference between the individualizing definite article and the classifying indefinite article can be demonstrated by a contrast test, for example, the man (potentially contrasted with other objects of the same class); a man (potentially contrasted with other classes of objects).

With uncountable nouns the zero article expresses classifying generalization because the uncountable nouns cannot be used with the indefinite article which is still semantically connected with its etymological based, the numeral one (неопределённые артикль произошёл от числительного один). The same applies to countable nouns in the plural.

The use of the article can also be fixed in set expressions (устойчивые выражения), for example, to be in a hurry, to be at a loss (растеряться), on the whole (в целом) etc. In some cases the use of the article differentiates the lexical meanings of lingual units, for example, to keep house (вести хозяйство) – to keep the house (сидеть дома). Sometimes different articles oppose certain classes of objects, for example, with the names of newspapers the definite article is used (“The Times”) while with the names of magazines the zero article is used (“Cosmopolitans”).

Лекция 6 (21.10.15)