Recommended Literature

1. Стилистика современного английского языка / А.Н.Мороховский, О.П.Воробьёва, Н.И.Лихошерст, З.В.Тимошенко. – К.: Вища школа, 1991. – С. 93-136.

2. Galperin I.R. Stylistics. – M.: Higher School Publishing House, 1981. – P. 70-119.

Optional Literature

1. Арнольд И.В. Стилистика английского языка. – Л.: Просвещение, 1981. – С. 102-139.

2. Скребнев Ю.М. Основы стилистики английского языка. – М.: ООО «Издательство Астрель», 2003. – С.52-77.

3. Maltzev V.A. Essays on English Stylistics. – Minsk: Vysheishaya Shkola, 1984.

4. Kukharenko V.A. A Book of Practice in Stylistics. – Vinnytsia: Nova Knyga, 2000. – P. 27-42.

5. Yefimov L.P., Yasinetskaya E.A. Practical Stylistics of English. – Vinnytsia: Nova Knyga, 2004.

Basic notions

The denotative meaning of a word presents the basic information naming the notion itself. This meaning is obligatory and it is not connected with the conditions of communication.

The connotative meaning is optional in a word. It is connected with the conditions and participants of the communicative act and includes emotive, evaluative, expressive and functional-stylistic components.

A word possesses an evaluative component of meaning if it expresses positive or negative (logical) estimation of the object it denotes, i.e. approval/ disapproval.

A word possesses an emotive component of meaning if it expresses any feeling or emotion.

A word possesses an expressive component if due to transference of meaning or in some other way it emphasizes/ intensifies the thing denoted by it or by other words syntactically connected with it.

A word possesses a functional-stylistic component if it is typically associated with definite speech spheres and functional styles.

Words having a lexico-stylistic paradigm are characterized by:

• indirect reference (i.e. through a neutral word) to the denoted object: foe (poetical) > enemy (neutral) > denotatum;

• subjective connotations;

• non-strict referential borders as these words are of qualifying character and may be used to characterize different referents (e.g.: pussy cat in reference to children);

• presence of synonyms;

• possible antonyms.

To this group belong: archaisms (archaic words), barbarisms and foreign words, stylistic neologisms, slangisms, colloquialisms, jargonisms (social and professional), dialectal words, vulgarisms.

Words having no lexico-stylistic paradigm are characterized by:

• direct reference to the denoted object;

• absence of subjective connotations;

• strict referential borders;

• lack of synonyms or purely denotative synonymy (лінгвістика-мовознавство);

• lack of antonyms.

Here belong: terms, nomenclature words, historical words, lexical neologisms, exotic words.

Breaking up (decomposition) of set expressions may be of two types:

I. Structural transformation – changes in the structure or components of a phraseological unit accompanied by complete or partial change in the meaning of a set expression;

II. Contextual transposition – reconsidering or reinterpreting the meaning of a PhU in a certain context without any changes in structure or components.

Types of structural transformations:

1. Expansion of a PhU – adding/ inserting new elements to a PhU and thus making the phrase more concrete and more vivid.

2. Reduction of a PhU – is the result of the compression of proverbs, sayings, quotations etc. in speech.

3. Change of the components – is replacement of a regular component of a PhU by another element, which can be synonymic or antonymic to the former, either having or not having thematic connections with it. It may be accompanied by the structural change.

4. Inversion of the components implies the change of the PhU structure and partial reinterpretation of the elements while preserving its original components.

Contextual transposition – preserving its integrity and components, a PhU undergoes complete change/ reinterpretation of the meaning, which most frequently is realisation of its literal meaning.

PRACTICAL ASSIGNMENT