22. Syntactic stylistic means (classification of syntactic expressive means and stylistic devices; the word order; inversion; syntactic repetition).

- By syntactic expressive means and stylistic devices there is understood the arrangement of phrases, sentences and paragraphs with the purpose of producing some stylistic effect. They are used to emphasize the object, phenomenon in question, to make the utterance more prominent. According to prof. O.M. Morokhovsky expressive means and stylistic devices may be created due to transpositions of a sentence model in a situational context. The scholar worked out the following classification of syntactic expressive means (EMs): 1) EMs, based on the reduction of the initial model (e.g. ellipsis, aposiopesis, nominal / nominative sentences, asyndeton); 2) EMs, based on the expansion of the initial model (e.g. repetition, enumeration, syntactic tautology, polysyndeton, emphatic construction, parenthetic sentences); 3) EMs, based on the changing of the order of the components in the initial model (e.g. inversion, detachment).

- Syntactic stylistic devices (SDs) are classified into the following three groups: 1) SDs, based on formal and notional relations between some syntactic constructions (e.g. parallel constructions, chiasmus, anaphora, epiphora); 2) SDs, based on the transposition of meaning of syntactic structures (e.g. rhetorical question); 3) SDs, based on the transposition of meaning of the ways of connection between the components of sentences or sentences (e.g. parcellation)

- It is generally acknowledged that the English affirmative sentence is regarded as neutral if it has the regular word order (S-P-O). The first and the last places in the sentence are considered to be more conspicuous: the first place – because the full force of the stress can be felt at the beginning of the utterance and the last place because there is a pause after it. Thus there may be semantically insignificant elements of the sentence placed in a structurally significant position.

- According to professor V.A. Kukharenko inversion is a SD in which the direct word order is changed either completely so that the predicate (predicative) precedes the subject, or partially so that the object precedes the subject-predicate pair. Stylistic inversion does not change the structural meaning of the sentence. It aims at attaching logical stress or additional emotional colouring to the surface meaning of the utterance, which results in specific intonation.

- Professor I.R. Galperin singles out the following types of stylistic inversion, which are most frequently used in the English prose and poetry: 1) the object is placed at the beginning of the sentence: Talent Mr. Micawber has, Capital Mr. Micawber has not; 2) the attribute is placed after the word it modifies, especially when there is more than one attribute: with his mood low and dejected; 3) the predicative is placed before the subject or before the link-verb: raw and chill the winter morning was; 4) both adverbial modifier and predicate stand before the subject when a postpositional element is at the beginning; it shows swiftness of the action: out came the chaise – in went the horses; 5) the adverbial modifier is placed at the beginning of the sentence: Eagerly I wished it!

- One of the expressive means of language used when the speaker is under the stress of strong emotion is repetition. Prof. V.A. Kukharenko defines repetition as a recurrence of the same word, word combination, phrase for two or more times. Repetitions are used to single out and intensify the idea and the theme of the text; to maintain the rhythm of the text. According to the place which the repeated unit occupies in a sentence repetitions are classified into several groups (V.A. Kukharenko): 1) anaphora: a…,a…,a…The function of this repetition is to create the background for the nonrepeated unit; 2) epiphora: …a, …a, …a. The main function of epiphora is to add stress to the final words of the sentence. 3) framing repetition: a…a. The function of this repetition is to make the first word more expressive. 4) anadiplosis / catch repetition: …a, a… The function: to elucidate the idea. 5) chain repetition: …a,a…b,b…c,c… It shows smooth development of ideas. 6) ordinary repetition: has no definite place in the sentence - …a, …a…, a … It emphasizes the logical and the emotional meanings of the repeated word. 7) successive repetition: …a, a, a. It shows the peak of emotions of the speaker.

- One may single out root repetitions (root morphemes are repeated); synonymous / synonymic repetitions (when the idea is repeated, not the word itself in order to add some shade of meaning).

- The purely syntactic type of repetition is parallel construction. It is a device which is characterized by identical or similar syntactical structure in two or more sentences in close succession: “There were, …, real silver spoons to stir the tea with, and the real china cups to drink it out of, and the plates of the same to hold the cakes and toast in.” (Dickens). Parallel constructions do not depend on any other type of repetition but if they are backed by lexical repetitions the effect produced by the utterance will be stronger. Parallel construction is often used in different styles of writing with slightly different functions. In scientific prose, for example, it carries the idea of semantic equality of the parts of sentences; in belles-lettres style it performs an emotive function.

- Reversed parallelism is called chiasmus. The second part of a chiasmus is, in fact, inversion of the first construction. Thus, if the first sentence or clause has a direct word order (SPO), the second one has inverted word order (OPS): “Down dropped the breeze, The sails dropped down.” (Coleridge). Like parallel constructions chiasmus contributes to the rhythm of the sentence brining in some new shades of meaning of the second part of the sentence.