FUNCTIONING OF ADVERBS WITH SEMANTICS OF INSIGNIFICANT FEATURE AS THE EUPHEMISMS IN A LITERARY TEXT


Cite item

Full Text

Abstract

The article studies and describes the use of adverbs with semantics of insignificant feature as euphemisms in a literary text. Their use is analyzed in five aspects: in aspect of their functioning in language and speech, semantic aspect, morphological aspect, syntactic aspect, and stylistic aspect. The author defines and differentiates the concepts of “euphemism” and “semantic operator”. Adverbs with semantics of insignificant feature in the aspect of a dichotomy "language – speech" as a part of combinations are capable to perform the function of both occasional and usual euphemisms. Not all the words and word collocations which "soften" a negative assessment are euphemisms. Euphemisms have accurate linguistic "borders". Everything that is outside their theme groups can soften the negative assessment of a statement, may have pragmatic value, but is not the euphemism. Adverbs like a little and a few as parts of combinations adjoin the language units as euphemisms possessing a certain morphemic structure: to full and short adjectives, to predicatives with a suffix of incompleteness of expression of a sign -ovat-/-evat-; to expressional ways of verbal action. The adverbs characterizing insignificant features are capable to perform the euphemism function as a part of combination. Adverbs with semantics of insignificant feature as euphemisms are capable to be used in combination with other tropes: meiosis, litotes, and irony.

About the authors

Natalya Anatolyevna Irismambetova

Samara Regional Institute of Teachers’ Professional Development and Retraining, Samara

Author for correspondence.
Email: nataly.davydkina@mail.ru

Candidate of Philological Sciences, Associate Professor, assistant professor of the department «Multicultural education»

Россия

References

  1. Akhmanova O.S. Slovar lingvisticheskikh terminov [Dictionary of linguistic terms]. 2nd ed. Moscow, Editorial URSS publ., 2004, 571 p.
  2. Krysin L.P. Euphemisms in modern Russian language. Russkiy yazik kontsa ХХ stoletiya (1985–1995). Moscow, Yaziki russkoy kulturi, 1996, pp. 384–407.
  3. Shmelev D.N. Euphemism. Russky yazik. Entsikolpediya. Moscow, Sovetskaya entsiklopediya publ., 1979, p. 402.
  4. Shmelev D.N. Sovremenniy russkiy yazik. Leksika [Modern Russian language. Vocabulary]. Moscow, Prosveshchenie publ., 1977, 335 p.
  5. Arutyunova N.D. Yazik i mir [The language and the human world]. Moscow, Yaziki russkoy kulturi, 1999, 882 p.
  6. Senichkina E.P. Semantika umolchaniya i sredstva ee virazheniya v russkom yazike [Semantics of preterition and means of its expression in the Russian language]. Moscow, MGOU publ., 2002, 307 p.
  7. Senichkina E.P. To the question of euphemism theory. Aktualnie problemi prepodavaniya russkogo yazika i literature v Kitae. Pekin, 2007, pp. 416–426.
  8. Sheygal E.I. Euphemism and the irony of a political text. Filologiya–Philologica, 1997, no. 11, pp. 21–22.
  9. Russkaya grammatika [Russian grammar]. Moscow, AN SSSR publ., 1982, vol. 1, 783 p.
  10. Kratkaya russkaya grammatika [Brief Russian grammar]. Moscow, Nauka publ., 1989, 639 p.
  11. Katsev A.M. Yazikovoe tabu i evfemiya [Linguistic taboos and euphemism]. Leningrad, Nauka publ., 1988, 78 p.
  12. Voinova E.I. Terms of use of pronouns with particles -to and –nibud’. Russky yazik dlya inostrantsev. М., 1963. С. 56–65.
  13. Vinogradov V.V. To the morphology of natural style: experience of linguistic analysis of Petersburg poem "The Twin". Poetika russkoy literaturi. Moscow, Nauka publ., 1976, pp. 101–104.
  14. Davidkina N.A. The function of adverbs as declassifying semantic operators. Sbornik materialov mezhdunar. nauch. konf. “Russky yazik i slavistika v nashi dni”. Moscow, MGOU publ., 2004, pp. 43–46.
  15. Davidkina N.A. About women's speech in prose. Russkaya slovesnost, 2004, no. 7, pp. 63–66.
  16. Larin B.A. About euphemisms. Istoriya russkogo yazika i obshchee yazikoznanie. Izbrannie trudi. Moscow, 1977, p. 113.
  17. Apresyan Yu.D. Integrativnoe opisanie yazika i sistemnaya leksikografiya [Integrative language description and systemic lexicography]. Moscow, Yaziki russkoy kulturi, 1995, vol. 2, 472 p.
  18. Moskvin V.P. Evfemizmi v leksicheskoy sisteme sovremennogo yazika [Euphemisms in the lexical system of modern Russian language]. Volgograd, Peremena publ., 1999, 58 p.
  19. Moskvin V.P. Euphemisms: system links, functions and ways of formation. Voprosi yazikoznaniya, 2001, no. 3, pp. 58–70.

Supplementary files

Supplementary Files
Action
1. JATS XML
Download

Copyright (c)