Colloquial vs. Literary

type of communicat

ion

The English Language is divided

into 3 different layers:

• The Literary layer - The literary communication, most often (but not always) materialized in the written form, is not homogeneous, and proceeding from its function (purpose) we speak of different functional styles. As the whole of the language itself, functional styles are also changeable. Their quantity and quality change in the course of their development.

• The Neutral layer – has no emotional colour

• The colloquial layer - everyday non-official communication which is known as colloquial speech. It occupies a prominent place in our lives, and is viewed by some linguists as a system of language means that can be classified as an independent entity with its own peculiar units and rules of their structuring.

Colloquial Style

• Common colloquial vocabulary overlaps into the standard English vocabulary and is therefore to be considered part of it. It borders both on the neutral vocabulary and on the special colloquial vocabulary, which falls out of the standard English altogether.

• Functions: provides information; communicates

• Forms: primarily spoken

• Substyles: slang; dialect; jargon; professionalisms; vulgarisms, colloquial words

• General Characteristics: informal, familiar, conversational; paralinguistic context, non-verbal communication

Colloquial Vocabulary.

Slang

• the core of the colloquial language outside of the conventional or standard usage

• deviation from the established form

• indicates membership in a particular social group

• developed from the attempt to find new, fresh, original, creative, playful, colourful and humorous expressions

• requires continuous innovation; never goes stable, gets dated very quickly

Dialect

• Forms: Cockney; Estuary English; Scottish English; etc.

• cohesive regional and socio-economic variety of language

• confined to a particular location

• some dialect words have become generally understood as colloquial /‘lad’/

Jargon

• Substyles: computer jargon, jargon of musicians, of sportsmen, of students, etc.; cant = the jargon of thieves and vagabonds /‘ain’t a lifer’ for ‘not sentenced to life imprisonment’; ‘get a stretch in stir’ for ‘be imprisoned’; ‘pulling a leather up’ for ‘stealing a purse’/

• a special lexicon to preserve secrecy within a particular social group

• incomprehensible to people out of the group, needs translation (unlike slang)

• old words with entirely new meaning imposed upon them

• some words have become legitimate English words /‘kid, fun, humbug’/

Professionalisms

• a special lexicon for a particular profession or trade

• aims at a quick and adequate grasp of the message, does not aim at secrecy

• designates working processes or implements of labour

• names anew already existing concepts (tools, instruments)

Vulgarisms

• Forms: obscenities = four-letter words; expletives = swear words /‘damn, bloody, to hell’/

• a special lexicon for low colloquial speech

• also in emotive prose in direct speech of characters

• express strong emotions, esp. negative (anger, annoyance, hostility)

Literary style

• Even though it is true that the majority of literary studies focus on the analysis of the actual text and not on the literary communication between author and reader, it has also been accepted that a comprehensive literary theory needs to include both the analysis of the text and the examination of its contexts. Because, as important as the studying of the text might be, the text's functions and the conditions of its production and reception are equally important as they connect it to its reader, without whom the text would not achieve its purpose.

• At present most scholars differentiate such functional styles: scientific, official, publicist, newspaper, belles-lettres

Literary Vocabulary.Terms

• Terms are generally associated with a definite branch of science and therefore with a series of other terms belonging to that particular branch of science. They know no isolation; they always come in clusters, either in a text on the subject to which they belong, or in special dictionaries which, unlike general dictionaries, make a careful selection of terms. All these clusters of terms form the nomenclature, or system of names, for the objects of study of any particular branch of science.

• Terms are characterized by a tendency to be monosemantic and therefore easily call forth the required concept. Terms may appear in scientific style, newspaper style, publicistic style, the belles-lettres style, etc.

Poetic and highly literary words

• First of all poetic words belong to a definite style of language and perform in it their direct function. If encountered in another style of speech, they assume a new function, mainly satirical, for the two notions, poetry and prose, have been opposed to each other from time immemorial.

• Poetic language has special means of communication, i.e. rhythmical arrangement, some syntactical peculiarities and certain number of special words. The specific poetic vocabulary has a marked tendency to detach itself from the common literary word stock and assume a special significance. Poetic words claim to be, as it were, of higher rank.

Archaic words • There are 3 stages in the aging process of words: 1)

the beginning of the aging process when the word becomes rarely used. Such words are called obsolescent, i.e. they are in the stage of gradually passing out of general use; 2) The second group of archaic words are those that have already gone completely out of use but are still recognized by the English speaking community. These words are called obsolete. 3) The third group, which may be called archaic proper, are words which are no longer recognized in modern English, words that were in use in Old English and which have either dropped out of the language entirely or have changed in their appearance so much that they have become unrecognizable.

Barbarisms and foreign words

• Barbarisms are words of foreign origin which have not entirely been assimilated into the English language. They bear the appearance of a borrowing and are felt as something alien to the native tongue. The great majority of the borrowed words now form part of the rank and file of the English vocabulary. There are some words which retain their foreign appearance to greater or lesser degree. These words, which are called barbarisms, are also considered to be on the outskirts of the literary language. Most of them have corresponding English synonyms. Barbarisms are not made conspicuous in the text unless they bear a special load of stylistic information.

• Foreign words do not belong to the English vocabulary. In printed works foreign words and phrases are generally italicized to indicate their alien nature or their stylistic value. There are foreign words which fulfill a terminological function.

Bookish Words

• Bookish words are mainly used in writing and in polished speech. They form stylistic opposition to their colloquial synonyms. Compare: infant (book ish) = child (neutral) = kid (colloquial); parent (bookish) = father (neutral) = daddy (colloquial).

• They are used: in books, public speeches and official negotiations

Thank you

for your attention!