Syntactical Expressive Means and Stylistic Devices

Lecture 4

While in lexical SDs the desired effect is achieved through the interaction of lexical meanings of words, syntactical SDs deal with the syntactical arrangement of the utterance (irrespective of the lexical meanings of the employed units).

Stylistic study of the syntax begins with the study of the length and the structure of a sentence, for the length of any language unit is a very important factor in information exchange, for the human brain can receive and transmit information only if the latter is punctuated by pauses.

The study of the sentence and its types and especially the relations between different parts of the sentence has had a long history. Rhetoric was mainly engaged in the observation of the juxtaposition of the members of the sentence, in finding ways and means of impressing the audience.

The problem of syntactical SDs is closely connected with the problem of the word-order in English. The English affirmative sentence is regarded as neutral if it maintains the regular word-order,

i.e. subject – predicate – object (or other secondary members of the sentence).

In oral speech (which is more emphatic than the written type of speech) various syntactical structures are used automatically as a norm of oral intercourse and are not to be considered SDs.

Within the written type of speech even a slight change in the word-order of a sentence, or in the order of the sentences will add something to the volume of the information contained in the original sentence.

Unlike the syntactical EMs of the language, syntactical SDs are perceived as elaborate designs aimed at having a definite impact on the reader.

Syntactical EMs and SDs may be divided into:

I. Those used within a sentence:

1. Those based on a juxtaposition of different parts of the sentence: inversion, detachment

2. Those based on stylistical use of peculiarities of oral speech. (Particular use of colloquial constructions): ellipsis, aposiopesis, represented speech

3. Stylistical use of interrogative and negative constructions: rhetorical questions, litotes

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