Emotive charge and sociostylistic reference of words

Words differ not only in their emotive charge but also in their sociostylistic reference. In the sociostylistic plane according to the sociolinguistic norm words can be subdivided into two complex groups of vocabulary layers: the literary standard vocabulary and non-standard or substandard vocabulary.

The literary standard vocabulary, in its turn, includes three stylistic layers of words – literary or bookish words, neutral words and literarycolloquial words.

Let us compare, for example, the following set of synonyms which are almost identical in their denotational meaning: countenance, face, phiz (cf. their Russian counterparts: лик, лицо, физия).The word countenance belongs to the bookish or poeticlayer of vocabulary. The word face belongs to the neutrallayer of vocabulary. And the word phiz belongs to the literarycolloquiallayer of vocabulary.

Against the neural layer of vocabulary we can distinguish words belonging to higher and lower layers of vocabulary. Here, in comparison with the word face, which is stylistically neutral, the word countenance is felt as bookish and the word phiz stands out as jocular colloquial.

The non-standard vocabulary, in its turn, comprises five sociostylistic layers of words – low colloquialisms, general slang, professional and corporative jargons, argot or cant and vulgarisms.

Let us enlarge further the above given set of synonyms: countenance, face, phiz, map, mug, pan, biscuit, clock, dial, gills, squash (cf. their Russian counterparts: морда, рожа, рыло, харя, мурло). All of them belong to, slang, jargons, argot and some of them may be considered even vulgar.

The stylistic reference of bookish, colloquial, slang words, jargonisms and vulgarisms is clearly observed when we compare them with their neutral synonyms.

Stylistic reference and emotive charge of words are closely connected and to a certain degree interdependent. As a rule stylistically coloured words, that is words belonging to all stylistic layers except the neutral one, are observed to possess a considerable emotive charge. This can be proved by comparing stylistically labelled words with their neutral synonyms.

The poetic word countenance and the literary colloquial word phiz carry heavier emotive charges than their neutral counterpart face; but the low colloquialisms and slangy words map, mug, pan, biscuit, clock, dial, not mentioning gills, squash, are still by far more expressive even than phiz. Here we see that words of low stylistic styles differ in the degree of their emotive charge.

However, words of neutral style may also differ in the degree of their emotive charge. Compare, for example, the words large, tremendous, enormous; though equally neutral as to their stylistic reference, they are not identical as far as their emotive charge is concerned.

So in conclusion, connotative meaning may be defined as emotional, expressive and stylistic coloring of the word as an additional component to its denotative and significative meanings within its lexical meaning.

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