SEMINAR 2.
1. Division of the English vocabulary. Standard vs. Neutral Vocabulary.
2. Terms and its classifications.
3. Foreignisms vs. Barbarisms.
4. Neologisms.
Language is a living and continually changing thing. Many words used in the past by good writers
would not be suitable today; and words used even today in poetry, where choice may be dictated by the
needs of rhyme or rhythm, might strike an affected or pompous note in prose. There are so-called “formal
words”: words that are not so common English for what is meant, but translations of them into language
that is held more suitable for public exhibition. If there is a doubt whether the given word should be
regarded as a formal one, the only appeal can be to the practice of good contemporary prose writers. The
qualifications of “contemporary” and “prose” are important.
Sometimes the use of formal words is a sign that speakers or writers wish to be taken as better
educated than they really are. Usages prompted by this motive might be called “show-words”. There are
so called “genteelisms”, which can be defined as the substitution for the ordinary natural word that would
first suggest itself to the mind, of a synonym thought to be less soiled by the common herd, less familiar,
less plebeian, less vulgar, less improper. There is a class of words springing into popularity that are called
“vogue-words”. They may be new words or they may introduce a new use of an old word. Sometimes a
cause of their being taken up is that at first they have the charm of novelty. At a later stage, when they
have come into common usage, they are seized upon by people too lazy to select a word more suitable for
the context. Often still later the use of such words is extended; their original sense becomes blurred. But it
is not necessarily that the person thinking in slang should write in slang, or that the formal words should
be avoided as some of them having special and traditional uses.
Task 1.
Study the information above and explain the idea of the neutrality of a word; enumerate the
characteristics of the neutral bulk of the English vocabulary supplying necessary examples.
Account for the borderline between neutral and colloquial, neutral and literary words being so
blurred. Give examples of various vocabulary items passing from one layer of the language into
another.
Task 2.
You are given a list of words with the stylistic colouring they have today. Use your dictionaries
to trace the stylistic colouring they used to have. Try to guess the way of a word transition,
account for the tendency:
Example: “Alibi” professional - journalism – literal
Until recent years never meant anything except a plea be a person that, when an alleged act
happened, he was elsewhere; then appeared in print in newspaper reports and is now being used for
any grounds for defense against a charge, and in even more slipshod senses with the meaning of
excuse.
“Abnormal/anomalous” formal
“Malady/ailment” high-flown
“Mutual” colloquial
“Phenomenon” colloquial
“Maybe (= perhaps)” common
“Aftermath” common
“Aggravating” vulgar (in writing)
Task 3.
Give a definition of terms. Be ready to provide your own examples of terms following the
classification given in your lecture. Explain the effect, produced by the so-called de-
terminization. Provide examples.
Example: Allergic (med) = “allergic to blondes”, “always to have been very allergic to this man”,
“so allergic to conventional values as to find a sardonic delight in flouting them”
Task 4.
Often abbreviation (typical of scientific style and that of official documents) produces unusual
effects if misplaced. Study the given passage and make up your own characteristic of any person
(it can be one of your group-mates, any celebrity etc.) Let the others guess who you mean.
And then this Bear, Pooh Bear, Winnie-the-Pooh, F. O. P.(Friend of Piglet’s), R. C.(Rabbit’s
Companion), P. D.(Pole Discoverer), E. C. and T. F.(Eeyore’s Comforter and Tailfinder) – in fact, Pooh
himself - …
(A. A. MILNE)
Task 5.
Poetic words.
a) Find the poem “У лукоморья дуб зеленый…” by Pushkin A. S. and supply each poetic
word with its neutral synonym.
b) match poetic equivalents to the given neutral words, be ready to translate them into good
Russian, taking care of stylistic colouring:
e.g. “Viands – Food – Яства”
Delightful By the way
Orient Depreciate
Brethren East
Denigrate Praise
Ere Albion
Occident Near
Eke Small
Encomium There
England Delectable
Nigh West
Thither Before
Exiguous Brotherhood
Task 6.
a) Find archaisms and historicisms:
Романический repast/collation (= rich/light meal)
Нервический aver (=say)
Важатай affluent (= rich)
Живот whilst (= while)
Тарантас hath (= has)
Зело doff (= do off = take off)
Фильма don (= do on = put on)
Житница faible (= foible = weakness)
Покойно forceful (= forcible)
Нашествие epistle/missive (= letter)
Уста anent (= regarding, about)
hither (= here)
“remittance man”
“all and sundry” = “one and all” survives…
sundry/divers (= several) (“God, who at sundry times and in divers places”; “by divers portions
and in divers manners”/Bible, Hebrews, I, 1/; “Time travels in divers paces with divers
persons”/Shakespeare, As You Like It, III/)
b) Identify types of archaisms.
- Phonetic, when a sound or a group of sounds is altered;
- Morphological, when a morpheme is changed;
- Semantic, when a meaning is changed, but the word itself exists;
- Lexical, when the word perished and the notion is substituted by another word;
- Stylistic, when the word changed its stylistic colouring.
Task 7.
Neologisms. Look through the list of the following neologisms. Try to guess their meaning
studying the examples provided. Account for their appearance in the English vocabulary.
Single out the possible groups of neologisms and ways of their production.
iTV iTV appearance marks a new era in the development of new
TV technologies.
cosmeceutical The advertised cosmeceutical beauty product is rather popular
with teenagers.
pilates Pilates is offered in health clubs and independent studios.
xenotransplantation There are evident risks connected with xenotransplantation.
visitation The divorced couple has finally established the visitation rules.
third age Nowadays lots of people reinvent themselves during third age.
radicchio She likes all kinds of vegetables, but she is particularly keen on
radicchio.
screenager The number of screenagers is constantly growing all over the
world.
airport fiction There was no serious literature in the shop – just airport fiction.
to bookmark If you want to be on the safe side you’d better bookmark this
Internet page.
multi-tasking This new computer is really multi-tasking.
Task 8.
Make up two groups of words: foreignisms and barbarisms choosing them from the below
given list.
Blitz, blitzkrieg, kindergarten, gourmand/gourmet, manoeuvre, personnel, serviette, ersatz,
rendezvous, tête-à-tête, dacha, gloria, elite, boutique, émigré, RSVP, pelmeny, guru
Task 9.
Study the given extract and account for its effect. (Salinger)
DEAR SERGEANT X,
I hope you will forgive me for having taken 38 days to begin our correspondence but, I have bee
n extremely busy as my aunt has undergone streptococcus of the throat and nearly perished and I
have been justifiably saddled with one responsibility after another.
However I have thought ofyou frequently and of the extremely pleasant afternoon we spent in ea
ch other's company onApril 30, 1944 between 3:45 and 4:15 P.M. in case it slipped your mind.
We are all tremendously excited and overawed about D Day and only hope that it will bring abou
t the swift termination of the war and a method of existence that is ridiculous to say the least.
Charles and I are both quite concerned about you; we hope you were not among those who
made the first initial assault upon the Cotentin Peninsula. Were you? Please reply as speedily as
possible. My warmest regards to your wife.
Sincerely yours,
ESME
P.S.I am taking the liberty of enclosing my wristwatch which you may keep in your possession f
or the duration of the conflict.I did not observe whether you were wearing one during our brief
association, but this one is extremely waterproof and shockproof as well as having many other
virtues among which one can tell at what velocity one is walking if one wishes. I am quite certai
n that you will use it to greater advantage in these difficult days than I ever can and that you will
accept it as a lucky talisman.
Charles, whom I am teaching to read and write and whom I am finding an extremely intelligent
novice, wishes to add a few words. Please write as soon as you have the time and inclination.
HELLO HELLO HELLO HELLO HELLO HELLO HELLO HELLO HELLO HELLO LOVE A
ND KISSES CHALES
Reference materials:
Galperin I. R. “Stylistics” pp. 57-69
Arnold I. V. “Стилистика современного английского языка” pp. 6-50, 102-130
Kuznetz M. D., Skrebnev Y. M. “Стилистика английского языка” pp. Introduction
Collins V. H. “The Choice of Words”
