A course of modern english lexicology

QUESTIONS TO LECTURE #7

1. What types of official documents do you know?
2. What kind of words are usually used in official documents?
3. What is the compositional pattern of business letters?
4. Study the example of application letter in Supplement 7. Write down your own application letter for the position of your dream.
5. Study the example of cover letter in Supplement 9. Write down your cover letter for a cargo of petrochemical products shipped to the USA.
6. How can you characterize scientific prose style?
7. What is an abstract?
8. Study the structure of an abstract in Supplement 10.
9. Study sample abstracts in Supplement 11. Write down your own abstract.
10. What is publicistic style?
11. Study the phrases for giving a presentation in Supplement 12.
12. How can you characterize newspaper style?
13. How can you characterize fiction?


Lecture #8

STYLISTIC ANALYSIS OF THE NARRATIVE

1. CHARACTERISTICS OF THE NARRATIVE
3. THE BASICS OF ANALYSIS

1. CHARACTERISTICS OF THE NARRATIVE

There are a certain number of characteristics for any text which are to be regarded when discussing it.
It is useful to know these aspects and to be ale to use them, especially when talking about novels, stories and other literary works.
The sequence of events in a story makes the plot of the story. The components of the plot are exposition, story, climax and denouement.
In the exposition the author informs the readers about the characters, setting, and theme of the story.
In the story we can observe the development of events until they reach their climax. The climax or turning point of a narrative work is its point of highest tension or drama or when the action starts in which the solution is given.
The dénouement consists of a series of events that follow the climax of a narrative, and thus serves as the conclusion of the story. Conflicts are resolved, creating normality for the characters and a release of tension and anxiety, for the reader.
As a rule, most of the literary works have a closed plot structure, that is, all the four components.
Sometimes, however, a narrative may start with the development of events without any exposition, or a story may have no denouement.
At the heart of the plot usually lies the conflict. It is a necessary element of fictional literature. It is defined as the problem in any piece of literature and is often classified according to the nature of the protagonist or antagonist, as follows:
• Human vs. Self
• Human vs. Human
• Human vs. Society
• Human vs. Nature
• Human vs. Supernatural
• Human vs. Machine / Technology
Plot plus conflict comprise the theme of the narrative. The theme of the story is its central idea or message. This message is usually about life, society, or human nature.
Themes often explore timeless and universal ideas. Most themes are implied rather than explicitly stated. The theme is different from the superficial outlay of the text; it is normally the meaning of the text on a more abstract level.
While speaking about the characters or the objects, you should not forget about the tone.
The tone shows the attitudes toward the subject and toward the audience implied in a literary work.
Tone may be formal, informal, intimate, solemn, somber, playful, serious, ironic, condescending, or many other possible attitudes.
Another characteristic of the narrative is its mood. The mood is the dominant impression the story makes on you. It can be gloom, sad, optimistic, pathetic, cheerful, melancholic and so on.
Mood like tone may be revealed through the choice of words, figures of speech, dialogues, short or long sentences and even phonetic devices.