Formal and informal English: how to communicate in the office and in the bar. Topic VIII. Functional styles of the English language Stylistics of the English language colloquial style example

In any language, different speech styles are applicable in different situations. You can move from formal to informal language, from written to spoken, from technical speech or jargon to slang. There are no rules as such, but there are many features that characterize the formal style and distinguish it from the informal. Here we will get acquainted with some of these features.

Principles of Written English
(Note: we can only talk about principles - in no case about strict rules)

1) The more formal the style of the document being compiled, the more inanimate nouns it will contain as subject sentences.

2) The more formal the language of the text, the more often it uses the passive voice.

3) The more formal the style is used, the more verbal nouns there are.

4) More formal language - more words of Latin origin.

And vice versa

1) The more informal the language is used, the more often a proper name and animate nouns in general act as the subject.

2) The more informal the text, the less passive voice construction it contains (Passive Voice, – ed.).

3) The more informal the text, the more verb constructions (which are very variable - ed.) and the fewer verbal nouns.

4) The more informal or even colloquial a text is, the more words it contains of Germanic origin.

Let's now move on to examples, each three sentences reflecting the path from very formal language to informal. The first sentence in the three is a formal option. The second is intermediate. Third - completely informal.

1) The inclement climatic conditions are obliged the President to return earlier than scheduled (Adverse weather conditions forced the President to arrive back earlier than planned by the protocol).
2) The president was obliged to return earlier than planned due to poor weather conditions (The President arrived earlier than planned due to weather conditions).
3) The president had to go back sooner than planned because the weather was so bad (The President returned earlier than planned - the weather was bad).

1) Please await instructions before dispatching items (Please check if your questions are answered before contacting).
2) Please wait for instructions before sending items off.
(Please wait for instructions before submitting requests.)
3) Don’t send anything off until you are told to do so (Don’t send anything until you are told).

1) Essential measures should be taken at the earliest opportunity (Immediate effective measures should be taken when favorable circumstances arise).
2) One should take any necessary measures at the earliest opportunity (Everyone should take the necessary measures at the earliest opportunity).
3) You should do whatever you have to as soon as you can (You should do what you need as soon as possible).

1) Prior to the discovery of America, potatoes are not consumed in Europe (Before the discovery of America, potatoes were not consumed in Europe).
2) Before America was discovered, potatoes were not eaten in Europe (Until America was discovered, potatoes were not eaten in Europe).
3) Before they discovered America, Europeans didn’t eat potatoes (Until they discovered America, Europeans didn’t eat potatoes).

From written to spoken language

The written and oral forms of the English language exploit different styles (colloquial, official business, journalistic, - ed.) and different “calms” of the language (high, low - layers of language, - ed.). Moreover, speaking in written language in certain situations is no less terrible than writing in spoken language in others. As a general rule, written language is more formal than spoken language, but one must remember that there are forms of spoken language that are sometimes welcomed in writing: in fiction, socio-political publications, especially in polemics and prepared public speeches. It is worth noting that the features of written speech can be dictated by the length of the sentences used, the length of paragraphs and other punctuation features. In the following examples, the same meaning is conveyed in six different styles, from the most formal written style to the completely colloquial version. The most formal style is the top sentence, the most informal is the bottom sentence.

1) Professional and completely formal speech. This is the style of language used in formal reports, technical research texts, and similarly buttoned-up writing. This is an exclusively written language, rich in verbal nouns, terminology and passive constructions.

Example: Consequent to the appreciation in the exchange value of Sterling against other currencies, necessary fiscal measures were introduced by the government in order to reduce the likelihood of an import-led consumer spending surge (After assessing the exchange value of the English value at the rate of other currencies, the government proposed fiscal measures aimed at reducing the likelihood of rising consumer costs due to increased imports - ed.).

2) Written, formal, easy to understand language. This is clear written language that can be found in newspapers, documents, in particular in technical documents, if they are aimed at a reader who does not have special training.

Example: After the international value of Sterling rose, the government was obliged to take fiscal measures to reduce the likelihood of a surge in consumer spending led by cheaper imports (After the value of the pound on the international market increased, the authorities had to develop regulatory measures aimed at reducing the risk of costs to ordinary consumers that may result from cheaper imports).

3) Written style typical of tests for the general public. For example, polemical speeches, radio, television news.

Example: As the value of Sterling increased compared to other currencies, the government was forced to take tax measures to head off a rapid increase in consumer spending spurred on by cheaper imports (In response to the strengthening of the pound against other currencies, the government introduced tax measures , which will prevent an increase in imports provoked by exchange rates, which, in turn, can cause an increase in the costs of ordinary consumers).

4) Formal conversational style. Radio, seminars, talks.

Example: As Sterling’s international value went up, the government had to take tax measures to head off a consumer spending boom spurred on by cheaper imports (When the pound jumped, the authorities took tax measures to prevent a flurry of rising consumer costs due to cheaper imports).

5) Free informal style: conversation. This speech is characterized by a large number of phrasal verbs. In this style, all actions are conveyed through verbs, and not through verbal nouns.

Example: As Sterling went up in value, the government had to put up taxes to stop consumers splashing out on too many cheap imports (The pound jumped in price and the authorities changed taxes so as to save the emptying wallets of buyers due to cheap imports).

Example: And you see, Sterling went up and up in value, so as a result, the government had to go round putting up taxes, you see, to stop everyone going out and splashing out, spending all their cash on cheap imports (Here, you you see, the pound is growing and rising in price, and so this is the result, the government is forced to somehow “get out” and raise taxes, you know, so that everyone doesn’t spend money, doesn’t throw money down the drain because of cheap imports).

Student assignment

Try editing the following passage in at least two of the formal styles described here.

“Citizens whose normal place of abode is outwith the United States of America are henceforth required to register their interests with the United States consulate nearest their domicile; failure to register may lead to forfeiture of fiscal exemptions on revenue paid by sources in the United States.”

Translated by Valentin Rakhmanov.

Ladies and Gentlemen! Let me invite you to read a publication about communication styles in English. We will be incredibly glad if this essay solves the problem of exchange of opinions in society for you. You will learn how to communicate in high society, and what vocabulary to use in drinking establishments during leisure hours with colleagues.

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First, let's find out why it is important to know the differences between these styles of English. Language is part of your image. A bank employee will never come to work in a tracksuit. And an evening dress and high heels on the beach will look strange. You should choose your communication style in the same way. Moreover, every student of English should master different conversation styles, because even the most strict official has pajamas in his wardrobe, and every stylish lady, in addition to high-heeled shoes, also has comfortable ballet shoes for long walks. In the same way, you need to keep expressions of different styles with you and use them depending on the situation. To do this correctly, let's learn the signs of each communication style.

The formal style is used in an official setting: conferences and presentations are held in this style, business communications take place, documents, scientific articles and books are written.

There are several rules that should be followed to make your speech sound formal:

1. Don't shorten your words

In formal speech there is no place for all sorts of I’m, I’d, I don’t. Instead, you should use the full forms of the words: I am, I would, I do not.

At the same time, it is acceptable to use expressions indicating affiliation, for example the company’s manager, it is not necessary to say the manager of the company.

2. Avoid using phrasal verbs

In an official setting, you are unlikely to hear “The inflation rate went up.” Instead, it is customary to say “The inflation rate increased/rose”. Phrasal verbs are replaced by ordinary ones.

3. Avoid slang and colloquialisms

We think this point is obvious: it is difficult to imagine a business partner who calls you bro. And if you want to ask how a representative of a partner company is doing, you are unlikely to say “What’s up?” Rather, you ask “How are you doing?” And in response you will receive not the colloquial “Yourself?”, but the friendly and polite “Thank you, very well.”

4. Build complex expanded expressions

It is not necessary to attend public speaking courses; it will be enough not to limit yourself to the short, abrupt phrases that we use in everyday speech. If you start expressing a thought, then develop it, support it with clear arguments, justify it and bring it to the end. If you are asked a question, answer as fully as possible. Make sure that there is a cause-and-effect relationship between sentences.

Example of a complex sentence in formal style:

The period of the five months has been very rich in new events, with significant developments taking place both in the securities markets and in the financial system as a whole. – The five-month period was rich in events and significant transformations that took place both in the securities market and in the financial system as a whole.

5. Use technical terminology

Each industry has its own specifics, so try to use appropriate vocabulary. For example, if you work in the field of economics and audit the financial statements of an enterprise, it would be appropriate to say “We audit financial report”, and not “We check financial report”.

In addition, there are words that are synonyms of the words we are familiar with; these synonyms should be used in documents or official speech. We suggest you familiarize yourself with the list of such words on. Try to use “formal” words in an official setting, business letters, your speech will only benefit from this, and your interlocutor or addressee will be pleasantly surprised.

6. Avoid the word “I”

If you are writing a business letter, try to avoid the expressions I think, In my opinion, etc. As a rule, such papers are written on behalf of the company, on behalf of the company in which you work. The same is true in business negotiations: talk less about yourself, your opinion, address your interlocutor on behalf of the company.

Should you need any further information, do not hesitate to contact us. - If you require any further information, do not hesitate to contact us.

7. Use complex grammar in your speech

Formal language is characterized not only by long phrases, but also by complex grammatical structures. For example, in formal letters and oral speech, the passive voice is used much more often than in ordinary conversation. The reason is that the active voice personifies speech, while the passive voice has a more formal connotation, compare:

You are invited to the conference. - You are invited to the conference.

We invite you to the conference. - We invite you to the conference.

As you can see, the first option sounds more formal and respectful. This is exactly what an official invitation or address looks like.

If you want to speak in a formal style, do not forget to use participial phrases, infinitive constructions, conditional sentences, inversion, etc. in your speech.

8. Be tolerant and politically correct

This point, although it comes last, plays an important role. Formal speech is a model of ethics and political correctness. Choose your words carefully so as not to offend your interlocutors, listeners or readers. For example, instead of the word poor, use economically exploited, and instead of old man, say senior citizen. We advise you to read articles by our teachers that will help you choose the correct words: “English language and political correctness” and “Pseudo-euphemia, or manipulation of consciousness with the help of language.”

Informal English is called by some the “dark side” of the language. This is the language of youth. It is used in informal settings: in conversations with friends, in online chats, etc.

How to make your speech sound informal:

1. Use slang and idiomatic expressions

When communicating with friends, it is appropriate to use various “juicy” words and vivid expressive expressions. Therefore, if you are learning English with a friend, do not miss the opportunity to introduce some idiom or slang word you like into your speech. By the way, we recommend reading the article “”, our tips will help you find a good reference book of expressions and consolidate them in your memory. An example of informal speech is given below:

He's a joke. He can’t do anything right! - He doesn’t deserve respect. He can't do anything right!

In this example, joke is a ridiculous person (sometimes a thing) who does not deserve respect.

2. Keep it short

Short simple phrases are an attribute of simple colloquial speech. If you are asked a question, answer it directly, in monosyllables. In a friendly environment, no one requires you to make a long speech with an introduction, arguments and conclusion. Be simpler - and they will not only reach out to you, but also speak to you in English.

Hi! What's up?
- She told me, I’m joke.
- Really? Oh, come on, you’re cool!
- Thanks!

3. Use phrasal verbs freely

A conversation in a friendly atmosphere provides room for creativity in speech. Here it is not only possible, but also necessary to use phrasal verbs. They decorate speech: they make it more lively, informal, and concise. For example, in informal speech it would be appropriate to use the slang phrasal verb knock off instead of finish:

I usually knock off at five o’clock. - I usually call it a day at five o’clock.

4. Shorten words and use their colloquial forms

A conversation with a friend or a chat is the very place where colloquial forms of words and abbreviations will ideally fit into your speech, for example: wanna (instead of want to), I'd (instead of I would), yep (instead of yes), etc. Let's give an example, here the abbreviation ain't is used to mean do not:

I ain't like this book. - I don't like this book.

5. Follow fashion in words

It can be difficult for non-native speakers to learn to communicate in an informal manner, because we are usually taught classical English, where there is no place for slang and some colloquial expressions. That’s why it’s so important to “follow fashion”… in words. Watch various videos, TV series, films in English. We suggest starting with the next video. Is your English old-fashioned too?

Neutral English is somewhere between two extremes. This is the language of almost all books and magazines, it is used when communicating with colleagues, acquaintances and relatives. It should be noted that the neutral style differs from the informal style in a more polite tone.

Neutral English is exactly the language that . This is the basis on which you can build any communication style by studying the necessary vocabulary and our article. :-)

How to learn to speak neutral English:

1. Use phrasal verbs freely

When talking with colleagues or neighbors, it is appropriate to use phrasal verbs. These are not slang words, their meaning will not make anyone blush, so use them freely.

2. Use abbreviated forms

Neutral conversation allows the use of various I’d, I’ve, you’re, etc. There is no need to pronounce the full forms of words, otherwise the speech will turn out to be more formal.

3. Be careful with slang

It is not advisable to use slang in a neutral conversation. The latter is the language of youth, the language of the streets, which is why it belongs on the street, and not in the office or visiting grandma.

4. Be polite

A semi-formal conversation presupposes respect for the interlocutor, so do not forget to correctly formulate requests, wishes, and preferences. For example, instead of “Send me that letter” you should say “Could you please send me that letter”. Watch an interesting video on how to speak politely:

We invite you to compare how the same sentence sounds when spoken in different styles:

Situation	Formal	Neutral	Informal
You think that your acquaintance is a little bit stupid.	He is somewhat intellectually-challenged.	He's a bit stupid.	He's not all there.
A friend has a new BMW.	He has acquired a top of the range German-manufactured automobile.	He's bought a BMW.	He's got a beemer.
A friend of yours, Mary, wants to apply for a job but is afraid she will be rejected. You tell her not to be so frightened.	Do not allow your cowardice to hold you back.	Don’t be such a coward.	Don’t be such a chicken.
You are very tired. You want to go to sleep.	I require some rest and repose.	I need to get some sleep.	I'm gonna catch some zees.
Your friends went out last night, drinking heavily.	They went out taking out alcoholic beverages.	They went out drinking.	They were out boozing.
You want to ask a friend, Michael, a favour. You aren't sure how he will react. You ask another friend, Jim, to find out.	I asked Jim to ascertain Michael’s willingness to assist me.	I asked Jim to find out whether Michael would help me or not.	I asked Jim to sound Michael out; I asked him to get the lowdown.

Gentlemen, the authors of this publication sincerely hope that they were able to cover the topic, and you received a full understanding of what formal, informal and neutral English is. Accept the postulate that the main task of communication is the exchange of thoughts between individuals in society. Be well-mannered and tactful, and then this exchange will be crowned with success.

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Stylistics - what is it? You will receive the answer to the question asked from the materials in the presented article. In addition, we will tell you about what categories and sections of stylistics exist in the Russian language, and we will consider in detail the styles and techniques of English.

General information

Stylistics is a branch of linguistics, or a philological discipline that studies completely different conditions and principles for choosing linguistic communication, as well as methods for organizing linguistic units. In addition, the section identifies differences in the presented principles and methods of using styles.

There is the following division of such a philological discipline as stylistics: these are literary and linguistic sections. However, it should be noted that the named subtypes are not officially recognized.

Thus, the linguistic branch of stylistics examines all functional styles of speech, and the literary branch studies plots, a system of images, plot, etc. in a single work.

It must also be said that the practical stylistics of the Russian language is quite closely related to other sections of the course of this school subject. In this regard, it will not be possible to study it separately from grammar and theoretical lexicology. After all, they serve as a kind of basis for characterizing linguistic means.

Main categories

Now you know what stylistics is. This is a special section of linguistics, which has the following categories:

Main sections

The main sections of the presented discipline are:

• theoretical stylistics;
• stylistics (or the so-called stylistics of resources);
• practical style;
• stylistics of the varieties of use of the Russian language (or the so-called functional section).

Linguistic stylistics

As mentioned above, stylistics in the Russian language is unofficially divided into literary and linguistic. The latter is a whole science of speech styles. It studies the various capabilities of language, namely: expressive, communicative, evaluative, cognitive, emotional and functional. Let's look at it in more detail. After all, it is this opportunity of the Russian language that is given the most time in the secondary school curriculum.

Speech styles are functional

Russian stylistics clearly formulates the requirements for In this regard, it is extremely necessary to know that our native language has five main styles, namely:

To have an idea about each, let's look at them in more detail.

Scientific style

This style of speech is characterized by a number of features such as monologue character, preliminary thinking, strict selection of language techniques and statements, as well as standardized speech. As a rule, such texts fully and accurately explain all the facts, show all the cause and effect relationships between certain phenomena, identify patterns, etc.

Conversational style

This functional style of speech serves for informal or informal communication. It is characterized by the exchange of information on everyday issues, the expression of one’s thoughts or feelings. It should be especially noted that for such speech it is often used

Journalistic style

It is especially often used in various articles, essays, reports, feuilletons, interviews, during, etc. It is almost always used to influence people through magazines, newspapers, radio, television, booklets, posters, etc. It is characterized by solemn vocabulary, phraseology , emotionally charged words, as well as verbless phrases, the use of short sentences, “chopped” prose, rhetorical questions, repetitions, exclamations, etc.

Formal business style

This is a style of speech that is actively used in the field of official relations (law, international relations, military industry, economics, advertising, government activities, communication in official institutions, etc.).

Art style

This style of speech is used in fiction. It quite strongly influences the reader’s feelings and imagination, fully conveys the author’s thoughts, and also uses all the richness of vocabulary, and is characterized by emotionality of speech and imagery. It should be especially noted that other styles may be used.

Stylistics as a discipline

As mentioned above, such a section is mandatory in the school curriculum. However, a few hours of study are not enough to fully study the features. That is why the program of some higher educational institutions with a humanitarian bias includes a course such as “Stylistics and Literary Editing.” Its goal is to familiarize yourself with the general theoretical issues of this discipline, as well as to develop practical skills in working with a specific text.

Stylistics of the English language

In order to achieve the highest possible level of proficiency in a particular foreign language, it is not enough just to master the basic grammatical rules, as well as learn several hundred or thousand words. After all, it is extremely important to master the special art of “speaking.” To do this, you need to use not only all kinds of stylistic techniques in your speech, but also know how to correctly use certain speech styles.

Which ones exist in English?

Having reached an intermediate level of English proficiency, you want to improve more and more. But for this you need to learn to understand and feel foreign languages ​​well. Typically this is done through comparison and analysis. Let's look together at what stylistic devices are used in English:

Speech styles in English

As in Russian, speech styles in English differ from each other not only in expressive means and techniques, but also in general specifics. Let's look at them in more detail.

So, in English there are the following speech styles:

• Free, or so-called conversational style. It is distinguished by quite pronounced deviations from accepted norms and is divided into 2 subgroups: familiar-colloquial and literary-colloquial.
• Newspaper and information style. Designed for objective transmission of events (in written or oral speech). This style is not characterized by a subjective nature or emotional assessment.
• Official business. All important documents and all business correspondence are based on this style.
• Scientific and technical. This style is characterized by consistency and logic.
• Art. This style is used in literary works. It is characterized by subjectivity, emotionality, the use of phraseological units, expressive means, as well as detailed and complex sentences.

§ 6. conversational style

Interest in the peculiarities of spoken speech has not waned in linguistics for several decades now, and the linguistic literature on the issue is almost endless.

Stylistic differentiation is complicated by the fact that, as mentioned above, the boundaries of styles are very vague. It is possible to statistically establish the general characteristics of styles, but individual colloquial words in their stylistic characteristics are even more flexible than words of other styles, therefore the latest editions of Webster’s dictionary do not use the colloquial mark at all, citing the fact that the colloquialism of a word cannot be judged at all.

Differentiation within a conversational style is even more difficult. All authors almost unanimously distinguish literary-colloquial and familiar-colloquial (with a subgroup of children's speech); the identification of a third substyle - vernacular - turns out to be more controversial, but for the reasons stated above we do not abandon it.

It is very important to imagine the relationship between conversational style and the form and type of speech. Conversational style is generated by the oral form of speech, and its specific features largely depend on oral speech. But the forms and style of speech are not identical, and the possibility of using a colloquial style in writing is not excluded. It is found, for example, in private correspondence and advertising. As for the types of speech, that is, the dialogical or monologue type, the defining, formative type is dialogue, although monologue is not excluded. In literary works, this is mainly an internal monologue.

Thus, the terms “style”, “form” and “type” of speech are not synonymous, and the referents they denote can be combined in different ways.

The style-forming factors for colloquial style are the functions of the language realized in colloquial speech, and in colloquial speech all the functions of the language are realized with the exception of aesthetic ones. However, the exclusion of the aesthetic function is to a certain extent conditional, and it would be possible to cite cases where it is also realized, it’s just that this function is less characteristic here than in other styles, and its role here is much less than the role of contact-establishing and emotive functions.

Sociolinguistic factors play an extremely important role, i.e. accepted norms of speech behavior and the principle of politeness1.

A major style-forming role is also played by two opposing trends associated with specific conditions of communication (i.e., primarily with its oral form), namely compression, which leads to various kinds of incompleteness of expression, and redundancy. We will focus on them first.

Compression manifests itself at all levels - it can be phonetic, morphological, syntactic, and in all cases it obeys the laws of information theory in the sense that semantically redundant elements are subject to compression. The use of a truncated form, i.e. phonetic reduction of auxiliary verbs is a characteristic feature of the English colloquial form: it"s, it isn"t, I don"t, I didn"t, you can"t, you"ve, we"ll, etc. In those in cases where the truncated forms of the verb have I"ve and he"s are insufficient to convey the meaning of have, possess, a construction with the verb get is used: I"ve got, he"s got; the same construction also performs the modal function inherent in have + Inf.:

I "ve got to go now. Leveling the differences between shall and will when expressing the pure future contributes to the widespread use of form 11. This type of compression is equally common in all substyles of colloquial speech, with the only difference being that archaic forms of contraction are partially preserved in dialect and vernacular , namely ha.

Abbreviated structural variants of perfect forms with the omission of the auxiliary have are uncharacteristic for the literary-colloquial style and are possible only in familiar-colloquial and colloquial speech: “Seen any movies?” I asked (Gr. Greene). “Been traveling all the winter - Egypt, Italy and that - chucked America! I gather" (J. Galsworthy).

In both examples, not only auxiliary verbs are omitted, but also personal pronouns. The accelerated pace of speech leads, therefore, to the omission of semantically redundant unstressed elements, in these examples these are the personal pronouns of the 2nd and 1st persons - the subjects of the sentence; the presence of both interlocutors makes naming them redundant.

At the lexical level, compression is manifested in the predominant use of monomorphemic words, verbs with postpositives: give up, look out, abbreviations: frig, marg, vegs, ellipse like mineral waters - minerals or other types of ellipse: Morning!, words of broad semantics: thing, stuff , in the transitive use of intransitive verbs: go it, etc. The ellipse is especially characteristic of syntactic compression. The problem of compression at the syntactic level is interpreted very interestingly by K.G. Middle1. K.G. Seredina notes that many researchers, relying on the law of least effort proposed by A. Martinet, reduced various types of savings to omission, combination, representation: “You must not have got mixed in something in Chicago.” - “I guess so,” said Nick (E. Hemingway). In this example, the word so replaces the entire first statement. K.G. herself The middle offers another very important type of saving - simplicity. At first glance, the sentence The mother kissed the child's tears away seems compressed. However, this construction with its complex connections belongs to the book style; despite its brevity, it is complex and therefore less economical than its corresponding colloquial style: The mother kissed the child and he stopped crying.

“More economical,” she writes, “and therefore more common in spoken language is a construction that is syntactically simpler.” By compression, this author proposes to understand syntactic conciseness and simplicity of syntactic connections. Compression can manifest itself differently in different styles.

The opposite trend, i.e. the tendency towards redundancy is associated primarily with unpreparedness and spontaneity of spoken language. Redundant elements include, first of all, the so-called time fillers, i.e. “trash words” that have no semantic load such as well, I mean, you see and doubling of conjunctions: like as if. Elements that are redundant for subject-logical information can be expressive or emotional. In common parlance, this is a double negative: don"t give me no riddles, don"t bring no discussion of politics, pleonastic use of personal pronouns in imperative sentences: Don"t you call mother names. She"s had a hard life. Don't you forget it. (J. Saga), as well as the rude use of you: You, come here! or Come here, you!

Some important features of colloquial speech are generated by its predominantly dialogical nature.

The syntactic specificity of colloquial speech is that a unit larger than a sentence in it, as in dialogical speech, is a combination of a number of remarks connected by structural-semantic interdependence. N.Yu. Shvedova proposed calling them dialogical unity. In most cases, these are two-term units - question-and-answer, with pickup, with repetition, or syntactically parallel. This connection of cues is the reason for the prevalence of one-part sentences. Here are some examples from the works of J. Galsworthy, which we borrow from the article by S.S. Berkner: 1) Question-answer unity: “When do you begin?” - "Tomorrow," said the Rafaelite. 2) Unity formed by pickup: “So you would naturally say.” - “And mean.” 3) Unity formed by repetition: “There's - some - talk - of - suicide,” he said. James's jaw dropped. - “Suicide? What should he do that for? 4) Unity of syntactically parallel remarks: “Well, Mr Desert, do you find reality in politics now?” - “Do you find reality in anything, sir?”

C.C. Berkner believes that both pickup and repetition express an expressive reaction to the words of the interlocutor, but there is also a significant semantic and structural difference between them. The pick-up develops the dialogue, contains a new message, often ironically refuting the first: “...Americans are generally important, sooner or later.” - “To themselves,” said Fleur, and saw Holly smile.

Picking up sometimes interrupts the interlocutor and changes the direction of the dialogue: “I feel you"re a rock” - “Built on sand,” answered Jolyon...

Repeat, according to C.C. Berkner, is limited only to an assessment of what he heard and does not convey a new thought: “...But you"re the head of the family, Jon - you ought - to settle.” - “Nice head!” said Jon bitterly.

Repeated exclamations express indignation, ridicule, irony, and much less often a positive reaction. It is possible to repeat the question: “What do you call it?” - “Call it? "The big field."

The structural difference between pick-up and repeat is more noticeable. The pick-up syntactically continues the first remark and in the majority (85\%) of cases is connected to it with a connecting word, so that it turns out to be one sentence distributed between two interlocutors...

Contact-establishing and emotive functions play a specific and very important role in this style. They are recognized by society in the form of socially accepted norms and formulas of politeness and should be studied in sociolinguistics. Speech should be tactful, not too confident, not too categorical and harsh, and at the same time not indifferent to the interlocutor. Hence the variety of forms of polite modality, which can be expressed intonationally, lexically, morphologically and syntactically. Let's look at examples of the manifestation of these functions in a literary and colloquial style using the material of the verb do. In order to express, for example, some uncertainty in the answer and willingness to accept the objections or considerations of the interlocutor, the verb do can be used in an affirmative sentence, as in the example recorded by B. Charleston: “What has happened to your strange neighbor?” “I did hear he"d gone to Australia.”

Tactful interest in the opinion of the interlocutor and the subject of the conversation can be expressed in a remark that develops or illustrates what was heard and is reinforced by the same do, sometimes with the addition of a dissected question:

“You can"t blame anyone, it"s the war."

"The war does spoil everything, doesn't it?" (Gr. Greene)

Such a polite remark is often purely mechanical. In responses, the interlocutor can use do, expressing agreement, which can be sincere and complete or, on the contrary, ironic, as in the following example:

"Perhaps I"d better tell the police to call," he said. "You"d feel more comfortable, wouldn't"t you. Mr Jimson, if the police were in charge - less responsibility..." "Thank you," I said, "You"re a good chap. For I do certainly feel a lot of responsibility" (J. Cary. The Horse's Mouth).

Do is often used in remarks of mild reproach, admiration, irritation, and also if the speaker wants the interlocutor to show his understanding, agreement, trust.

In all the examples given, the intellectual-logical function does not disappear, but appears in combination with the emotive, contact-establishing and often, as in the last example, voluntarily. It is generally accepted that in these constructions do serves for emphasis. Amplification certainly takes place, but, as we have just seen, it is not only that, and the very need for amplification is dictated by different functions.

Emotive and contact-establishing do can be supported by a combination with words such as actually, in fact, indeed, really, undoubtedly, etc. and the verb seem.

Compare: Monica: I see her point, you know. You really did go a little too far (N. Coward. Present Laughter).

Let's first remove the softening a little and continue folding:

You really did go too far.

You did go too far.

You went too far.

The condensation carried out shows that by sequentially removing really and do, we do not weaken emphaticity, but, on the contrary, increase it; the statement becomes harsh and offensive.

Given the large role of the voluntary function in combination with the imperative mood, do, on the contrary, really becomes purely emphatic: “Oh go away, do, Mr Jimson” (J. Cary. The Horse's Mouth).

The same is true when strengthening the emotive function in exclamatory sentences: ...and then suddenly I sat up and called out as loud as I could, “I do want to go on a donkey. I do want a donkey ride!” (K. Mansfield. Lady's Maid).

The emotive function is the reason for the abundance of various types of amplifiers in colloquial speech, which can appear in various combinations and are different for literary-colloquial and familiar-colloquial styles. So, for example, in a familiar conversational style, how, when, where, who, which, what, why are combined with the word ever, or the suffix ever1, or with expressions such as: On earth, the devil, the hell, etc. . For example: Whatever are you doing? or What ever are you doing? Whoever"s that? However did you get in here? What on earth are you doing? Who the devil do you think you are? Who on earth can that be? Why the hell do you ask?

This type of emphasis is only possible in interrogative or exclamatory sentences. Emotionality in this case has a rude, impolite character, i.e. associated with irritation, impatience, reproach.

Such amplifiers as after all, actually, really, not really, certainly, surely, etc. are devoid of emotionality and depend on the contact-establishing function. Compare: I certainly admire your courage and I admire your courage. By including the word certainly, the speaker assures the interlocutor of his sincerity and understanding of his point of view.

The familiar conversational style, with its emotionality and emphaticness, also combines many swear words or their euphemisms: damn, dash, beastly, confounded, lousy. They are possible in sentences of any type, optional in their syntactic connections, syntactically multifunctional and can express both negative and positive emotions and assessments: damned pretty, damned nice, beastly mean, damn decent.

A variant of the familiar conversational style is the so-called baby-talk with its specific vocabulary, the most noticeable features of which are the abundance of onomatopoeic words: bow-wow (a dog) and words with diminutive suffixes: Mummy, Daddy, Granny, pussy, dearie , lovey, doggy, naughty, pinny, panties, etc.

A characteristic feature is the replacement of personal pronouns with full-valued words. When addressing a child, instead of you they say baby, Johnny, etc., instead of I, the speaker calls himself Mummy, nurse, etc. The first person plural pronoun we refers to the listener: Now we must be good and drink our milk.

In fiction, elements of baby-talk used by adults usually give an idea of ​​the affectiveness or sentimentality, or insincerity of the speaker. In G. Green's novel "The Heart of the Matter," Freddie Begster approaches Mrs. Rolt Nissen's hut - "Let Freddie in," the voice wheedled.

In children's literature for younger children, for pedagogical reasons, a mainly neutral or literary-conversational style is used.

The following excerpt from Winnie-the-Pooh contains only the word Bother! refers to the familiar-conversational style.

"Is anybody at home?"

There was a sudden scuffling noise from inside the hole and then silence.

“What I said was “Is anybody at home?”” called out Pooh very loudly.

“No,” said a voice; and then added, “You needn"t shout so loud. I heard you quite well the first time.”

"Bother!" said Pooh. “Isn’t there anybody here at all?”

Winnie-the-Pooh ... thought for a little and he thought to himself.

"There must be somebody there, because somebody must have said "Nobody!"

“Hello. Rabbit, isn't that you?

"No," said Rabbit, in a different sort of voice this time.

“But isn't that Rabbit's voice?”

“I don’t think so,” said Rabbit. “It isn’t meant to be.”

"Oh!" said Pooh (A.A. Milne).

A pronounced emotional, evaluative and expressive character has a special, genetically very heterogeneous layer of vocabulary and phraseology, called slang, which exists in colloquial speech and is outside the limits of the literary norm. The most important properties of slangisms are their crudely cynical or rude expressiveness, dismissive and playful imagery. Slang is not distinguished as a special style or substyle, since its features are limited to only one level - the lexical one. There is an extensive literature on slang. A difficult question remains the question of the criteria for classifying words as slang, since the boundaries of slang, both general and special, i.e. limited to the professional or social sphere of use, are very vague. Slang words and expressions, as a rule, have synonyms in neutral literary or specialized vocabulary, and their specificity can be identified by comparison with this neutral vocabulary.

In numerous modern novels about the life of teenagers, teenage slang plays an important stylistic role. It has long been noted that slang is especially characterized by the phenomenon of synonymous attraction, i.e. large groups of synonyms for concepts that for some reason cause a strong emotional reaction (girl, money, intoxication, alcohol, drugs, theft have especially large groups of slang synonyms). In the novel by K. Mac Innes, where the narrator is a teenager and where the problems of generations and nonconformism are especially acute, there are a lot of synonyms to designate representatives of the older and younger generations: the oldies, the oldsters, the oldos, old hens, old numbers, old geezers and , on the other hand: kid, kiddo, sperm, chick, chicklet (girl), minors, beginners, debs.

People who obediently accept the existing order of things are called mugs, squares, tax-payers by the narrator.

That have a job like mine means that I don"t belong to the great community of the mugs: the vast majority of squares who are exploited. It seems to me this being a mug or a non-mug is a thing that splits humanity up into two sections absolutely. It"s nothing to do with age or sex or class or color - either you"re born a mug or a non-mug...

The stylistic structure of colloquial speech is thus heterogeneous. This includes various socially conditioned substyles that interact in it. The division of colloquial speech into dialects depends on the geographical factor. The most famous urban vernacular dialect is London Cockney.

If you have to write a letter in English, the first thing you should think about is the style or register of writing your letter (register). How to determine register? Think about three aspects:

The less you know the recipient, the more formal your style should be. There are such styles of writing letters in English: formal (formal) and informal (informal). There is also a semi-formal or neutral (semi-formal or neutral) style, but in nature it is closer to formal. Some authors identify the following styles depending on the type of communication, addressee and linguistic means:

The formal style is inherent in documents (for example, legal), high-level business letters; in the formal style, all the rules of punctuation and grammar are observed. Semi-formal style is used for business correspondence and professional communication. Because the writer and recipient of the letter are typically busy business people, letters of this style are specific, fact-focused, and include standard, boilerplate language. And finally, the informal style is typical for correspondence between friends and communication on social networks. It involves the use of colloquial expressions, abbreviations, rules of grammar and punctuation are not always observed.

However, these are only general differences between styles. In this article, we will look at more fundamental features that will help you write quality letters in English.

1. Vocabulary

If you compare two letters of the same content, but written in different styles, then the informal letter will be shorter. Do you know why? Because the formal style involves the use of longer words, words of Latin origin. In contrast to the informal style, phrasal verbs are hardly used in the formal style, except those that cannot be replaced by a longer equivalent. The same goes for nouns: if, when writing an official letter, you have a choice between a short word and a long one, choose the longer one.

Let's look at some differences between formal and informal vocabulary:

Verbs (Verbs)
Informal		Translation
		ask, request
		be the cause of
		check
		deal with something
		find out
		repair
		receive
get in touch with		to contact
		give, provide
		decrease
		increase
		leave, miss
		allow
		need
		apologize
		seem
		install
		show
		inform

Nouns
Informal		Translation
		boss
		opportunity
		facilities
		aged people

2. Using passive voice

In informal letter writing style, the use of the active voice takes precedence over the use of . Informal letters are more personalized, while formal letters and documents are factual. Let's look at this with examples:

I invite you to come to my party Friday evening. - I invite you to come to my party on Friday evening.
You are invited to attend the annual conference. - You are invited to attend the annual conference.

The teacher told us to complete the test papers. - The teacher told us to finish the test assignments.
The students were told to complete the test papers. - The students were told to finish the test assignments.

The camera you delivered to me yesterday is broken. - The camera you delivered to me yesterday is broken.
The camera which was delivered to me yesterday is flawed. - The camera that was delivered yesterday is defective.

In each pair of sentences, the first one refers to the informal register. As you can see, every second sentence, written in a formal style, talks about facts and sounds more neutral and formal.

3. Appeals and stereotypes

A characteristic feature of the informal style is addresses in the first person, the use of I: I am sorry..., I think... and so on. While official letters are based on clichés, standard phrases of business communication. The informal style allows room for improvisation, while the formal style is more stereotypical.

I am sorry for my being late. - I'm sorry I'm late.
We apologize for the delay. - We apologize for the delay.

I am glad to tell you that I am coming soon. - I'm glad to tell you that I'm coming soon.
We take pleasure in informing you about our upcoming visit. - We are happy to inform you about our upcoming visit.

Typical of formal style is the use of the pronoun we. When a representative of one company writes a letter to another company, the letter is written not in the first person singular (I), but in the first person plural (we).

4. Slang expressions

Slang expressions are absent in the official style; they simply are not there. The same goes for most idiomatic expressions. Formal style is the language of specifics and business vocabulary, so the use of slang is unacceptable, it is a sign of unprofessionalism and disrespect for the recipient:

He wrote us about stuff. - He wrote to us about a lot of nonsense.

He sent us information on the question. - He sent us information on this issue.

5. Abbreviations

The informal style, along with slang expressions, allows the use of abbreviated forms of the verbs to be, have, has, would, will and others: I"m, we"ve, he"s and so on. The official style is never used; all forms must be written in full: I am, we have, he is, they will, she would and so on.

6. Specific appeals and impersonal constructions

In informal letters, to a friend, for example, we address a specific person, calling him by name in our letter. Official letters are impersonal, they are not addressed to anyone, the addressee's name is not used in the main part of the letter, only at the beginning. Imperative constructions in official letters and documents are replaced by passive ones, that is, you do not give instructions, but formulate a rule:

If you have questions, feel free to ask me. - If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact me.

You will be contacted for further information. - You will be contacted for further information.

7. Coordination of ideas

Even unions of formal and informal styles have their differences. In informal communication, we use a familiar set of phrases and expressions to connect our ideas. Most of them are short: and, but, also, because. Conjunctions that are used in the formal register are usually long words or phrases. Let's look at the table and compare some of them:

Informal		Translation
	due to (the fact that)	as a result because of
		in addition
		Thus
		otherwise
		provided that
		moreover

The word also as a conjunction should be avoided in formal style, but is perfectly acceptable when referring to a verb (in constructions or inverse sentences):

Also see the agenda attached. - Also check out the attached event plan.

Also covered accommodation expenses. - Accommodation expenses are also reimbursed.

As you can see, formal and informal styles in English are fundamentally different from each other. The main distinctive features are:

• vocabulary
• grammar, use of active and passive voice
• use of phrasal verbs, slang expressions
• use of speech patterns, clichés
• use of abbreviated forms
• coordination of ideas

Thus, when starting to write a letter in English, remember the differences in registers, follow the vocabulary, grammar, and other language means so that your letter is in the same style.

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