Functional-semantic approach to the description of means of expressing intensity in modern German
DOI: 10.23951/1609-624X-2024-3-47-55
The article attempts to use a functional-semantic approach to the study of the category of intensity in order to identify and systematize the means of expressing the intensity of an action in the modern German language. The work was carried out on the material of the “German-Russian Synonymous Dictionary”, “Dictionary of Word Formative Elements of the German Language”, “German-Russian Phraseological Dictionary”, as well as using fragments of literary works of German writers of the 20th century. Taking into account the main directions in solving the problem of correlating the category of intensity with the concepts of expressiveness and quantity, the authors propose to interpret intensity as a category derived from the semantic categories of quantity and quality and as a quantitative indicator of expressiveness and emotional experiences. The category of action intensity is studied as a segment of the macrofield of the universal category of intensity. An analysis of the ways of expressing the intensity of an action in the German language allows to present the functional-semantic field under study as a monocentric formation, the core of which includes lexical means: intensifying verbs; adverbs with intensifying / deintensifying meanings and phraseological units. Syntactic means are located in the perinuclear zone. Word-formation, morphological and phonetic means fall into the peripheral sections of the field. As a result of the study, it was possible to establish that the microfield of action intensity includes a zone of intensification and deintensification. Linguistic intensification of action in syntagmatics is characterized by greater diversity than in paradigmatics. Verbs whose meaning includes the seme of intensity have a high frequency when expressing the intensity of an action in paradigmatics. In syntagmatics, the most common way to intensify or deintensify an action is to use adverbs. Deintensification of the action in most cases does not carry a stylistic load and, as a rule, is intended to soften the characteristics of the action. The means of expressing the intensity of action, on the contrary, are stylistically coloured. The most striking and powerful means of intensifying action are qualitative adverbs and comparative phraseological units. The construction of a model of the functional-semantic field of the category of action intensity on the material of the German language made it possible to systematically present the formal means of expressing intensity in their inextricable connection with semantic content and pragmatic orientation.
Keywords: category of intensity, intensification, intensifier, functional-semantic field, means, modern German
References:
1. Nikonova Ye. A. Diskursivnaya praktika i kommunikativnaya strategiya: eklektika vs polypragmatism? [Discursive practice and communicative strategy: eclecticism vs polyparadigmatism]. Nauchnyy dialog – Scientific dialogue, 2023, iss. 12, no. 6, pp. 123–139 (in Russian).
2. Kazimirchik L. V. Fenomen mediatizatsii publichnoy politiki: teoretiko-metodologicheskiy aspect [The phenomenon of mediatization of public policy: theoretical and methodological aspect]. Teoriya i praktika obshchestvennogo razvitiya – Theory and practice of social development, 2014, no 11, pp. 99–103 (in Russian).
3. Frumkina R. M. Psikholingvistika [Psycholinguistics]. Мoscow, Аkademiya Publ., 2001. 320 p. (in Russian).
4. Leontovich O. A. Cognitive Dissonance from the Intercultural Communication Perspective. Russian Journal of Linguistics, 2015, vol. 19, no. 4, pp. 49–56.
5. Petrosiyan M. G. Funktsional’no-semanticheskiy podkhod k izucheniyu kategorii ekzistentsional’nosti [Functional-semantic approach to the study of the category of existentiality]. In: Sbornik nauchnykh rabot aspirantov i molodykh prepodavateley [Сollection of scientific works of graduate students and young teachers. Part 3: Philology]. Rostov-on-Don, RSPU Publ., 1999. Pp. 98–111 (in Russian).
6. Bondarko А. V. Osnovy funktsional’noy grammatiki: Yazykovaya interpretatsiya idei vremeni [Fundamentals of functional grammar: Linguistic interpretation of the idea of time]. Saint Petersburg, 1999. 256 p. (in Russian).
7. Rachmanov I. V. et al. Nemetsko-russkiy sinonimicheskiy slovar’ [German-Russian synonym dictionary]. Ed. G. Shmidt. Мoscow, 1983. 704 p. (in Russian).
8. Zuev A. N. et al. Slovar’ slovoobrazovatel’nykh elementov nemetskogo yazyka [Dictionary of word-forming elements of the German language]. Мoscow, 1979. 536 p. (in Russian).
9. Binovich L. E. et al. Nemetsko-russkiy frazeologicheskiy slovar’ [German-Russian phraseological dictionary]. Ed. by D. Maliche-Klappenbakha and K. Agrikola. [Мoscow, 1975. 656 p. (in Russian).
10. Turanskiy I. I. Semanticheskaya kategotiya intensivnosti v angliyskom yazyke [Semantic category of intensity in English]. Мoscow, Vyssh. shk. Publ., 1990. 172 p. (in Russian).
11. Korolyova Ye. I. Ekspressivnyye grammaticheskiye sredstva yazyka v aspekte funktsional’no-semanticheskogo polya (na materiale sovremennoy britanskoy belletristiki). Dis. kand. filol. nauk [Expressive grammatical means of language in the aspect of the functional-semantic field (based on the material of modern British fiction). Diss. cand. philol. sci.]. Ekaterinburg, 2016. 221 p. (in Russian).
12. Rodionova S. Ye. Semantika intensivnosti i yeyo vyrazheniye v sovremennom russkom yazyke [Semantics of intensity and its expression in modern Russian language]. In: Ya. E. Akhapkina et al. Problemy funktsional’noy grammatiki: polevyye struktury [Problems of functional grammar: field structures]. Saint Petersburg, Nauka Publ., 2005. Pp. 150–169 (in Russian).
13. Breu W. Zur Rolle der Lexik in der Aspectologie. Die Welt der Slaven. 1984. S. 123–148.
14. Shtatskaya T. V. Glagoly-intensivy v ekspressivnom kontekste [Intensive verbs in expressive contexts]. Mezhdunarodnyy zhurnal eksperimental’nogo obrazovaniya – International Journal of Experimental Education, 2015, no. 9, pp. 111–112 (in Russian).
15. Welskopf-Henrich L. Jan und Jutta. Mitterdeutscher Verlag Haale (Saale), 1974. 676 s.
16. Smirnova A. V. Metafora kak kognitivnyi element peredachi emotsyi na primere nemetskogo yazyka [Metaphor as the cognitive element of emotions’ transfer on the example of the German language]. Vestnik Tomskogo gosudarstvennogo pedagogicheskogo universiteta – Tomsk State Pedagogical University Bulletin, 2016, vol. 2 (167), pp. 16–19 (in Russian).
17. Strittmatter E. Der Wundertäter. Aufbau, 1974. 438 s.
18. Terentieva Ye. V., Yefimova А. А. Sintaksicheskiye sredstva vyrazheniya intensivnosti priznaka [Syntactic means of adjective intensification]. Istoricheskaya i sotsial’no-obrazovatelnaya mys’l [Historical and Social Educational Ideas]. Krasnodar, 2015. vol. 7, no. 6, pp. 315–322 (in Russian).
19. Novotny J. Ein gewisser Robel. Leipzig: Verlag Philipp Reclam jun, 1979. 235 s.
20. Brezan J. Semester der verlorenen Zeit. Verlag Neues Leben Berlin, 1960. 276 s.
21. Abedi I. Hier kommt Lola! Bindlach: Loewe, 2015. 126 s.
22. Balli Sh. Obshchaya lingvistika i voprosy frantsuzkogo yazyka [General linguistics and issues of the French language]. Мoscow, 2001. 416 p. (in Russian).
23. Willmanns W. Deutsche Grammatik. Gotisch, Alt-, Mittel- und Neuhochdeutsch Text: in 2 B. Wortbildung.-Straflburg: Akademie, 1896. B. 2. 289 S. URL: https://www.readanybook.com/ebook/deutsche-grammatik-gotisch-alt-mittel-und-neuhochdeutsch-2-518445 (accessed 9 September 2023).
24. Paul’ G. Printsipy istorii yazyka [Principles of language history]. Мoscow, 1960. 500 p. (in Russian).
25. Henzen W. Deutsche Wortbildung. Tubingen: Niemeyer, 1957. 306 s.
( 537.5 kB ) 
( 528.23 kB )
Issue: 3, 2024
Series of issue: Issue 3
Rubric: ROMAN AND GERMANIC LANGUAGES
Pages: 47 — 55
Downloads: 169