Lecture 10

FUNCTINAL STYLES OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE

Each functional style of the literary language makes use of language means the
interrelation of which is peculiar to the given FS. It is the coordination of language
media and SDs that shapes the distinctive features of each style, and not the separate
language media or the SDs themselves.
Each FS is a relatively stable system at the given stage in the development of
literary language, but it changes, and sometimes considerably, from one period to
another. Therefore functional style of language is a historical category. The development
of each style is predetermined by the changes in the norms of Standard English. The
parameters of a functional style are also greatly influenced by changing social
conditions, the progress of science and the development of cultural life in the country.
The English literary language has evolved a number of FSs easily distinguishable
one from another. They are not homogeneous and fall into several variants all having
some central point of resemblance, or better to say, all integrated by the invariant, an
abstract ideal system.
A.

THE BELLES-LETTRES STYLE

The belles-lettres style is a generic term for three substyles in which the main
principles and the most general properties of the style are materialized. These three
substyles are:
1. the language of poetry, or simply verse;
2. emotive prose, or the language of fiction;
3. the language of drama.
Each of these substyles has certain common features, typical of the general
belles-lettres style, as well as each substyle also enjoys certain individuality.
The common features of the belles-lettres substyles may be summed up as
follows. They all share the common function which may broadly be called "aestheticocognitive". The cognitive function of the belles-lettres style is to suggest a possible
interpretation of life phenomena by forcing the reader to see the viewpoint of the writer.
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This effect sought by the belles-lettres style is secured by a system of language

means selected and employed by the style.
The belles-lettres style rests on certain indispensable linguistic features which are:
1.

Genuine, not trite, imagery, achieved by purely linguistic devices.

2.

The use of words in contextual and very often in more than one dictionary

meaning, or al least greatly influenced by the lexical environment.

3.

A vocabulary which will reflect to a greater or lesser degree the author's personal

evaluation of things or phenomena.

4.

A peculiar individual selection of vocabulary and syntax, a kind of lexical and

syntactical idiosyncrasy.
5.

The introduction of certain typical features of colloquial language to a full degree

(in plays), a lesser degree (in emotive prose), and a slight degree, if any (in poems).
Individuality of the belles-lettres style is one of its most distinctive properties. It
is manifested in selecting language means (including stylistic devices), which is
extremely apparent in poetry, becomes gradually less in the publicistic style, and is
hardly noticeable in the style of scientific prose.
B. PUBLICISTIC STYLE
The publicistic style (as it was identified by I.R. Galperin) falls into three
varieties, each having its own distinctive features. Unlike other styles, the publicistic
style has a spoken variety, namely, the oratorical substyle. The development of radio
and television has brought into being another new spoken variety, namely, the radio and
TV commentary. The written substyles are the essay (moral, philosophical, literary) and
journalistic articles (political, social, economic) in newspapers, journals and magazines.
Book reviews in journals, newspapers and magazines and also pamphlets are generally
included among essays.
The general aim of the publicistic style, which makes it stand out as a separate
style, is to exert a constant and deep influence on public opinion, to convince the reader
or the listener that the interpretation given by the writer or the speaker is the only
correct one and to cause him to accept the point of view expressed in the speech, essay
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or article not merely through logical argumentation but through emotional appeal as
well.
Due to its characteristic combination of logical argumentation and emotional
appeal, publicistic style has features in common with the style of scientific prose, on the
one hand, and that of emotive prose, on the other. The manner of presenting ideas,
however, brings this style closer to that of belles-lettres, namely to emotive prose, as it
is to a certain extent individual.
. NEWSPAPER STYLE
According to I.R. Galperin, newspaper style was the last of all the styles of
written literary English to be recognized as a specific form of writing.
English newspaper writing dates from the 17th century. The first of any regular
series of English newspapers was the Weekly News which first appeared on May 23,
1622. It lasted for some twenty years till in 1641 it ceased publication.
The specific conditions of newspaper publication, the restrictions of time and
space, have left an indelible mark on newspaper English. English newspaper style may
be defined as a system of interrelated lexical, phraseological and grammatical means
which is perceived by the community as a separate linguistic unity that serves the
purpose of informing and instructing the reader. Information and evaluation co-exist in
the modern English newspaper, and it is only in diachronic terms that the function of
information can claim priority.
Information in the English newspaper is conveyed, in the first place, through the
medium of:
1)

brief news items,

2)

press reports (parliamentary, of court proceedings, etc.),

3)

articles purely informational in character,

4)

advertisements and announcements.

The principal vehicle of interpretation and appraisal is the newspaper article and

the editorial in particular. Editorials (leading articles or leaders) are characterized by a

subjective handling of facts, political or otherwise.
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It goes without saying that the bulk of the vocabulary used in newspapers is
neutral and common literary. But apart from this, newspaper style has its specific
vocabulary features and is characterized by an extensive use of:
a)

Special political and economic terms e.g. General Assembly, constitution, gross,

output, per capita production.

b)

Non-term political vocabulary, e.g. public, progressive, nation-wide.

c)

Newspaper clichs, e.g. vital issue, to escalate a war, overwhelming majority,

heated, debate.
d)

Abbreviations, e.g. UNO, NATO, FO (Foreign Office), EU, OSCE (Organization

for Security and Cooperation in Europe)

e)

Neologisms, e.g. stop-go policy (contradictory, inefficient policies)

D. SCIENTIFIC PROSE STYLE
The language of science is governed by the aim of the functional style of

scientific prose, which is to prove a hypothesis, to create new concepts, to disclose the
internal laws of existence, development, relations between different phenomena, etc.
The language means used, therefore, tend to be objective, precise, and unemotional,
devoid of any individuality; there is a striving for the most generalized form of
expression.
The first and most noticeable feature of this style is the logical sequence of
utterances with clear indication of their interrelations and interdependence.
A second and no less important feature, and perhaps the most conspicuous, is the
use of terms specific to each given branch of science. The general vocabulary employed
in scientific prose bears its direct referential meaning, that is, words used in scientific
prose will always tend to be used in their primary logical meaning. Even the possibility
of ambiguity is avoided.
A third characteristic feature of scientific style is what we may call sentencepatterns. They are of three types: postulatory, argumentative and formnlative. A
hypothesis, a scientific supposition or a forecast must be based on facts already known,
on facts systematized and defined.
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A fourth observable feature of the style of modern scientific prose and one that
strikes the eye of the reader is the use of quotations and references. These sometimes
occupy as much as half a page. The references also have a definite compositional
pattern, namely, the name of the writer referred to, the title of the work quoted, the
publishing house, the place and year it was published, and the page of the excerpt
quoted or referred to.
A fifth feature of scientific style, which makes it distinguishable from other
styles, is the frequent use of foot-notes, not of the reference kind, but digressive in
character. This is in full accord with the main requirement of the style, which is logical
coherence of ideas expressed.
The impersonality of scientific writings can also be considered a typical feature of
this style. This quality is mainly revealed in the frequent use of passive constructions.
Scientific experiments are generally described in the passive voice.
E. THE STYLE OF OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS
This FS is not homogeneous and is represented by the following substyles or
variants:
1)

the language of business documents,

2)

the language of legal documents,

3)

that of diplomacy,

4)

that of military documents.

The main aim of this type of communication is to state the conditions binding two

parties in an undertaking. These parties may be: the state and the citizen, or citizen and
citizen; a society and its members (statute or ordinance); two or more enterprises or
bodies (business correspondence or contracts); two or more governments (pacts,
treaties); a person in authority and a subordinate (orders, regulations, instructions,
authoritative directives); a board or presidium and an assembly or general meeting
(procedures, acts), etc.
The aim of communication in this style of language is to reach agreement
between two contracting parties. This most general function of the style of official
documents predetermines its peculiarities. The most striking, though not the most
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essential feature, is a special system of clichs, terms and set expressions by which each
substyle can easily be recognized, for example: I beg to inform you, the abovementioned, hereinafter named, on behalf of, private advisory, Dear Sir, your obedient
servants.
In fact, each of the subdivisions of this style has its own peculiar terms, phrases
and expressions which differ from the corresponding terms, phrases and expressions of
other variants of this style. In legal language, examples are: to deal with a case;
summary procedure; a body of judges; as laid down in.
Besides the special nomenclature characteristic of each variety of the style, there
is a feature common to all these varietiesthe use of abbreviations, conventional
symbols and contractions, for example: M. P. (Member of Parliament), H.M.S. (His
Majesty's Steamship), $ (dollar), (pound), Ltd (Limited). There are so many of them
that they make special appendixes in dictionaries interpreting them.