13. Actual division of the sentence

Grammatically, sentences are divided according to the members present in the sent-ce.There are primary & secondary members. The secondary members of the sent-ce are usually associated with a subject or а predicate. The purpose of this division & its significant is tо reveal the informative value of each word in the sentence, It is natural that each word in а sentence contributes semantically to the general meaning of а sentence. In terms of actual division all sentences are divided into rhematic and thematic sent-s. Very often this term means that any sentence is aimed at dealing with some information which is new & information which is quite known. The informative division of the sent-ce plays even more significant role than the grammatical division. Evidently the aim of actual division is tо observe & to follow the means of this or that language in order to use them adecvatly in communication.

Formal means of expressing the distinction between the rheme & the theme:

1) Word order is the position of sense groups in а sent-ce. Their expression by members of the sent-ce is arranged according to the role of sense groups in the utterance. In Russian stylistically neutral declarative sent-s have communicatively important sense groups. The rheme is at the end of the sent-ce. In general each next word in а sent-ce possesses more information than the previous one. The most important word/phrase is usually placed at the end.(Вчера я получил от брата письмо/Вчера я получил письмо от брата +rheme (predicativity)). In English where the word order is grammatically fixed it might seem impossible to consider the word order as а means of expressing the theme & the rheme but statistical data show that in 94% of English sent-s which are stylistically neutral the rheme occupies the end of the sent-ce. The last word in the sent-ce is the focus of information & from this point of view such sent-s as "I wrote а letter to my friend" & "I wrote my friend а letter" are different.

2) Intonation being а structural form of the sentences plays the most important role in the communication. It is intonation that makes grammatically identical sent-s different communicatively. It is used to show logically mоrе important words in the sent-ce.

3) Articles (the — theme, а — rheme. But! Very often the definite article is used in the rhematic group — "give me the book, please!"

4) Structures with intensifying particles (rheme  it is he who..., it is smth that..., as for..., only, even + inversion)

14. Aspects of lexical meaning.

Lexical meaning – the material meaning of a word, which reflects the concept of the given word. Lexical meaning is individual, unique. It does not belong to any other word in the same language: bicycle – a vehicle with two wheels, handle-bars to guide it with, a seat, and two pedals to make it go.

The lexical definition of a term, also known as the dictionary definition, is the meaning of the term in common usage.

There are 3 aspects:

1) the denotative or referential meaning (обозначающий) helps to understand the idea of the word. It is the word`s reference to the object.

We can consider it as the core (central) meaning, which the word has and it`s equal for all speakers of the language.

Ex. to commute = to go by transport for a long distance to the place of studying or working.

We are commuters.

The type of denotative meaning varies in different groups of words.

- situational words which depend on the context: here, son, my, this, now.

- pronominal words (he, she, they); in isolation their meaning is very general: he – any male. but in speech their meaning is always individual: he – this particular male.

- specific and generic terms differ in the size of the referent group: rose – flower; flower – plant.

- abstract words (miracle, polite, to manage)

2) the connotative meaning expresses the attitude of the speaker to us what he speaks about; includes additional meanings: emotional, evaluative intensifying and expressive

It includes:a) the emotive charge Ex. father or daddy (emotive charge, expresses feelings)

Girl or girlie (has the connotative meaning) b) evaluation (“+”, “-“, but without feelings)

Ex. notorious – скандально-известный, not simply famous.

- She is a cat (spiteful – злобная, язвительная, not pussycat)

+ She is a lion (brave)

3) the pragmatic meaning helps to understand why this or that word is used, conveys situation.

It depends on:

- the style of speaking

- participants of the communication

Ex. The president speaks in public (official style, formal).

behold – obsolete (устарелый) word

Watch – modern