Theoretical foundation of the problem

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND SCIENCE, YOUTH AND SPORT

OF UKRAINE

Kyiv National Linguistic University

Project Work in English Lexicology

Phraseological units and context

Oleksandra Muzychenko

Group 306

Translators’/Interpreters’ Department

Research supervisor:

V.G. Nikonova

Professor, Doctor of Philology

Kyiv 2012

THEORETICAL FOUNDATION OF THE PROBLEM

Phraseological units are non-motivated word-groups that cannot be freely made up in speech, but are reproduced as ready-made units.The study of isolated phraseological units does not represent the diversity of connection which they take in a context and associations or additional sense that they acquire by occasional usage. The context can either reproduce the meaning of phraseological unit or their occasional meaning or generate them, therefore, we should distinguish the context of the operation and the context of generation.

An important part of the context is the idiomatic phraseological actualizer.Phraseological actualizer - a word, phrase, sentence or group of sentences that are semantically connected with phraseological units, which are used in these contexts and introduce them in speech for usual or occasional usage.

Context is a part of the text, isolated and combined by linguistic or speech unit, which are determined by actualizer of usual or occasional usage.

We may distinguish five basic types of distribution(external relations of phraseological units in the context).

1. Compatibility. In terms of the position of phraseological unit in the text we distinguish contact and distant compatibility.

Contact compatibility - is semantically implemented contiguity of phraseological unit to a word or phrase, which is its actualizer in postposition, and in the proposition. Many types of contact compatibility are common, for example, a combination of verbal phraseological units with a verb or a noun, adverbial phraseological unit with an adjective or a verb, etc: till the cows come home - нескінченно довго, цілу вічність; (до другого пришестя) …A desire to talk till the cows come home (Gr. Greene); white as a sheet - блідий як полотно. Poor Lady Sophia looks as white as a sheet (N. Mitford).

Distant compatibility - is a position in which phraseological unit and its actualizer separated by the word, phrase or punctuation. For example, as like as two peas –схожі як дві краплі води. White-collar workers and factory hands live in adjoining blocks in houses built on the same pattern and as like as two peas (W. S. Maughham). Adjectival phraseological unit and its actualizer separated by phrase built on the same pattern.

2.Relationship - a contact or distant position in which the phraseological unit is implemented according to the message of the situation. In this position, there are only interjectional phraseological units and interjectional phraseological units with the modal value.

my foot (colloquial style) - чорта з два!, чорта лисого!

I'll be ready very soon. - Ready my foot! You're still not dressed (LD).

3.Linkage - coordinative connection of sentences, including the phraseological unit of sentence’s structure (proverbs and sayings).

one's heart is broken – розбите серце

I am alone now, quite alone, and my heart is broken (HR Haggard).

4.Adjunction - is subordinate connection of sentences, including the phraseological units of sentence’s structure, consisting of complex sentences.

birds of a feather flock together (рибак рибака бачить здалеку)

It is Literally true in the systematized roguery in London that birds of a feather flock together (E. Bulwer-Lytton).

5. Conjunctionless connection of a sentence, that is the connection of two or more sentences without ordinative or subordinating connection.

it's long lane that has no turning - невдачі не можуть вічно тривати

Florrie: Fat chance I've got of going to France now.

Bessie: It's a long lane that has no turning (W. S. Maugham).

Phraseological context is fall into three types:

1) inphrasal context - phraseological unit and its actualizer expressed by word or phrase in the simple or complex sentence)

e.g. Here is realism as large as life. (S. O’Casey)

2) phrasal context - phraseological unit and its actualizer expressed by simple or complex sentences.

e.g. Bekker…asked Dick how he was getting on. “By leaps and bounds,” said Dick. (J.Lindsay)

3) extra - phrasal context – phraseological unit and its actualizer expressed by two or more simple or complex sentences.

e.g. my world - подумати тільки!

"My world,"said Chester."We can't work today. Do you know what today is? It's Washington's birthday" (J. O'Hara).

Context helps to distinguish phraseosemantic options of polysemantic phraseological unit.

The old dog looked up and wagged his tail. "Poor old boy!"(старий пес) thought Jolyon shifting back to the other window (J. Galsworthy).

So in this example the first sentence acts as actualizer of phraseological unit.

Also we can distinguish phraseological units between similar in lexical composition phrases only in the context. For instance, pour down the drain – пустити по вітру. Millions of dollars have been poured down the drain into this Un-America Activities Committee.

pour down the drain - спустити у водостічну трубу. Beside it stood the orange juice, a brown feather floating in it. I poured down the drain.

To sum up, phraseological unit and context are related, because it affects on the meaning of the phraseological unit and helps to understand it. So that’s why the studying of isolated phraseological units doesn’t show complete meaning of them.

Key words and expressions from the text:

1)occasional – обумовлене специфічним контекстом

2)usual – загальноприйняте

3)actualizer – актуалізатор

4)conjunctionless - безсполучниковий

5)contiguity – примикання

6)compatibility - сполучення

7)polysemantic – багатозначний

8)distribution – розподіл

9)adjunction – приєднання

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