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Types of relations and the systemic character of language

 

Language is a system of signs (meaningful units of language).

This signs are closely into connected and into dependent. Various subtypes of language form different microsystems within the frame work of the global macrosystem. Each system is a structural set of elements. They have a common function and this common function is to give expression to human thoughts.

The systemic nature of grammar is more evident than in any other sphere of language. The grammar system is responsible for the very organization of the informative content of utterances

Language in a narrow sense of the word is a system of means of expression. The system of language includes material units (sounds, morphemes, words, word-groups) and rules of regularity which are responsible for the use of those units. The sign as a meaningful unit in the system of language has only one potential meaning. And this potential meaning is actualized in the of speech as a part of the grammatically organized text. All lingual signs stand to one another in two fundamental types of relations. Paradigmatic and syntagmatic. Syntagmatic linear relations between lingual units in a segmental sequence (strings). If the sentence is syntegmatically connected the constitute parts of it are grammatically organized. Morphemes within the words are connected syntegmatically, phonemes are connected syntagmatically within morphemes. The other type of relations opposed to syntegmatic is called paradigmatic. Paradigmatic relations exist between elements of the system outside the strings. They co-occur in strings. In the sphere of phonology such series of units are built up by the correlations of phonemes. Paradigmatic relations coexist with syntegmatic relations in such a way that some of the syntegmatic connections are necessary for the realization of any paradigmatic series. The minimal paradigm consists of two forms. Units of language are divided into segmental or into suprasegmental. Segmental units consist of phonemes and they form phonemic strings. Suprasegmental units are realized together with segmental units and express different meanings. To suprasegmental units belong intonations, accents and patterns of word order. All segmental units of language form a hierarchy of levels. This hierarchy means that units of any high level are analyzable into units of the lower level. Morphemes are decomposed into phonemes, words – into morphemes. But the hierarchical relation of the language cannot be reduced to the mechanical composition of larger units from smaller ones. Each level is characterized by its own specific functional features. They are responsible for the recognition of the corresponding level.

 

The lowest level of lingual system is phonemic. It is formed by the phonemes and they are the material elements of the higher level segments. The phoneme has no meaning and it isn't a sign. The phoneme differentiates morphemes and words. Phonemes are combined into syllables. The syllable is not a sign it should be considered as elements which has some properties of morphemes. Phonemes may be represented by letters in writing. Units of the higher level of language are meaningful and they may be called the signemes. The level located above the phonemic is the morphemic level. And the morpheme is an elementary meaningful part of a word. And it is built by phonemes. The shortest morphemes include one phoneme only (one-root words). The morpheme expresses abstract significative meaning. This meanings are used as constitutes for the formation of more concrete (nominative) meanings of the word. The third level is the level of words (lexemic level). The word is a naming (nominative) unit of language. Words are built up of morphemes. The shortest word consists of one explicit morpheme. The next high level is the level of phrases (word groups) – phrasemic level. Above the phrasemic levels lies the level of sentences (proposemic level). The character of the sentence as a signemic unit of language consists in a fact that every sentence expresses predication. It shows the relation of denoted event to reality. It shows whether this event is real or unreal. But the sentence is not the highest unit of language in the hierarchy of language. Above the proposemic level is the level of sentence groups (supra-proposemic). The supra-proposemic is a combination of separate sentences which form a textual unity. Such combinations have regular patterns consisting of syntactic elements. There are different syntactic processes by which sentences are connected into textual unities.




Date: 2015-02-16; view: 3951


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