XI Международная студенческая научная конференция Студенческий научный форум - 2019

There are three ways of reproducing actual speech: a) repetition of the exact utterance as it was spoken (direct speech), b) conversion of the exact utterance into the relater's mode of expression (indirect speech), and c) representation of the actual utterance by a second person, usually the author, as if it had been spoken, whereas it has not really been spoken but is only represented in the author's words (represented speech).

In other words, represented speech is the form of utterance which conveys the actual words of the speaker through the words of the writer but which retains the peculiarities and traits of the speaker's mode of expression. The narrator’s plane and the character’s plane co-exist, which results in the increase in emotiveness and expressiveness of the narration.

As it was said, there is a device which conveys to the reader the unuttered or inner speech of the character, presenting his thoughts and feelings. This device is termed represented speech. The representation of the actual utterance through the author's language is called uttered represented speech, and the representation of the thoughts and feelings of the character unuttered or inner represented speech.

So, represented speech exists in two varieties: a) uttered represented speech and b) unuttered or inner represented speech.

Uttered represented speech demands that the tense should be switched from present to past. The important part is that the personal pronouns should be changed from the first and second person to third one, just as in indirect speech, but the syntacitcal structure of the utterance is not changed. It is also common for it to be combined with introductory sentences.

Here are some examples:

“Why was she nervous? What was there about a toy to make her grow pale? Why should she be so nervous?” (Th. Dr.)

In this utterance uttered represented speech is represented in the Past Indefinite Tense and third person pronoun. It may be easily transformed into a direct monologue of the character.

“They paused in their work to question with him with glances, and Ito nodded it a manner that was unmistakable: yes, he had murdered the man who had been his best friend” (W.S.)

Uttered represented speech in this example is given in italics. It reflects direct speech of the personage by the syntactical structure but the present tense form is replaced by the past one.

"Could he bring a reference from where he now Bias? He could," (Dreiser)

"A maid came in now with a blue gown very thick and soft. Could she do anything for Miss Freeland? No, thanks, she could not, only, did she know where Mr. Freeland's room was?” (Galsworthy)

"She had known him for a full year when, in London for a while and as usual alone, she received a note from him to say that he had to come up to town for a night and couldn't they dine together and go to some place' to dance. She thought it very sweet of him to take pity on her solitariness and accepted with pleasure, They spent a delightful evening." (Maugham)

By the way, this manner of inserting uttered represented speech within the author's narrative is not common.

"His heart was, besides, almost broken already; and his spirits were so sunk, that he could say nothing for himself but acknowledge the whole, and, like a criminal in despair, threw himself upon mercy; concluding, 'that though he must own himself guilty of many follies and inadvertencies, he hoped he had done nothing to deserve what would be to him the greatest punishment in the world.'"

Here again the introductory 'concluding' does not bring forth direct speech but is a natural continuation of the author's narrative. The only indication of the change is the inverted commas.

Uttered represented speech has a long history. As far back as the 18th century it was already widely used by people-of-letters, evidently because it was a means by which what was considered vulgar might be excluded from literature, i.e. expletives, vivid colloquial words, expressions and syntactical structures typical of the lively colloquial speech of the period. Indeed, when direct speech is represented by the writer, they can change the actual utterance into any mode of expression they considers appropriate.

In Fielding's "History of Tom Jones the Foundling" we find various ways of introducing uttered represented speech. Here are some interesting examples:

"When dinner was over, and the servants departed, Mr. Al-worthy began to harangue. He set forth, in a long speech, the many iniquities of which Jones had been guilty, particularly those which this day had brought to light; and concluded by telling him, 'That unless he could clear himself of the charge, he was resolved to banish him from his sight for ever."'

In this passage there is practically no represented speech, inasmuch as the words marked off by inverted commas are indirect-speech, i.e. the author's speech with no elements of the character's speech, and the only signs'of the change in the form of the utterance are the inverted commas and the capital letter of 'That'. The following paragraph is built on the same pattern.

"Hislieart was, besides, almost broken already; and his spirits were so sunk, that he could say nothing for himself but acknowledge the whole, and, like a criminal in despair, threw himself upon mercy; concluding, 'that though he must own himself guilty of many follies and inadvertencies, he hoped he had done nothing to deserve what would be to him the greatest punishment in the world.'"

Here again the introductory 'concluding' does not bring forth direct speech but is a natural continuation of the author's narrative. The only indication of the change are the inverted commas.

Mr. Alworthy's answer is also built on the same pattern, the only modification being the direct speech at the end.

"Alworthy answered, "That he had forgiven him too often already, in compassion to his youth, and in hopes of his amendment: that he now found he was an abandoned reprobate, and such as it would be criminal in any one to support and encourage," 'Nay,' said Mr. Alworthy to him, 'your audacious attempt to steal away the young lady, calls upon me to justify my own character in punishing you."

Then follows a long speech by Mr. Alworthy not differing from indirect speech (the author's speech) either in structural design or in the choice of words. A critical analysis will show that the direct speech of the characters in the novel must have undergone considerable polishing up in order to force it to conform to the literary norms of the period. Colloquial speech, emotional, inconsistent and spontaneous, with its vivid intonation suggested by elliptical sentences, breaks in the narrative, fragmentariness and lack of connectives, was banned from literary usage and replaced by the passionless substitute of indirect speech.

Almost in any work of 18th century literary art one will find that the spoken language is adapted to conform to the norms of the written language of the period. It was only at the beginning of the 19th century that the elements of colloquial English, began to elbow their way into the sacred precincts of the English literary language. The more the process became apparent, the more the conditions that this created became favourable for the introduction of uttered represented speech as a literary device.

In the modern belles-lettres prose style, the speech of the characters is modelled on natural colloquial patterns. The device of uttered represented speech enables the writer to reshape the utterance according to the normal polite literary usage.

Nowadays, this device is used not only in the belles-lettres style. It is also efficiently used in newspaper style. For example:

"Mr. Silverman, his Parliamentary language scarcely concealing his bitter disappointment, accused the government of breaking its pledge and of violating constitutional proprieties.

Was the government basing its policy not on the considered judgement of the House of Commons, but on the considered judgement of the House of Lords?

Would it not be a grave breach of constitutional duty, not to give the House a reasonable opportunity of exercising its rights under the Parliament Act?"

Uttered represented speech in newspaper communications is somewhat different from that in the belles-lettres style. In the former, it is generally used to quote the words of speakers in Parliament or at public meetings.

References:

1) Гальперин И.Р. “Стилистика английского языка” Москва, 1977 – 336 с.

2) Денисова О. К., Позняк Л. П. “Учебно-методическое пособие по стилистике английского языка” Москва, 2014 – 201 с.

3) Скребнев Ю.М. “Основы стилистики английского языка” Москва, 2003 – 221 с.

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