XII Международная студенческая научная конференция Студенческий научный форум - 2020

This paper is devoted to the question of creation of the semantic typology of English spatial adverbs with the help of comparative-parametric method [1]. This method presupposes the usage of such quantitative characteristics as indices and scales.

It has been proven that English spatial adverbs possess not only spatial, but also temporal, quantitative and qualitative meanings [2]. In order to identify semantic types of the adverbs the study has been carried out in two aspects: the aspect of space / time / quantity / quality seme representation in the semantheme of English spatial adverbs and the aspect of communicative relevance of space / time / quantity / quality semes in the semathemes of these adverbs.

To objectively explore the adverbs according to these aspects we used the index of space / time / quantity / quality seme representation in the semantheme of an adverband the index of communicative relevance of sememe (the term of L. Krivenko [3]), theintegral index of communicative relevance of spatial / temporal / quantitative / qualitative sememes. The degree of the represetation of these parameters was evaluated against the scale, suggested by L. Krivenko,

We shall demonstrate how these parameters operate with the example of the adverb somewhere.

There are four sememes in the semantheme of the lexeme somewhere. Two of these sememes are spatial: «in or at a place having a position that is not stated or known», «in the direction of progress», one temporal sememe — «approximately (time)», one quantitative sememe — «about (quantity)». The index of spatial seme representation in the semantheme of the adverb in question thus equals 50%, which characterises the degree of this parameter representation as considerable. The indices of time and quantity seme representation are 25% each, the degree of the parameters is noticeable. Qualitative semes are not represented in the semantheme of the adverb under investigation.

However, the results of the communicative relevance of the sememes of the adverb somewhere differ from those of the seme representation. The integral index of communicative relevance of spatial sememes equals 93%, the degree of this parameter can be classified as superhigh. Sememe «in or at a place having a position that is not stated or known» turned out to be communicatively most relevant, as its index of communicative relevance equals 92.6%, the degree of the corresponding parameter is superhigh. Sememe «in the direction of progress» has communicatively superlow usage as its index of communicative relevance equals 0.4%.

As for the index of communicative relevance of the temporal sememe «approximately (time)» and quantitative sememe — «about (quantity)», they both are 1%, which shows low degree of their communicative relevance.

It should be noticed that the conducted study has revealed one qualitative sememe, which is not stated in the studied dictionaries: «showing uncertainty when giving evaluative characteristics» (She was somewhere, somehow, still too middle-class). The index of communicative relevance of this sememe equals 5%, the parameter representation can be defined as low.

The fact that the results obtained from the study of the aspect of space / time / quantity / quality seme representation in the semantheme of the adverb somewhere and the aspect of communicative relevance of its sememes do not coincide resulted in implementation of the index of locativity / temporality / quantitativity / qualitativity, which is the average of indices of seme representation and communicative relevance of the sememes with the corresponding semes.

Application of this index enables us not only to come to the final conclusion about the degree of the space / time / quantity / quality seme representation in the semantics of the English spatial adverbs but also create a typology of English adverbs.

For example, the adverb somewhere is characterised by the index of locativity 71.5%, which proves the degree of locativity to be high. The indices of temporality and quantitativity coincide: both of them equal 13%, the degree of corresponding parameters representation is noticeable. The index of qualitativity is 2.5%, the degree of this parameter is low.

Thus, according to these indices we can state that the adverb somewhere can be defined as locative-temporal-quantitative-qualitative.

To conclude, the study shows the possibility of application of the comparative-parametric method of linguistic research for creation of spatial adverbs typology, which aims to provide teachers of English with a successful tool to estimate which types of the numerous adverb meanings should be primarily taught.

Literature

1. Sternina M.A. Comparative-Parametric Method of Linguistics Studies / M.A. Sternina. – Voronezh: “Istoki”, 2014. – 115 p.

2. Pankratova M.E. Semantics of Adverbs in the Modern English Language (Spatial Adverbs Analysis) / M.E. Pankratova: Candidate of Philological Sciences dissertation – Voronezh, 2015

3. Krivenko L.A. National Specifics of Russian and English Semanthemes of Substantive Lexis / L.A. Krivenko: Abstract of Candidate of Philological Sciences dissertation – Voronezh, 2013