The Lexico-Semantic Group of Verbs for Different Sorts of Light

INTRODUCTION

The present research project is devoted to the problem of synonyms in Modern English. I find it very interesting to investigate this problem because synonymy seems to be one of the most controversial problems in modern linguistics. The very existence of words traditionally called synonyms is disputed by some linguists; the nature and essence of the relationships of these words is hotly debated and treated by the representatives of different linguistic schools.

One of the objectives of this investigation is to give a thourough characterization of synonyms.

Chapter I deals with the theoretical analysis of the scientific works found on this topic. Much attention is paid to the problem of the definition of synonyms, as the traditional definition is criticized on many points by many linguists. This problem is treated from the point of view of different linguists: I.V. Arnold, N.N. Rayevska, and L.Levitki.

The problem of the criteria of synonymy,various classifications of synonyms presented by different linguists (V.V.Vingradov, L. Levitki, S. Johnson), as well as the main sources of synonyms have been described in much detail.

The main purpose of this diploma paper is to present a detailed analysis of the lexico-semantic group of verbs for different sorts of light such as:’ to shine, to sparkle, to gleam, to glitter, to glisten, to glimmer, to twinkle, to flicker, to dazzle'.

The basis of the analysis of the lexico-semantic group of verbs for different sorts of light are 534 examples found by the method of compact selection from the original English and American literature such as: Ch. Bronte 'Jane Eyre', Ch. Dickens 'Oliver Twist', Th. Dreiser 'Jennie Gerhard' and others.

The practical part suggests using different methods of linguistic analysis of synonyms.

The definitional and transformational analyses intend to single out the semantic components of each analysed verb, to find out whether the verbs of light can be considered as synonyms. This analysis involves the investigation of the lexico-semantic group of verbs for different sorts of light with the help of their dictionary definitions. The data from the following three dictionaries (Oxford English Dictionary, Longaman English Dictionary, Webster's Dictionary of Synonyms) are analysed comparatively.

One of the more promising methods of investigating the semantic structure of the word is by studying the words in their typical contexts that is the contextual or distributional analysis. This analysis has been done in order to single out the left-hand valency of the lexico-semantic group of verbs for different sorts of light.

The practical part includes the analysis of the lexico-semantic group of verbs for different sorts of light from the point of view of the emotional colouring. An attempt has been made to reveal the presence of the emotional colouring among the elements of the group under study.

The contrastive analysis brings to light the ways of translation the lexico-semantic group of verbs for different sorts of light from English into Romanian. It is intended to compare the usage of the verbs for different sorts of light in various contexts with their translation into Romanian. The analysis is based on the examples selected from Ch. Dickens's novel 'Oliver Twist' and the Romanian translation made by D.Matei.

The reference list comprises the list of scientific works and the list of literary sources.

CHAPTER I THE PROBLEM OF SYNONYMS IN MODERN

ENGLISH

l.l The problem of the definition of synonyms

Taking up similarity of meaning and contrasts of phonetic shape, we observe that every language has in its vocabulary a variety of words, kindred in meaning but distinct in morphemic composition, phonemic shape and usage, ensuring the expression of most delicate shades of thoughts, feeling and imagination. The more developed the language, the richer the diversity and therefore the greater possibilities of lexical choice enhancing the effectiveness and precision of speech.

Thus, slay is the synonym of kill, but is elevated and more expressive involving cruelty and violence. The way synonyms function may be seen from the following example

E.g. Already in this half-hour of bombardament hundreds upon hundreds of men would have been violently slain, smashed, torn, gouged, crushed, mutilated.

(Aldington)