Mod A

Specialised discourse

SPECIAL LANGUAGE

=

SPECIFIC LANGUAGE

=

SPECIALIZED LANGUAGE

ITALIAN:

LINGUE SPECIALI

≠/=

LINGUAGGI SPECIALISTICI

≠/=

LINGUAGGI SETTORIALI

SPECIALISTIC CONCEPTS

TEXTUALIZATION

VERBAL CODE NOVERBAL CODE

SPECIFIC FRENCH TEXT FORMULAS

SPECIFIC ENGLISH TEXT CHARTS

SPECIFIC ITALIAN TEXT GRAPHS

ETC… ETC…

STYLE

MODE FROZEN FORMAL CONSULTATIVE CASUAL

WRITTEN DOCUMENTS : STATUTES insurances policies BRIEFS contracts APPELLATE OPINIONS landlord-tenant leases wills

SPOKEN- MARRIAGE CEREMONIES Lawyers’ examinations Lay witnesses’ testimonyCOMPOSED INDICTMENTS of witnesses in trials

WITNESSES’ OATHS and depositionsPATTERN INSTRUCTIONS Lawyers’ arguments,VERDICTS motions in trial

Expert witnesses’ testimony

SPOKEN- LAWYER-CLIENT LOBBYSPONTANOUS INTERACTION CONFE-

BENCH CONFERENCES RENCESLAWYER-

LAWYER CONVERSATION

THE COOPERATIVE PRINCIPLE (Grice 1975)

MAKE YOUR CONVERSATIONAL CONTRIBUTION SUCH AS IS REQUIRED, AT THE STAGE AT WHICH IT OCCURS, BY THE ACCEPTED PURPOSE OR DIRECTION OF THE TALK EXCHANGE IN WHICH YOU ARE ENGAGED.

THE 4 MAXIMS:QUANTITY

1. MAKE YOUR CONTRIBUTION AS INFORMATIVE AS IS REQUIRED (FOR THE CURRENT PURPOSES OF THE EXCHANGE).

2. DO NOT MAKE YOUR CONTRIBUTION MORE INFORMATIVE THAN IS REQUIRED.

QUALITY TRY TO MAKE YOUR CONTRIBUTION ONE

THAT IS TRUE

1. DO NOT SAY WHAT YOU BELIEVE TO BE FALSE2. DO NOT SAY THAT FOR WHICH YOU LACK ADEQUATE

EVIDENCE

RELATION BE RELEVANT

MANNER BE PERSPICUOUS

1. AVOID OBSCURITY OF EXPRESSION2. AVOID AMBIGUITY3. BE BRIEF (AVOID UNNECESSARY PROLIXITY)4. BE ORDERLY

CONTEXTreferential function

ADDRESSER MESSAGE ADDRESSEE---------------------------------------

emotive function poetic function conative function

CONTACTphatic function

CODEmetalingual function

The pragmatic functions of communication

JAKOBSON (1966)

HALLIDAY (1978)

MODE = channel

FIELD = object of communication

TENOR = relation among participants

Example:

Patient (to the nurse):” Good morning, I must have my tonsils removed.”

Nurse (to the doctor): “ There is a patient for a tonsillectomy.”

LEXICAL FEATURES (Gotti 1991)

MONOREFERENTIALITY SYNONYMITY

LACK OF EMOTION METAPHOR

PRECISION AMBIGUITY

TRANSPARENCY IMPRECISION

CONCISENESS REDUNDANCY

CONSERVATISM SEMANTICINSTABILITY

METAPHOR

METAPHOR GIVES TRANSPARENCY, CONCISENESS AND PRECISENESS

Transparency through similes and semantic associations“l’atomo è un sistema solare in miniatura”

Conciseness through schemata and background“una prova geometrica è una trappola per topi”

Preciseness through loans from common language or other special codes(CATACHRESIS = to fill in semantic gaps)“economic depression”

VOCABULARY IN ESP

Six categories of vocabulary (Baker -1988):1. items which express notions general to all specialised disciplines;2. general language items that are used to describe or comment on technical

processes or functions in preference to other items with the same meaning, for example occur rather than happen;

3. general language items that have a specialised meaning in one or more disciplines;

4. specialised items that have different meanings in different disciplines;5. general language items that have restricted meanings in different disciplines;6. items with only one meaning.

1 – 2 - 3>>>>>> semi-technical vocabulary : nouns factor, method, function, cycle; evaluative adjectives relevant, important, interesting; verbs accept, advise, agree, suggest, occur; collocations make a booking, launch a campaign.4 – 5 >>>>>> technical vocabulary : bug in computer science; force, acceleration, energy in physics; stress and strain in mechanics and engineering. 6 >>>>Monoreferential vocabulary >>>>>: bit, byte, carbon, liver

VOCABULARY IN ESP

We have to focus on semi-technical vocabulary in terms of COLLOCATIONS and LEXICAL PHRASES

COLLOCATION refers to the way words appear together with each other and describes the company that a word keeps (also defined as LEXICAL SET) – strong or powerful + argument; present findings rather than show findings

LEXICAL PHRASES are phrases that always appear in the same form and are frequently used in certain situations – by pure coincidence, the table suggests that ...; as shown in the diagram; sales fell sharply.

ex.: The variation of these ratios presents some insight about the financial intermediary

or .: The variation of these ratios offers some insight into the financial intermediary

COLLOCATIONS

NewspaperAs a newly qualified teacher at a comprehensive school in Wiltshire, every day Joe faces the challenge of gaining the respect of a class of 15-year-old. Joe, 26, admits it is a tough challenge but thinks he is winning the battle. Joe, who teaches English and media studies and coaches a school football team, will qualify fully in July, pending the results of his lesson assessments. With this milestone passed, and the increased financial stability it will bring, Joe will turns his thoughts to buying his first home

As a newly qualified teacher at a comprehensive school in Wiltshire, every day Joe faces the challenge of gaining the respect of a class of 15-year-old. Joe, 26, admits it is a tough challenge but thinks he is winning the battle. Joe, who teaches English and media studies and coaches a school football team, will qualify fully in July, pending the results of his lesson assessments. With this milestone passed, and the increased financial stability it will bring, Joe will turns his thoughts to buying his first home

A film review “The Interpreter” She has a gift for languages, which brings her to the UN. She wants to make a difference. She is idealistic in that single-minded, dedicated manner associated with freedom fighters. Silvia (Nicole Kidman) remains an enigma. When Tobin Keller (Sean Penn) begins to investigate her, he is faced with a blank sheet. She is beautiful, blonde, lissom and lithe. She lives alone, has no lover, rides a Vespa throughout New York and works all day, providing simultaneous translation for delegates. She has an odd accent, which, like everything else about her, is difficult to pin down

“The Interpreter” She has a gift for languages, which brings her to the UN. She wants to make a difference. She is idealistic in that single-minded, dedicated manner associated with freedom fighters. Silvia (Nicole Kidman) remains an enigma. When Tobin Keller (Sean Penn) begins to investigate her, he is faced with a blank sheet. She is beautiful, blonde, lissom and lithe. She lives alone, has no lover, rides a Vespa throughout New York and works all day, providing simultaneous translation for delegates. She has an odd accent, which, like everything else about her, is difficult to pin down.

PRE-MODIFICATION

Ex.:An L-shaped computer room Vs A room for computers which has the shape of an L.The driver’s overrapid downhill driving of the bus caused brake failure Vs The driver drove the bus too rapidly down the hill so the brakes failed)

richness in meaning but risk of ambiguity

Ex.:1) The rate at which inflation grows The rate of inflation growth The inflation growth rate

2) A pentagon is a figure which has five sides A pentagon is a figure with five sides A pentagon is a five-sided figure

3) A train which carries passengers A train for carrying passengers A passenger-carrying train (or A passenger train)

4) An engine which is driven by diesel oil An engine driven by diesel oil A diesel (oil)-driven engine (or A diesel engine)

_____________________________________________________________________

1) A small car factorya) A small factory for making carsb) A factory for making small cars

A small car-factory (=A small factory for making cars)A small-car factory (=A factory for making small cars)

2) Disease causing poor nutritiona) Poor nutrition that causes disease

b) A disease that causes poor nutrition

3) A man eating shark a) A shark that eats humans b) A man who is eating shark meat

4)Three hundred year old trees a) An indeterminate number of trees that are 300 years old b) 3 trees that are 100 years old

c) 300 trees that are 1 year old

NOMINALISATION

Huddelston (corpus 1971) 3,926 forms of the verb 'to be'Vs

3,665 occurances of active verbs

Barber (corpus 1985) ' to be' accounts for 45% of all verbs in the present tense

“A high primary productivity is almost invariably related to a high crop yield. High productivity can be achieved by ensuring that all the light which falls on the field is intercepted by the leaves, and that photosynthesis itself is as efficient as possible. Greater efficiency in photosynthesis could perhaps be achieved by selecting against photorespiration.” (Chrispeels and Sadava, 1977: 198-9)

more objectified formuse of the verb “to be”

verbs’ weaknesslexical density

A high primary productivity is almost invariably related to a high crop yield. High productivity can be achieved by ensuring that all the light which falls on the field is intercepted by the leaves, and that photosynthesis itself is as efficient as possible. Greater efficiency in photosynthesis could perhaps be achieved by selecting against photorespiration.

The crop produces a large amountof primary products. You can largely produce your crop only if the leaves intercept all the light which falls on the field and if photosynthesis itself is as efficient as possible. Photosynthesis could be more efficient if you select against photorspiration

LEXICAL DENSITY (content words)

The complete development of the fracture model

requires

an understanding of the bond-rupture reaction

NS VS NS post-modification pre-modification

nominalisation

NOMINALISATION AND LEXICAL DENSITY

1. glass cracks more quickly the harder you press2. cracks in glass grow faster the more pressure is put on3. glass crack growth is faster if greater stress is applied4. the rate of glass crack growth depends on the magnitude of the applied stress5. glass crack growth rate is associated with applied stress magnitude

1. SEMI-TECHNICAL LEVEL (semi-binding structure)

changing in:- tenor- nominalisation- passive Vs active- objectivity

5. TECHNICAL LEVEL (highly-binding structure)

COMPLEXITY AND LENGTH OF A SENTENCE/1

Ex.:This Agreement, effective as of the first day of April 1987, between Dale Johnson Ryder Warren, an Association organized and existing under the laws of Switzerland (“Grantor”), its successor and assigns, and DJRW Johnson Ryder Simpson &C., its successor and assigns (“Member Firm”)…

Ex.:The tenant will pay for all gas and electric light and power which shall be consumed on or supplied to the Property during the tenancy and the amount of the water rate charged in respect of the Property during the tenancy and the amount of all charges made for the use of the telephone (if any) on the Property during the tenancy or a proper proportion of the amount of the rental or other recurring charges to be assessed to the duration of the tenancy.

COMPLEXITY AND LENGTH OF A SENTENCE/2

The surface structure of a sentence is:

NS + VS + NS

Scientific analysis: to follow, to be due to, to suggest, to show

Stative verbs: to consist of, to mean, to become, to depend, to represent, to form, to request, to require, etc.

Equative BE: the relationship between subject and nominal part gives an equivalence, that is X=Y

COMPLEXITY AND LENGTH OF A SENTENCE/3

Barber (1962)

27,6 words/sentence

the average of words per sentence in scientific texts

Gustafsson (1975)

55 words/sentence in English legal texts

28 words/sentence in English scientific texts

6-7 words/sentence in English oral texts

TENSES (Barber, 1962 -expository texts-)

1. Present Simple Active 64%

2. Present Simple Passive 25%

3. Future Simple Active 3.7%

4. Present Perfect Passive 1.7%

5. Present Perfect Active 1.4%

6. Past Simple Active 1.2%

7. Past Simple Passive 1.2%

8. Future Simple Passive 0.7%

9. Present Progressive Active 0.6%

10.Imperative 0.3%

THE PASSIVE FORMEx.:

1.We can divide 9 by 3 without a remainder

2.9 can be divided by 3 without a remainder

3.9 is divisible by 3 without a remainder

4.The division of 9 by 3 leaves no remainder

Ex.:

The research is based on a precise analysis of data. (no agent mentioned)

VsMr. X has based his research on a precise analysis of data.

DEPERSONALIZATIONIn academic writing we avoid uses of ‘you’. So, in the sentence below, the more informal 'give you' has been replaced with ‘provide’:

Neither qualitative interviews nor focus groups are likely to give you easily quantifiable, factual or objective data. 

Neither qualitative interviews nor focus groups are likely to provide easily quantifiable, factual or objective data.

As you can see from the data, two-thirds of respondents are satisfied with the current provision.As can be seen from the data, two-thirds of respondents are satisfied with the current provision.A more concise reformulation is:

The data show that two-thirds of respondents are satisfied with the current provision.

MODAL AUXILIARIES

MUST/ HAVE TO and SHOULD >>>>>>>>> obligation and logical inference/suggestion

MAY and MIGHT>>>>>>>>>>>>> permission and probability/suggestion

CAN and COULD >>>>>>>>>>>>ability and possibility

WILL>>>>>>>>>>>>prediction

MODAL AUXILIARIES in PRAGMATICS

MODALITY is a semantic category which reflects sender's attitude towards what is expressed in the message, or better, different levels of speaker's certainty.

EPISTEMIC VALUE : what is/is not true and/or certain

DYNAMIC VALUE: what someone is/is not able to do

DEONTIC VALUE: what is/is not necessary and/or obligatory

MODAL AUXILIARIES IN ESP

Ex.:

1) If employment increases, then, in short period, the reward per unit in terms of wage-goods must, in general, decline and profits increase (logical inference).

2) Mr Bush has had to make several big concessions (obligation BUT external, not endorsed by the speaker).

3) These conclusions should be applied to the kind of economy in which we actually live (obligation endorsed by the speaker).

4) "Only at this point there can be stable equilibrium" or "This level cannot be greater than full employment" (possibility/ability = certainty).

Vs Profits can/could rise by more than 15% this quarter (possibility).

5) The airlines may/might yet opt for a weaker alliance (no certainty).Vs

Things will get worse over the next three years, as Samsung gradually adds the capacity to make 500,000 cars a year (certainty).

Analyse this text and identify any specialised features:

It's interesting to consider the difference between mouse-driven desktop design and gesture-driven touchscreen design here. Desktop websites have a strong guideline to avoid horizontal scrolling. But for touch-screens, horizontal swipes are often fine. Indeed, mobile-device users typically expect to horizontally swipe their way through a carousel. Of course, this is just one more example of the meta-guideline that sufficiently different platforms require different user interface designs. This, again, is the underlying reason that mobile sites perform better than full sites when used on a mobile device.

Compare these two sentences:

The government banned smoking in public places in 2007. Since then, fewer people have been admitted to hospital for smoking-related dis-eases.

The ban on smoking in public places in 2007 has led to a fall in hos-pital admissions for smoking-related diseases.

'the ban on smoking in public places in 2007' is a nominalisation of the verb phrase 'banned smoking in public places in 2007';

'a fall in hospital admissions for smoking-related diseases' is a nomi-nalisation of 'fewer people have been admitted to hospital for smok-ing-related diseases'.

>Nominalisations convey an objective, impersonal tone. 

>Nominalisations can also make the text more concise because they can pack a great deal of information (lexical density) in a few words.

TEXT (HALLIDAY-HASAN, 1989)

“A text is characterised by coherence (continuità di senso); it hangs together. At any point after the beginning, what has gone before provides the environment for what is coming next. This sets up internal expectations; and these are matched up with the expectations referred to earlier, that listener or reader brings from the external sources, from the context of situation and of culture.”

TEXTURE (HALLIDAY-HASAN, 1989)(tessitura)

THESE COHESIVE RELATIONS GIVE TEXTURE TO TEXTS. IF A TEXT HAS

TEXTURE IT IS A REAL TEXT

TEXTURE IS EXPRESSED BY EITHER COHESION MARKERS OR IMPLICIT

SEMANTIC RELATIONS

Ex: Wash and core six cooking apples. Put THEM into a fireproof dish.

Ex: Milk finished! Gone to the supermarket.

Ex: A > The bell is ringing B> I’m in the bathroom

CONDIZIONI DI TESTUALITA’

Affinché un evento comunicativo sia realmente un testo, deve soddisfare le 7 condizioni di testualità:

1. COESIONE

2. COERENZA

3. INTENZIONALITA’

4. ACCETTABILITA’

5. INFORMATIVITA’

6. SITUAZIONALITA’

7. INTERTESTUALITA’

COESIONE/1 (G.Brown-G.Yule)

La coesione testuale riguarda invece l’insieme delle risorse linguistiche di superficie a disposizione di ogni lingua per collegare semanticamente una parte del testo con un’altra. Lavora sul piano sintattico, poiché può essere lessicale e/o grammaticale ed è costituita da legami coesivi quali: RELAZIONI COREFERENZIALI (ANAFORA E CATAFORA, SOSTITUZIONE ED ELLISSI) e CONNETTIVI TESTUALI.

RELAZIONI COREFERENZIALI

a)ESOFORICA: Look at that !

b)ENDOFORICA:anaforica Look at the sun. It’s going down

quickly.cataforica It’s going down quickly, the sun.

COESIONE/2 (G.Brown-G.Yule)

RELAZIONI COREFERENZIALI (cont.)

c) forma ripetuta: The Prime Minister recorded her thanks to the Foreign Secretary. The Prime Minister was most eloquent.d) forma parzialmente ripetuta: Dr. E.C.R. Reeve chaired the meeting. Dr. Reeve invited Mr. Philips to report on the state of the gardens.e) sostituzione lessicale: Ro’s daughter is ill again. The child is hardly ever well.f) forma pronominale: Ro said she would have to take Sophie to the doctor.g) forma sostituita: Jules has a birthday next month.Elspeth has one, too.h) forma elisa: Jules has a birthday next month.Elspeth has too.

COESIONE/3 (G.Brown-G.Yule)

MARCATORI DI additiva: and, or, furthermore, similarly,COESIONE o in additionCONNETTIVI TESTUALI avversativa: but, however, on the other hand,

nevertheless

causale: so, consequently, for this reason, it follows from this

temporale: then, after that, an hour later, finally, at last

USE OF CONNECTORSHuddelston et al. (1968)

Connective elements in a corpus of scientific texts:

- deduction : therefore, thus…. 33%

- contrastive : but, however…. 23%

- certainty or doubt : of course, possibly… 16%

- semantic continuity : and, moreover….. 9%

- exemplification : for example, in particular 8%

2. COERENZA

La coerenza testuale non è una proprietà intrinseca del testo ma viene costruita dall’emittente del testo in collaborazione con il destinatario nel collegamento logico delle frasi all’interno di un dato contesto di interpretazione. Lavora sul piano semantico e si realizza grazie ai rapporti di casualità, scopo, successione temporale, alle relazioni di causa-effetto e all’ordine logico.

Ex: Milk finished! Gone to the supermarket.

A BEx: Jack fell down and broke his head > A causes B Vs

Jack fell down and drove his head > A ? B

3. INTENZIONALTA’

Si riferisce a tutti i mezzi utilizzati da chi produce il testo per perseguire e realizzare le proprie intenzioni >>>>>forza illocutiva dell’emittente.

Ex: A > The bell is ringing B> I’m in the bathroom

4. ACCETTABILITA’

Si riferisce alla disponibilità da parte del ricevente a partecipare allo scambio comunicativo e a perseguire un fine comune>>>>>> effetto perlocutivo sul destinatario.

Nell’esempio:

A > The bell is ringing B> I’m in the bathroom

5. INFORMATIVITA’

Si riferisce al grado di conoscenza /attesa, alle aspettative relative ai contenuti del testo>>>>>>>> testo inteso come messaggio: le informazioni contenute nel messaggio sono note, condivise dall’emittente e dal destinatario?

Ex: Call us before you dig. You may not be able to afterwards.

6. SITUAZIONALITA’

Si riferisce all’insieme dei fattori che rendono rilevante un testo per una determinata situazione:

Ex: For he’s a jolly good fellow And so say all of us

>>>>>relazione coreferenziale esoforica che soddisfa la condizione di situazionalità (festa)

7. INTERTESTUALITA’

Si riferisce sia alla produzione che alla ricezione di un testo, processi che utilizzano i rapporti di interdipendenza con altri testi già noti>>>>>>> l’uso delle formule.

Ex: For he’s a jolly good fellow And so say all of us

PRINCIPI REGOLATIVI DELLA TESTUALITA’

Sono legati alle massime di Grice, in quanto il loro compito è quello di rendere le relazioni testuali, e quindi il testo, EFFICIENTE, EFFICACE e APPROPRIATO.

1. EFFICIENZA

2. EFFETTIVITA’

3. APPROPRIATEZZA

1. EFFICIENZA

L’evento comunicativo (il TESTO) deve richiedere il minimo sforzo/impegno da parte dei partecipanti all’evento stesso>>>>>>>> la massima di qualità/quantità.

2. EFFETTIVITA’ Il testo deve raggiungere lo scopo della comunicazione >>>>>>>> la massima di qualità/rilevanza.

3. APPROPRIATEZZA

Il testo deve riflettere una composizione armonica tra contenuto e aspetti testuali >>>>> la massima di qualità/maniera.

THEMATIC ORGANIZATION OF A SENTENCE

A TEXT IS BUILT UP ACCORDING TO A PROGRESSIVE SEQUENCE BETWEEN THE THEMATIC AND RHEMATIC PARTS OF DISCOURSE.

THEME IS ALWAYS THE LEFT COMPONENT OF A SENTENCE, THE BEGINNING OF AN UTTERANCE. IT IS ALSO THE KNOWN PART OF DISCOURSE.

RHEME IS WHATEVER COMES AFTER THE THEME AND IT IS RELATED TO IT BECAUSE IT HAS THE FUNCTION OF EXPLAINING IT. IT IS ALSO THE UNKNOWN PART OF DISCOURSE.

THEMATIC ORGANIZATION

Ex: 1

“ALL SUBSTANCES ARE DIVIDED INTO TWO CLASSES. THE FIRST CLASS IS ABOUT ELEMENTARY SUBSTANCES.”

T1R1

T2R2

Ex. 2

“I have called this book the General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money. I have placed the emphasis on the prefix general to contrast the character of my arguments and conclusions with those of the classical theory. I have become accustomed, perhaps perpetrating a solecism, to include in ‘the classical school’ the followers of Ricardo, including (for example) J. Stuart Mill, Marshall, Edgeworth and Prof. Pigou. I shall argue that the postulates of the classical theory are applicable to a special case only and not to the general case, the situation which it assumes being a limiting point of the possible positions of equilibrium.”

T1R1

T1R2

T1R3

T1R4

THEMATIC ORGANIZATION

Task : draw a diagram for each text.

1) Jack goes up the beanstalk again. He comes to the giant’s house and he sees the giant’s wife

2) Mr. William Serby who died aged 85 on September 20 was County Treasurer to Bukinghamshire County Council from 1929 to 1961. He was commissioned in the Queen’s (R.W. Surrey Regiment) in 1915 and served in France until he was wounded in 1916. From 1917 to 1919 he served as liaison officer with the French and Russian forces in the North Russian Expeditionary Force. In 1926 he was appointed County Accounter to the Cornwall C.C.During the Second World War he commended the Home Guard in Wendover and in later years was actively concerned with the work of the RNIB, the Oxford Diocesan Board of Finance, the Bucks Historic Churches Trust and in many local organisations in Wendover. In 1926 he married Jean Durns and they had one son and two daughters.

3)Rocky slowly got up from the mat, planning his escape. He hesitated a moment and thought. Things were not going well. What bothered him most was being held, especially since the charge against him had been weak. He considered his present situation. The lock that held him was strong. He thought he could break it.

THEMATIC PROGRESSION AND ORGANIZATION

IN THE RETHORICAL ORGANIZATION OF DISCOURSE, THE LOGICAL AND HIERACHICAL SEQUENCE OF INFORMATION IS REFLECTED INTO THE RETHORICAL UNITS, SUCH AS: SECTIONS, CHAPTERS, PARAGRAPHS, ETC…

Ex.: “There are three basic ways to improve a system’s performance: make it carry more data at the same time, make it run faster, or make it more efficient”

R1/aT1 R1 R1/b

R1/c

3 following paragraphs titled:

1. Improving data capacity (R1/a)2. Improving processing speed (R1/b)3. Improving efficiency (R1/c)

TEXTUAL FEATURES

1. LEXICAL REPETITION

Vs

2. ANAPHORIC REFERENCE

3. STANDARDIZATION

4. TEXTUAL DOMINANCE (dominanza testuale)

5. TEXTUAL GENRES (genere testuale)

STANDARDIZATION/1

STRUCTURES OF DIFFERENT TEXTUAL GENRES (Van Dijk - 1977)

Scientific article Psychology Economics

INTRODUCTION INTRODUCTION ANALYSISPROBLEM THEORY PREDICTIONSOLUTION PROBLEM PROPOSALCONCLUSION EXPERIMENT

COMMENTCONCLUSION

STANDARDIZATION/2

BUSINESS LETTER

a) THE HEADING : letterhead, date line

b) THE OPENING : inside address, the attention line, the salutation

c) THE BODY : the subject matter, the message

d) THE CLOSING : the complimentary closing, the company signature, the writer’s signature, the writer’s identification, reference initials, mailing notation (enclosures), carbon copy notation, postscripts

>>>>>>>PERSUASIVE WRITING>>>>>>>RAPID READING>>>>>>>MESSAGE COMPRESSED>>>>>>>IMMEDIATE AND UNMISTAKABLE

TEXTUAL DOMINANCE (dominanza testuale) from Cristina Lavinio – 1998TESTO ARGOMENTATIVO

SCOPO: PERSUASIONE/DIMOSTRAZIONE DELLA VALIDITA’ DI UNA TESITESIDESTINATARIO: IDENTIFICAZIONE DELLE OPINIONI CONDIVISE, CHE SI POSSONO PRESUPPORRE

A SOSTEGNO DELLA TESI (es.: dati, esempi, autorità)ARGOMENTI

CONTRARI(> confutazione)

inizioCOLLOCAZIONE DELLA TESI NEL TESTO centro

fine

dai principali ai secondariORDINE NELLA DISPOSIZIONE DEGLI ARGOMENTI dai secondari ai principali (climax)

misto

SEQUENZIALITA’CONNESSIONE E GERARCHIZZAZIONE DEGLIARGOMENTI MEDIANTE logici e di causa-effetto ( dato che, dunque..)

CONNETTIVI avversativi e concessivi ( ma, anzi, eppure..)metatestuali ( per prima cosa, infine…)

MODALITA’ DI ENUNCIAZIONE SOGGETTIVA 1a ps., lingua comune, molte figure retoricheOGGETTIVA 3a ps., lingua speciale, neutra, citazioni, bibliog.

TEXTUAL DOMINANCE (dominanza testuale) from Cristina Lavinio – 1998TESTO ESPOSITIVO

spiegazione / illustrazione - esposizione analiticaSCOPO di un ARGOMENTO o

memorizzazione / evidenziazioni delle - esposizione sintetica TEMA DI DISCORSOprincipali informazioni

DESTINATARIO: individuazione della sua enciclopediadelle sue conoscenze pregresse sull’argomento

ARGOMENTO: delimitato

SELEZIONE DELLE INFORMAZIONI

nella disposizione delle informazioniORDINE ed eventuale suddivisione accurata di vari blocchi informativi

con segnalazioni metatestuali delle partizioni di testo

lingua comune (ricorrendo il meno possibile a parole di bassa frequenza d’uso, a tecnicismi, ecc.)

MODALITA’ ENUNCIATIVAprevalentemente OGGETTIVA lingua speciale. ma con terminologia diluita entro

riformulazioni e parafrasi (per lo più segnalate da indicatori come cioè, o meglio, più precisamente), con numerosi esempi e definizioni

ARGUMENTATION & RHETORIC AS ARTS OF PERSUASION

Persuasion begins very early in life, well before the point when infant behaviour starts to diverge into different cultures and languages. A baby’s first sounds are instinctive but soon merge into deliberate strategies to change the behaviour and attitude of others.

Persuasion, then, is of great academic interest in the study of any language as it is one of language’s major use. All human beings have a vested interest in promoting our own wishes and views – hopefully in the belief that they are of benefit to others as well as ourselves – and in understanding how others are trying to influence us, and thus in resisting manipulation.

RHETORICAL STYLES AND STRATEGIES

Aristotle’s The Art of Rhetoric distinguishes three strategies of persuasion:

Reasoned proof (logos) Emotional appeal (pathos) Appeal to the good reputation of the speaker (ethos)

Broadsheet newspapers, such as The Guardian, The New York Times, The Washington Post, typically appeal to reason while tabloid such as The Sun, appeal to emotion. Advertisements using endorsement, whether by a celebrity or an authority figure, use ethos working on the principle that people will transfer their trust or admiration for the speaker to the product itself.

Rhetorical Question

Winston Churchill, in one of his wartime speeches delivered in the House of Common in May 1940, said:

“You ask, what is our aim? I can answer that in one word: victory”

Rhetorical Repetition

Martin Luther King addressed this speech to Civil Rights marchers in 1963:

“This is the faith with which I return to the South. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day”

ADVERTISING

“New year, New Look – Dressing to Impress”

ADVERTISING & PROPAGANDA

PERSONAL PERSUASION

Dialogue 1 :A mother discover her six-year-old son, Bruce, climbing on the kitchen counter to take packets of jelly at 9.30 a.m.

Bruce: (replying) Well, see, they’re gonna be for this afternoon in the army [a game]. I’m getting ready for then ‘cause when Liz gets home she needs a little snack ‘cause she always says, ‘I’m hungry’. So, this is gonna be for evening snack.Mother: So it all has to be made now? Bruce: We’ll make the jello first ‘cause it takes longer and we can cook it shorter. [meaning that jello takes longer to congeal, but a shorter time than popcorn to cook].Mother: OK (mother tears open jello package to begin the preparation)Bruce: Let me taste it.Mother: Why?Bruce: I’ve never tasted peach flavouring before. I just want to taste a little bit and I’m not gonna get a big chunk. Mother: OK.

Dialogue 2: Job interview

Interviewer: Uh, why did you decide to leave something that seemed to be – you seemed to be pretty well equipped for and go on into something else, - uh?Applicant: Well, even though I enjoyed optometry, I’ve been interested in health service administration field for quite a bit longer than that. Ah, as my resume says, I’ve worked in the hospital as a nursing assistant and I’d say that’s about when I decided that I was interested in health service administration . So the optometric work was kind of a fill-in type thing until I could get into graduate school and work directly in the administration field.