3. The theory of functional styles.

Most problematic issues: Number of functional styles, the problem of The Belles-Lettres Style.

I. The overview of the system of functional styles.

sublanguages, substyles, registers and functional styles

1. The system of functional styles by I.R.Galperin

5 functional styles:

1. The Belles-Lettres Style:

• poetry

• emotive prose

• the language of the drama

2. Publicist Style:

• oratory and speeches

• the essay

• articles

3. Newspaper Style

• brief news items

• headlines

• advertisements and announcements

• the editorial

4. Scientific Style

5. The Style of Official Documents

• business documents

• legal documents

• the language of diplomacy

• military documents

only the written language.

2. Skrebnev’s classification of functional styles

1. Literary or Bookish Style:

• publicist style

• scientific (technological) style

• official documents

2. Free (“Colloquial”) Style:

• literary colloquial style

• familiar colloquial style

3. The system of functional styles by I.V.Arnold

Colloquial Style :: Neutral Style :: Bookish Style

1. Colloquial Style

• literary colloquial

• familiar colloquial

• common colloquial

2. Bookish Style

• scientific

• official documents

• publicist (newspaper)

• oratorical

• poetic

Function Style	Commu- nicative	Prag- matic	emotive	phatic	aesthetic
oratorical	+	+	+	+	+
colloquial	+	+	+	+	-
poetic	+	-	+	-	+
Publicist	+	+	+	-	-
official	+	+	-	-	-
scientific	+	-	-	-	-

4. The modern approach to functional styles

A) A.N.Morokhovsky

1. Official business style

2. Scientific-professional style

3. Publicist style

4. Literary colloquial style

5. Familiar colloquial style

business style (administrative, juridical, military, commercial, diplomatic, etc.) Military texts (official style) = commands, reports, regulations, manuals, instructions; diplomatic documents (notes, declarations, agreements, treaties).

B) D.Crystal

regional, social, occupational, restricted and individual.

Regional varieties reflect the geographical origin of the language used by the speaker:

Social variations testify to the speaker’s family, education, social status background:

- Occupational styles:

- Religious English

- Scientific English

- Legal English

- Plain (official) English

- Political English

- News media English:

• newsreporting

• journalistics

• broadcasting

• sportscommentary

• advertising

Restricted English appears both in domestic and occupational spheres:

• Knitwrite in books on knitting

• Cookwrite in recipe books

• Congratulatory messagrs

• Newspaper announcements

• Newspaper headlines

• Sportscasting scores

• Airspeak, the language of air traffic control

• Emergencyspeak, the language of emergency services

• E-mail variety

Individual variation arise from the speaker’s personal differences meaning such features as interests, physique, personality, experience.