Creolized Text As An Object Of Interdisciplinary Analysis

Abstract

The author of the article pays some special attention to the interdisciplinary character of the category «creolized text». The problem of correlation, interaction of verbal and non-verbal – visual components of a creolized text is observed in the article. Some linguists’ points of view towards the problem of creolized text’s components’ correlation are presented. Basing upon texts-demotivators the main discursive means of manipulation, font and color symbolism, definite correlation of its verbal and non-verbal components are indicated in the article. Some stylistic devices that are typical for demotivators are pointed out in the paper. Among them the author pays some special attention to the implicit and explicit exhortations. The author justifies that the visual component of the creolized text strengthens the verbal one, affecting an addressee psychologically. Moreover, the author lays stress on the fact that a creolized text of any social net possesses much more capacity to modify the consciousness. The idea of complex – multidisciplinary approach for creolized text’s investigation is proved in the article. Any creolized text’s analysis demands complex interdisciplinary knowledge including not only philological but sociological, philosophical, psychological, culturological one.

Keywords:

Introduction

Linguists’ interest towards non-verbal way of transmission of text’s key idea is conditional upon some factors. First of all, manipulating the impulses of subconsciousness these means either supplement the verbal idea of the message, or express more significant textual idea in comparison with its verbal component. It’s necessary to emphasize that non-verbal component doesn’t assign to verbal range’s role. It has turned out of the secondary source of information to the self-contained textual component. Non-verbal means of communication can transmit various nuances of verbal components, they have definite abstract and specific idea, content and imagery, and they possess high associative potential.

Problem Statement

Discussing texts’ non-verbal component we’re going to refer to its graphic expression. In this regard some special attention will be paid to creolized text in the article. This instrument is able to manipulate the consciousness, consequently to become a basis for causing varied feelings and emotions.

According to researches’ points of view a creolized text is a specific instrument of communication aimed to draw addressee’s attention.

This instrument is able to manipulate the consciousness, consequently to become a basis for causing varied feelings and emotions.

Research Questions

A creolized text of any social net possesses much more capacity to modify the consciousness significantly (Asmus, 2015, p.17). It gives a chance to a «depersonalized» addressee not only view, but also copy the content. Such kinds of texts are able to influence not only the individuals but the social groups (Bugaeva, 2016). It is evident that a category «creolized text» extends beyond the philological science. Being a complex category it’s become a subject of investigation not only of linguistic investigations but also sociological, philosophical, psychological, culturological ones. All the factors let us establish the interdisciplinary character of the category discussed.

Purpose of the Study

The purpose of the study is to observe the components of the creolized text and their correlation, to demonstrate the interdisciplinary approach towards the concept studied.

Research Methods

Creolized text’s methods of investigation are based upon complex interdisciplinary approach. Among them there are discourse analysis, content analysis, and observation.

Findings

As Voroshilova M.B. mentions, the problem of correlation, interaction of verbal and non-verbal signs of a creolized text is in the spotlight of researchers. Some contemporary linguists are studying the correlation of verbal and visual iconic systems, i.e. non-verbal, graphic means of communication accompanying written language (Voroshilova, 2006). According to M.B. Voroshilova’s viewpoint all modern linguists agreed that creolized text is a special phenomenon where verbal and non-verbal components are combined into visual, structural, semantic and functioning coherent whole that is supposed to have complex pragmatic impact on an addressee (Voroshilova, 2013).

A characteristic feature of any written text is font’s size and color, usage of mathematical and punctuation marks and other paralinguistic means. For instance D.P. Chigaev points out that font symbolism has a leading role in contemporary advertisement. Font symbolism is correlated with its connotative nuance (Chigaev, 2010). One of the most effective means of drawing addressee’s attention is the usage of expressive font’s functions. All the functions may be subdivided into two groups: topographemics (mechanisms of textual syntagmatic’s variation) and supragraphemics (font’s change) (Chigaev, 2010, p.17). The expressive means of topographemics are italicizing, underlining, textual space layout etc. Lexemes’ italicizing for emphatic effects have either denotative or connotative function. Usage of such graphic means makes any informative text expressive visually, contributes to the process of its content’s simplicity. Expressive supragraphemics’ opportunities are much more varied because font is a semiotic code of a creolized text (Chigaev, 2010, p.17). During the first stage of creolized text’s perception its font cause addressee’s guess about message’s content. For instance M.B. Voroshilova emphasizes that certain font influences the consciousness of a recipient of the information as any font is a form of social encoding. It displays personal social identity (Voroshilova, 2006).

Usage of various punctuation marks in creolized texts also contribute to realization of pragmatic, expressive and entertaining functions. In order to make a message clear, its idea is often transmitted by means of punctuation marks.

Among variety of creolized texts demotivators are of some special interest for linguists. Demotivators are the texts containing the image (heading) and slogan (usually of white font) located on black or dark blue background (Nezhura, 2016). We’re supporting the ideas of O.S. Issers denoting the demotivators as contemporary discursive practices. Having become the part of mass Internet creation demotivators haven’t changed their formal structure but have widened the list of problems and functions realized. Demotivators have become peculiar reflection of up-to-date realities (Issers, 2015, p.104].

Formally expressed speech markers of exhortation are the key peculiarity of demotivators. The linguistic attributes of exhortation are such grammatical categories as second person, singular/plural, imperative mood. Sometimes exhortations do not have any formal language markers. As a rule, a visual component combined with a verbal one forms one whole having complex pragmatic effect on the addressee. Such non-verbal components as an exclamatory mark producing an effect of self-confidence on the addressee are also considered to be formal language markers. Exclamatory and question sentences containing an implicit exhortation can be frequently found in demotivating texts (demotivators). There is a specific feature of such exhortations: they shouldn’t be followed immediately, they are considered to be a sort of recommendation how to behave in this or that situation. The recommendation is usually based upon some moral, ideological, value categories (Baranov, 2012). Nevertheless such utterances (sayings) express the idea «I want you to do this/that/it». The rhetorical questions and question-statements express the same idea because there is no necessity to answer them: the answers are evident. Any question of such type looks/functions like a statement that was pronounced in a question form. That is why it can be considered to be an exhortation or a directive phrase. It is necessary to pay attention to the fact that the idea of exhortation may be observed in the texts with full creolization where the visual component/content coincides with the textual one semantically. Antithesis of concepts, images, categories, phenomena is used as the basic method/way of impact/effect. Graphic component of such texts lets a person imagine vividly some polar or opposite phenomena.

Colour has some special significance while the process of creolized text’s interpretation. According to R. Bart that is colour that is able to activate immediately the general complex of individual knowledge and experience. Colour allows to provide clarity and integrity of a composition, sets definite rhythm of text’s interpretation. Colour has a leading role as it influences the consciousness decisively serving as a means of information’s distribution. Being an ergonomic means any colour provides attention’s attraction of the audience and important information’s accentuation (Barthes, 2007). In this connection apart from textual component that has the basic influential function, its graphic component that is becoming a background one there is a specific combination of black and white colour that attracts some special attention in the demotivators. Black colour – a background one – is predominating. It is able to become a challenge, to be aggressive, to produce an effect of melancholy, addressee’s oppression. On the contrary the white one is able to motivate, there are openness, sincerity in it. White colour is considered to be the symbol of fairness that can be semantically correlated with the content itself – exhortations expressed either implicitly or explicitly (Bride, 2016). Colour makes/produces emotional state of an addressee. The black colour may be excluded; white font’s colour may be exchanged into any other colour but the semantic load will be the same as before. Probably the influential power towards an addressee will be changed as a creolized text with no background and image has its traditional form. Any traditional text is not so attractive for the audience as a creolized one. It can be easily lost in the information flow. In such cases a graphic component plays a «signal» role and simultaneously a demotivating one, influencing the participants of communication psychologically. In other words, any colour, to be more exact their combination also contain an exhortation, not only the words.

Conclusion

It is evident that a creolized text has a specific set of stylistic devices and influential ways that can be identical and typical for the traditional text. Wherein a visual component that is typical for a creolized text only enforces its verbal one, touching the addressee psychologically.

It helps to «draw» a situation more vividly. That fact proves the statement about creolized text’s ability to change the conciseness. Any creolized text can become an instrument of manipulation among the representatives of various ideologies and groups that can provoke some criminal acts.

It is necessary to conclude that the way of a creolized text’s interpretation depends on the accuracy of its visual component which is endowed with specific potential for its investigation. Any creolized text’s analysis demands complex interdisciplinary knowledge including not only philological but sociological, philosophical, psychological, culturological one.

References

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About this article

Publication Date

30 April 2018

eBook ISBN

978-1-80296-038-9

Publisher

Future Academy

Volume

39

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-

Edition Number

1st Edition

Pages

1-797

Subjects

Sociolinguistics, linguistics, semantics, discourse analysis, translation, interpretation

Cite this article as:

Driga, S. (2018). Creolized Text As An Object Of Interdisciplinary Analysis. In I. V. Denisova (Ed.), Word, Utterance, Text: Cognitive, Pragmatic and Cultural Aspects, vol 39. European Proceedings of Social and Behavioural Sciences (pp. 543-547). Future Academy. https://doi.org/10.15405/epsbs.2018.04.02.77