Expressive means of english syntax

2.1. EM BASED ON THE REDUCTION OF SENTENCE STRUCTURE.

Ellipsis is the omission from a syntactical construction of one or more words which might be clearly understood from context. Elliptical sentences are regularly employed in conversational English. Being used in fiction, they result in achieving some stylistic effect by:

1) giving speech characteristics, e.g. Not him, sir. Too pleased with himself. Some gentlemen can't act... Too stiff (A. Christie);

2) emphasising some fact(s), e.g. The robbery Long Ago. Very valuable emeralds... The lady's made and the tweeny (A. Christie);

3) imitating spontaneity, e.g. "Quick - in here." Poirot led the way into the nearest room..."And you - behind the curtain" (A. Christie).

Aposiopesis is a break in speech, while the thought is not completed, which is caused by the speaker's inability or unwillingness to finish the utterance, e.g. "Are you - are you and Paul..? " she stopped, squeezing my arm (D.Hammett); "It cant be - you don't mean.."(A. Christie).

Nominative sentences are one-member sentences with a noun, a prepositional noun-phrase, or an adverb. These verbless sentences are grammatically independent. In contrast with elliptical sentences, they have only one principal part, with or without words modifying it.

Nominative sentences may produce the effect of:

1) increasing the dynamism of narration, e.g. A remarkable woman - a dangerous woman. No waiting - no preparation. This afternoon - this very afternoon - with him here as witness... (A. Christie);

2) acquainting the reader with the place or background of action, e.g. Three blocks more... Another three blocks. (D. Hammett).

Asyndeton is a deliberate avoidance of conjunctions used to connect sentences, clauses, or words. As far as its stylisticrole is concerned, asyndeton creates a certain rhythmical arrangement, usually making the narrative measured, energetic, and tense, e.g. That's all I'm to do, all I want to do (D.Hammett); Tree and hall rose peaceful under the night sky and clear full orb; pearly paleness gilded the building; mellow brown gloom bosomed it round: shadows of deep green brooded above its oak-wreathed roof (Ch. Bronte).

2.2. EM BASED ON THE REDUNDANCY OF SENTENCE STRUCTURE.

Repetition is a reiteration of the same word or phrase to lay an emphatic stress on certain parts of the sentence.

Various types of repetition can be found in fiction:

1) ordinary repetition, i.e. a repetition of a word in close succession, e.g. She talked, in fact, and talked, and talked (A.Berkley);

2) framing or ring repetition, i.e. a repetition in which the opening word or phrase is repeated at the end of the sentence or a group of sentences, e.g. / cooled off where Frank was concerned; he didn't notice, but I cooled off (V. Pritchett);

3) anadiplosis or catch repetition, i.e. a repetition of the last word in a sentence or clause at the beginning of the next one, e.g. Yes, but I was afraid, afraid I'd go to one who'd tell Paul. I didn't know who to go to, who I could trust (D.Hammett);

4) chain repetition, i.e. a combination of catch repetitions, e.g. A smile would come into Mr. Pickwick's face. The smile extended into laugh; the laugh into roar, the roar became genera! (Ch. Dickens).

Enumeration is a repetition of homogeneous parts of the sentence, aimed at emphasising the whole utterance, e.g. / found battlers, secondmen, chauffeurs, cooks, maids, upstairs girls, downstairs girls, and a raft of miscellaneous flunkies - he had enough servants to run a hotel (D.Hammett).

Syntactical tautology is a superfluous repetition of semantically identical words or phrases to Say stress on a. certain part of the sentence e.g. She's always one for a change, Gladdie is... (A.Christie).

Polysyndeton is a repetition of conjunctions in close succession which are used to connect sentences, clauses, or words and make the utterance more rhythmical, e.g. She had herself a rich ruby look, for what with eating and drinking, and shouting and laughing and singing her face was crimson and almost steaming (J.Priestley).

Emphatic constructions may intensify or contrast any part of the sentence, giving it an emotive charge. The emphatic construction with "do" is used as a predicate intensifier. The construction "it is smb/smth who/that intensifies the subject; the construction "it is then that" stresses the adverbial modifier of time; "it is by/with/through smth that' makes prominent the adverbial modifier of manner. "It is to that/smth there that" brings to the foreground the object of the sentence, e.g. That evening it was Dave, who read to the boys their bed-time story (D. Carter); It was then that Poirot received a brief note from Sady Willard (A.Christie); / do know it! (D.Hammett).

Parenthetical clauses are sentences or phrases inserted into a syntactical structure without being grammatically connected with it. The functions of parenthesis are those of exemplification, deliberation, or reference. Parenthetical clauses may produce various stylistic effects:

1) creating two layers of the narrative, e.g. He tried to shake Wynant down by threatening to shoot him, bomb his house. Kidnap his children, cut his wife's throat - / don't know what all - if he didn't come across (D.Hammett);

2) emphasising this or that fact, e.g. He laughed - not loud but in complete delight - and stood up exclaiming: "Judith herself!" (D.Hammett);

3) exemplifying certain points, e.g. The dog - a shapeless monster in the night - buried itself at the other side of the gate and barked terrifically (D.Hammett).

2.3. EM BASED ON THE VIOLATION OF THE WORD-ORDER.

Inversion is the violation of the fixed word order within an English sentence. There are two major kinds of inversion:

1. that one which results in the change of the grammatical meaning of a syntactic structure, i.e. grammatical inversion (exclamatory and interrogative sentences), and

2. that one which results in adding to a sentence an emotive and emphatic colouring, i.e. stylistic inversion, e.g. And the palm-trees I like them not (A.Christie).

Inversion may be of two types:

1) complete, i.e. comprising the principal parts of the sentence, e.g. From behind me came Andrews voice (S. Chaplin);

2) partial, i.e. influencing the secondary parts of the sentence, e.g. Straight into the arms of the police they will go (A.Christie).

Separation or syntactical split is the splitting of a noun phrase by the attribute adjunct which is removed from the word it modifies. Stylistically, syntactical split is used to emphasise the phrase which was separated, e.g. He had never seen the truth before, about anything (R. Warren).

Detachment is a separation of a secondary part of the sentence with the aim of emphasising it, e.g. Formidable and ponderous, counsel for the defence arose (A.Christie).

Detachment is to be regarded as a special kind of inversion, when some parts of the sentence are syntactically separated from its other members with which they are grammatically and logically connected.