Any highly developed language has two speech forms - oral and written. Oral, which includes, first of all, colloquial speech, has been formed over the centuries and is associated with the historical development of its carriers - this or that people. At a certain stage, it became a kind of foundation for the formation of written speech. Further, both forms existed in parallel, opposed by certain signs.
Definition
In linguistics, it is generally accepted that colloquial speech is a special kind of literary speech. The scope of its application is everyday everyday communication, transfer of any information, impact on the interlocutor, expression of emotional state. Traditionally, colloquial speech is opposed to book by a number of signs. Its basis is dialects and dialects, surzhiki, urban slang and jargon, as well as elements of book speech. Like any significant language layer, the colloquial form of speech has a number of distinctive signs and features.
Features and signs of colloquial speech
Features of colloquial speech are connected, first of all, with its sphere of use:
If we talk about the oral form, then such speech is used, first of all, in dialogs - in the conversations of two or more people. It can also be used in monologues addressed by the speaker to himself.
Conversation - spontaneous speech. The speaker, as a rule, does not prepare specifically for communication, does not think ahead of time his remarks. They are pronounced depending on what and how the interlocutor or interlocutors respond to him. Even if the conversation is planned in advance, it is characterized by a large degree of improvisation. In this regard, the fundamental difference between oral colloquial speech from, for example, written. In one way or another, the letter contains an element of preliminary preparation, the selection of language means, a more thorough formulation of thoughts.
Spoken language, as a rule, is used in an informal setting, with informal, relaxed communication. This is an important difference from a formal business conversation, for example, a conversation between a boss and a subordinate, or speaking a scientific report or lecture.
Conversation as such requires mandatory participation in the conversation. These can be individual replicas that accompany the monologue speech of the interlocutor.
Situationality is also a hallmark of colloquial speech. Those. Depending on the communication situation, the topic of conversations, informational and semantic load, the emotional state of the interlocutors, the level of their intellectual and spiritual development, professional sphere and sphere of interests, the content side of communication and the lexical-stylistic, grammatical means of expression will be determined.
Active use of various non-verbal means of communication - facial expressions, gestures, laughter, intonation. Because one of the most important tasks of colloquial speech is understanding, these means make communication more accessible, expressive, and facilitate understanding of its semantic orientation.
Conversational speech is characterized by the use of emotionally colored evaluative vocabulary, words with diminutive suffixes or with the meaning of exaggeration, interjections, incomplete or truncated sentences, reduction of vowels, tautology, discontinuous syntax of statements, etc.
Speech culture and speaking
Although conversational speech is distinguished by stylistic ease and even some negligence, the higher the educational, intellectual level of the interlocutors, the more their speech corresponds to linguistic norms. The culture of speaking is directly related to the general culture of the individual.
So, people from "dysfunctional" social groups are distinguished by a poor vocabulary, the use of vocabulary of a colloquial and swearing nature, incorrect accentuation in words, errors in pronunciation or use of words whose lexical meaning completely does not correspond to the situation of communication. Grammatical, phonetic and syntactic errors (incorrect use of case forms, distortion of the sound envelope of a word, incorrect construction of sentences), the use of interjections instead of a full-fledged word are characteristic of this talking group.
In people engaged in intellectual work, in vocabulary, the vocabulary of an abstract character prevails or is often found, the exact, correct use of words in accordance with their lexical meaning and communication situation. Their speech approaches bookish imagery, lexical wealth, grammar and syntactic literacy. However, the use of swear words and expressions is also possible here.
The professional environment of speaking people leaves its mark on the nature and content of colloquial speech. The so-called "professionalism" occupy a significant part of the vocabulary of a person.