In modern Russian, it is customary to distinguish five basic styles of speech. Each of them is peculiar to certain sections of the population and types of journalism. The most difficult to perceive is the scientific style of speech. The reason for this is the large number of inclusions in the text of specialized terms.
General concepts
Scientific language is a means of communication in educational research and professional and analytical activities. For one reason or another, each person has encountered this style of writing texts in real life without exception. Many people have a better understanding of the scientific language orally.
Today, mastering the norms of this style is one of the most important components of Russian culture. Scientific speech is often referred to the literary (book) language. The reason for this is such operating conditions and stylistic features as a monological character, the desire to normalize terminology, deliberation of each statement and a strict list of means of expression.
Style History
Scientific speech came about thanks to the rapid development of various fields of knowledge in new narrowly specialized spheres of life. Initially, this presentation style could be compared to an artistic narrative. However, in the Alexandrian period, the scientific language gradually separated from the literary. In those days, the Greeks often used a special terminology that ordinary people simply could not perceive properly. Also during this period, signs of a scientific style began to come to light.
The initial specialized terminology was only in Latin. However, soon scientists from all over the world began to translate it into their languages. Nevertheless, to this day it is Latin that remains the international way of transmitting scientific information. During the Renaissance, many professors strove for accuracy and conciseness of writing texts in order to get as far away from the artistic elements of presentation as literary emotionality contradicted the canons of the logical representation of things.
The "liberation" of the scientific style was extremely slow. An example is Descartes’s unflattering remarks regarding the work of Galileo that his texts are too fictitious. Kepler shared this opinion, believing that the Italian physicist unjustifiably often resorts to an artistic description of the nature of things. Over time, Newton's work became a model of style.
Russian scientific language began to take shape only at the beginning of the 18th century. During this period, authors of specialized publications and translators began to create their own terminology. In the mid-18th century, Mikhail Lomonosov, together with his followers, gave impetus to the formation of a scientific style. Many masters relied on the work of a Russian naturalist, but the terminology was finally consolidated only at the end of the 19th century.
Types of Scientific Style
Currently, there are 2 classifications: traditional and advanced. By modern standards of the Russian language, 4 types of scientific style are distinguished. Each of them has its own specifics and requirements.
Traditional classification:
1. Popular science text. Its addressee is an audience that does not have special skills and knowledge in a particular area. The non-fiction text retains most of the terms and clarity of presentation, but its nature is greatly simplified for perception. Also in this style it is allowed to use emotional and expressive forms of speech. Its task is to familiarize the general public with some facts and phenomena. Not without reason in the late 1980s a subspecies of style appeared - a scientific and artistic text. It minimizes the use of special terms and numbers, and their presence has a detailed explanation.
The following features are characteristic of the popular science style: comparisons with everyday objects, ease of reading and perception, simplification, narration of particular phenomena without classification and general overview. Statements of this orientation are most often printed in books, magazines, and children's encyclopedias.
2. Educational and scientific text. The addressee of such work is students. The purpose of the message is to familiarize yourself with the facts necessary for the perception of a certain material. The information is presented in general terms with a large number of typical examples. The use of professional terminology, strict classification and smooth transitions from review to special cases are inherent in this style. Works are published in educational and methodological manuals.
3. Actually a scientific text. Here the addressee are specialists in this field and scientists. The aim of the work is to describe specific facts, discoveries and patterns. The scientific style, examples of which can be found in dissertations, reports, and reviews, allows the use of not only terminology, but also personal emotionless conclusions.
4. Technical and scientific text. The works of this type of style are addressed to specialists of a narrow profile. The goal is to put knowledge and achievements into practice.
In addition to the above types, the extended classification also includes informative and reference scientific texts.
Scientific style basics
The variability of the types of this language is based on the general linguistic properties of speech activity, which manifest themselves independently of the field (humanitarian, precise, natural) and genre differences.
The scope of the scientific style of communication is significantly different in that its purpose is to uniquely logical expression of thought. The primary form of such a language will be concepts, conclusions, dynamic judgments that appear in strict sequence. Scientific speech should always be filled with arguments that would emphasize the logical thinking. All judgments are based on the synthesis and analysis of available information.
Signs of the scientific style of the text take on an abstracted and generalized character. Common extralinguistic features and properties of speech are:
- The abstractness and generalization of the presentation. Almost every word denotes a term or abstract subject. In narrow circles you can hear such a thing as a generalized scientific style. Examples of its distinguishing features: the predominance of nouns in the text, the use of generally accepted concepts, the use of verbs in personal forms, passive phrases.
- The consistency of presentation. All statements are built sequentially and consistently, the facts are interconnected. This is achieved through the use of special syntactic constructions and characteristic means of communication.
- Accuracy of presentation. This property of the scientific style of speech is achieved through the frequent use of terms, unambiguous expressions and lexically understandable words.
- Proof of presentation. Each argument must be supported by appropriate arguments. Saturation of presentation. The semantic load of the report completely exhausts the selected field of science.
- Objectivity of presentation. The lack of a personal look in conveying the meaning of the text All statements are focused on the subject of the report and acquire an impersonal form of speech.
Linguistic characteristics
The scientific style finds expression and consistency in certain units of speech. Its linguistic characteristics can be of 3 types:
- Lexical units. Functional-style coloring of the text is determined. They are characterized by special morphological forms and syntactic constructions.
- Stylistic units. Responsible for the neutral-functional load of the text. Thus, the determining factor is their quantitative predominance in the report. Separately labeled units are found in the form of morphological forms. Less commonly, they can acquire syntactic constructs.
- Interstyle units. They are also called neutral language elements. Used in all styles of speech. They occupy the largest part of the text.
Scientific style and its features
Each form and type of speech has its own indicative properties. The main features of the scientific style: lexical, linguistic and syntactic.
The first type of properties include the use of specialized phraseology and terminology. Lexical features of the scientific style of speech are most often found in words with a specific meaning. Examples: “body” - a term from physics, “acid” - from chemistry, etc. Also, the use of generalizing words such as “usually”, “usually”, “regularly” is inherent in these signs. Expressive and conversational vocabulary should not be used. On the other hand, cliché phrases, various drawings and symbols are allowed. In this case, there should be links to information sources. It is important that the speech is filled with international words. The narration comes from a third party without frequent use of synonyms. The lexical features of the scientific style are 6th grade in high school, so speech should be conducted in a popular language. Highly specialized terminology is not common.
Linguistic features of the scientific style of the text should meet such requirements as objectivity and emotionlessness. It is important that all phrases and concepts are unambiguous.
The syntactic features of a scientific style: the use of the pronoun “we” in a special sense, the predominance of complex sentences, the use of compound predicates. Information is presented in impersonal form with a standard word order. Explanatory, passive and
plug-in constructions of sentences are actively used.
All the main features of the scientific style of speech suggest a special composition of the text. The report should be divided into parts with the appropriate title. It is important that the text consists of introduction, basis and conclusion.
Scientific style: lexical signs
In professional speech, the main form of thinking and expression is the concept. That is why the lexical unit of this style denotes a certain abstract object or phenomenon. Unambiguously and precisely such specialized concepts allow to reveal the terms. Without these words or phrases denoting a particular action in a narrow field of activity, it is impossible to imagine a modern scientific style. Examples of such terms: numerical methods, zenith, atrophy, range, radar, phase, prism, temperature, symptom, laser, and many others.
Inside the lexical system, these expressions are always unique. They do not require expression and are not considered neutral with respect to style. The terms are usually called the conditional language of the scientific field of activity. Many of them came to the Russian lexicon from English or Latin.
Today, the term is considered a separate conceptual unit of communication between people. Such lexical features of the scientific style in quantitative terms in profile reports and works significantly prevail over other types of expressions. According to statistics, terminology is about 20% of the entire text. In scientific speech, she embodies homogeneity and specificity. Definition of terms is given by a definition, that is, a brief description of a phenomenon or object. Each concept in a scientific language can be identified.
Terms have a number of specific features. In addition to unambiguity and accuracy, it is simplicity, systematic and stylistic certainty. Also, one of the main requirements for terms is modernity (relevance), so that they are not outdated. As you know, in science it is customary to replace some concepts with newer and more capacious ones. In addition, the terms should be as close as possible to the international language. For example: hypothesis, technology, communication and others. It is worth noting that today most of the terms have generally accepted international word-formation elements (bio, extra, anti, neo, mini, marco and others).
In general, narrow-profile concepts are general and inter-scientific. The first group includes such terms as analysis, problem, thesis, process, etc., the second - economics, labor, cost. The most difficult to understand are highly specialized concepts. The terms of this lexical group are characteristic only for a certain field of science.
Concepts in professional speech are used only in one specific meaning. In the event that the term is ambiguous, it should be accompanied by a defining word that clarifies its orientation. Of the concepts that need specifics, the following can be distinguished: body, strength, movement, size.
Generalization in the scientific style is often achieved by the use of a large number of abstract lexical units. In addition, professional language has its own specific characteristic phraseology. It includes such phrases as “solar plexus”, “adherent participle”, “inclined plane”, “represents”, “applies to”, etc.
The terminology provides not only informational understanding at the international level, but also the compatibility of regulatory and legislative documents.
Scientific style: linguistic features
The language of a narrowly specialized sphere of communication is characterized by its morphological features. Generalization and abstraction of speech are manifested in separate grammatical units, which are found when choosing forms and categories of presentation. Linguistic features of the scientific style are characterized by the frequency of repetition in the text, that is, the quantitative degree of the load.
The unspoken law of saving lexical means makes it necessary to use brief variations of phrases. One of such ways to reduce the language load is to change the forms of nouns from the feminine to masculine (for example: key - keys). A similar situation is with the plural, which is replaced by a single. Example: linden blooms only in June. In this case, this refers not to one particular tree, but to the entire plant family. Real nouns can sometimes be used in the plural: great depths, radio noise, etc.
Concepts in scientific speech significantly prevail over the names of actions. This is done artificially to reduce the use of verbs in the text. Most often, these parts of speech are replaced by nouns. In a scientific style, the use of verbs leads to the loss of lexical meaning, translating the presentation into an abstract form. Therefore, these parts of speech in reports are used only for the connection of words: appear, become, be, be called, become, conclude, possess, reckon, be determined, etc.
On the other hand, in the scientific language there is a separate group of verbs that act as elements of noun combinations. In this case, they convey the linguistic meaning of the presentation. Examples: lead to death, make calculations. Often in the scientific style of communication verbs of abstract semantics are used: to have, exist, continue, occur and others. The use of grammatically weakened forms is also allowed: distillation is carried out, a conclusion is drawn, etc.
Another linguistic feature of the style is the use of the timeless part of speech with qualitative significance. This is done to indicate the signs and properties of the studied phenomena or objects. It is worth noting that verbs in the past timeless meaning can include only a scientific text (examples of texts: test reports, research reports).
In a professional language, nominal predicates are used in 80% of cases in an imperfect way, so that the presentation is more generalized. Some verbs of this form are used in the future tense in steady turns. For example: consider, prove, etc.
As for personal pronouns, in the scientific style they are used in accordance with the nature of the abstract text. In rare cases, such forms as “we” and “you” are used, since they specify the narrative and appeal. In the professional language, 3rd person pronouns are widespread.
Scientific style: syntactic features
This type of speech is characterized by a desire for complex sentences. This allows you to more accurately convey the meaning of concepts, to establish a relationship between terms, causes, consequences and conclusions. The syntactic features of the scientific style of the text are characterized by the generalization and homogeneity of all parts of speech.
The most common types of sentences are compound subordinates. Complex forms of conjunctions and adverbs are also included in the presentation (scientific text). Examples of general texts can be seen in encyclopedias and textbooks. : , ..
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Texts of this style are made out in the form of finished works with the appropriate structure. One of the most common genres is primary. Such scientific speech (examples of texts: article, lecture, monograph, oral presentation, report) is compiled by one or more authors. The statement is publicized for the first time.
The secondary genre includes texts that are compiled on the basis of available information. This is an abstract, and a synopsis, and an abstract, and theses.
Each genre has certain stylistic features that do not violate the structure of the scientific style of storytelling and inherit generally accepted features and signs.