How to define written and spoken language. Features of oral speech

The differences between spoken and written language are not limited to the way they are encoded; oral and written speech also differ in the mechanisms of their generation, in the predominant use of certain linguistic means, in expressive possibilities.

Oral speech is primary in relation to the written one - both historically and in the process of implementing the written text. However, the relationship between oral and written speech in the life of modern people is very complex: there is an increase in the role of written speech and the influence of the latter on oral speech, which does not always lead to its enrichment. OQ

Let's compare these two types of speech.

a) In terms of the degree of use, oral speech clearly predominates; however, the number of recorded oral texts (sound recordings) is still small compared to written texts - books, magazines, manuscripts, etc. Written speech has always been accepted as correct, exemplary, and it has been studied by linguists; oral speech began to be studied relatively recently.

b) By the nature of the generation, oral speech is always less prepared than written speech, it has more immediacy, spontaneity, more random.

Written speech is usually a prepared speech. It is more strict, complex in form and more complete in content, it consistently obeys the literary norm; it has a clearer and more accurate choice of words, larger and more complex sentences, etc. In oral speech, the syntax is simpler, there are often reservations, repetitions, ellipses, interjections, incomplete and connecting constructions, etc.

c) Oral speech has the means of sound expressiveness: intonation, tempo, pitch and timbre, pauses, logical stresses, sound power. In addition, oral speech can be accompanied by gestures, facial expressions. All this is unusual for written speech, and therefore it is less expressive than oral speech (to some extent, these shortcomings are compensated for by the use of punctuation marks, quotation marks, font emphasis - italics, petite, etc.).

d) The norms of oral and written speech are also different: orthoepic requirements are imposed on oral speech, spelling, punctuation requirements are imposed on written speech, and calligraphic requirements are also applied to the handwritten version.

In modern society, there is a rapid development of a variant of oral speech based on written (voiced written speech): reports, speeches, television programs, sound letters and other texts, which, before their oral implementation, are usually compiled in writing and therefore have many properties of written speech: preparedness, completeness and correctness, while maintaining the dignity of oral speech - sound expressiveness, facial expressions and gestures.

A person uses speech to express thoughts and communicate with other people. Initially, an oral form of speech (UR) arises, and since the invention of writing, it has become possible to record thoughts, artistic words and documents for future generations. Written speech (PR) allows you to extend the existence of oral speech. It takes time and effort to master each form of the existence of speech as an example of the functioning of the language.

The ability to speak, read, write is the first steps of a person to general literacy, and throughout life it must be improved. Without mastering speech, it is difficult to imagine such complex thought processes as analysis and synthesis. Without them, a person is deprived of the opportunity to be independent in making decisions, in exchanging information, in filtering data received from outside. SD and PR have characteristics that unite them as types of intellectual activity, but there are also a number of differences between one form and another.

What do spoken and written language have in common?

If we talk about the literary language, it should be noted that it functions in oral and written forms. They are characterized by:

• normalization: all the variety of language norms can be seen in dictionaries of various types, as well as in fiction, in samples of reciting texts related in style to scientific, journalistic, artistic.
• The ability to express emotions, address the addressee or interlocutor, make demands or requests: thanks to word forms, the breakdown of lexemes into parts of speech, an abundance of graphic and intonational means, a person is able to express any desire, as well as display what he has planned in writing.
• The use of the same terms to denote the genre diversity of both SD and PR. For example, a speech and a report are both carefully planned, structured, graphically designed in the form of text types of information messages intended for voicing in public, and these speeches themselves as such. The same can be said about the artist's monologue on stage: before being expressed, it must be thought out and transferred to paper.
• The need to adhere to the requirements of stylistics and lexicology. For example, the scientific style (articles and reports at conferences) is characterized by the "dryness" of the language, the complexity of syntactic constructions using participial and adverbial phrases, and terminological richness. The artistic style involves the use of a wide range of emotionally colored and diminutive words, sublime and disparaging vocabulary, phraseology. It is also possible to convey in novels, stories, fables, essays the features of colloquial speech interspersed with dialect words. This gives the works a unique flavor, whether they are written on paper, presented in the form of plays in the theater or adapted in the form of a screenplay for the cinema.

SD and PR as forms of language functioning help to establish information links, give a clear definition of the qualities of the described or analyzed objects, convey modality (relationship to people, objects, phenomena), call things by their proper names, receive information about the world from various sources. The transfer of thoughts in the oral or written word from person to person and receiving an “answer” is the key to effective communication between intelligent beings who speak.

What is the difference between spoken language and written language?

Compliance with language norms helps to make speech bright, rich, not cutting the ear. To make it expressive, various means are used in accordance with the rules fixed in the language. So, SD is characterized by the use of non-verbal means of communication to enhance the effect produced on the public. In PR, “special attitude” can be shown with capital letters, font changes, underlining. But that's not all.

The application of language norms in various forms of speech is as follows:

In UR - orthoepic and intonational. By the pronunciation of various sounds and the designation of stressed syllables, one can determine in which language the statement is made. Even people with poor linguistic training are able to distinguish Russian from Ukrainian, English from German, Spanish from French. It is important to follow the rules of mitigation of sounds and the duration of vowels, since these features allow you to distinguish between words that are close in sound. This helps the speaker and listener to save each other from semantic confusion.

The correct use of intonational means makes it possible not only to distinguish a request from an order, a question from a statement, but also to understand the mood of the speaker. In tonic languages, intonation changes within a single word, and with insufficient knowledge of the norms, listeners can be misled. Chinese language learners face similar difficulties.

In PR - spelling, graphics and punctuation. The graphic form of the word can only be seen in writing. To write correctly, you need to learn the rules of spelling and constantly practice - “check out” to eliminate annoying mistakes. To display the intonation and tempo of speech (long and short pauses) on the letter, punctuation marks are used: dot, comma, colon, semicolon, exclamation and question marks, ellipsis, dash. The use of each sign is strictly regulated by the rules, although liberties are possible in creative writing: these are the so-called copyright marks.

SD in the form of a speech, report, presentation sounds good if the speaker (lecturer, speaker, speaker) has a written “help”. At the same time, the text and its oral presentation may differ: the speaker is free to make adjustments during the presentation. Oral speech activity is more varied than written, so students should not miss lectures. A scientific article or textbook can be re-read hundreds of times, but repeating a lecture exactly to the intonation is almost impossible. The teacher presents the same topic in different ways for different audiences.

The effectiveness of SD largely depends on auxiliary communication tools: facial expressions, gestures, posture, position of arms and legs, the speaker's orientation to the audience, eye contact. An important condition for successful interaction between the listener and the speaker is feedback in the form of clarifying questions, repeated questions, and an emotional reaction to the statement.

During dialogue, conversation, public speaking, the speaker can observe the reaction of the public almost instantly: this is laughter, surprise, applause, booing, questions. Getting a reaction to the PR is extended in time, which prolongs the pleasure of reading, allows you to return to the already familiar text again and again in order to revive the experienced emotions in your memory.

The following real case shows the depth of differences between oral and written speech. Journalists

Nezavisimaya Gazeta in the early 1990s. they played a cruel joke on former USSR President Mikhail Gorbachev by publishing his monologue in the newspaper without processing, i.e. without "translating" oral speech into written. The ornate speech of Mikhail Sergeyevich, consisting of sentences without end and beginning, but with an abundance of introductory constructions and pronouns, is not in itself a model of oratory. However, with visual contact, it helped understanding that he used gestures and intonations. If the addressee perceived this monologue of Gorbachev in the course of an oral presentation, he would be able to understand the president to some extent. But the same monologue in writing turned out to be practically incomprehensible, since written speech has stricter laws and rules, in contrast to the rules and laws of oral speech.

Oral speech in the overwhelming majority of cases is addressed to the interlocutor, who can directly hear it. Of course, it happens that a person speaks aloud to himself, but in this case he simply acts as an interlocutor himself. In other words, oral speech presupposes the presence of not only the speaker, but also the listener. Therefore, an important distinguishing feature of oral speech is the use of intonations and gestures. The interlocutor can say: "Be there at eight," and the listener will understand him if the place is indicated with a gesture. In written speech, such a phrase, most likely, will not be adequately understood.

From the practice of poetry, the influencing potential of individual sounds of human speech is well known - the so-called phonosemantics, formed by the associative component of sounds and letters transmitting them. These direct connections between sound and meaning are very vague, difficult to explain and can be refuted by many examples, but they are felt, transmitted and, at least in part, have general significance - such are the sound-pictorial associations (“rumble R”, “smoothness and malleability L” , "tediousness of H", "shrillness of I", "gloominess of Y", etc.).

If we ignore the still controversial area of ​​phonosemantics, then we can confidently state the quasi-musical effect of repetitive letters (in writing) and sound complexes used in belles-lettres, where it is called alliteration (for example, in Mayakovsky: “Shadow obscuring the spring day. - THE GOVERNMENT BULLETIN IS OFF" or his own "WHERE IS IT, BRONZES

ZvON or GRANITE GRAN'; or the well-known humorous formula of the Gothic novel "Murders and Horrors in the Grim Manor"), in commercial advertising (slogans "VELLA - you are great"; "PURITY - PURE TIDE"), as well as in folk psychotherapy (conspiracies, etc.). In addition to the quasi-musical impact, the use of such means can also find an aesthetic response.

Fundamentally akin to alliteration is the use of rhythmic and rhymed texts (rhyme and rhythm are phenomena of the same order, and these terms themselves go back to the same Greek word). The mechanism of their influence is approximately the same as in the case of alliteration, but rhythm (especially poetic meter, and especially in the syllabo-tonic system of versification characteristic of Russian poetry) is perceived much more consciously than alliteration, and it’s generally difficult not to realize the presence of rhyme , as evidenced by experiments on the presentation of a rhymed and poetic text in a recording without division into lines and stanzas (after a few lines it begins to be read as a poetic one). Rhythmic and rhyming texts are most actively used in all types of advertising, including political ones (“So that trouble does not come, vote yes - yes - no - yes”, etc.).

Phonosemantic, alliterative and rhythmic features of the sound form are quite adequately conveyed in written speech. There are, however, factors of phonetic influence that are characteristic exclusively of oral speech.

This is, firstly, prosodic means language: intonation, voice register (voice of low and ultra-low register is perceived as especially impressive and authoritative), so-called phonations (breathing, tense "ringing phonation", relaxed voice) and articulatory postures, speech rate and pause.

Secondly, an individual voice, taken in the fullness of its characteristics and well recognizable (as well as parodied), can be a kind of means of influence. An individual voice well recognizable by an average person can serve as a "calling card" of a politician - it is enough to mention the voice of V. V. Zhirinovsky.

Another way of influencing is to send speech signals to the addressee that have emotional significance.

Effective is usually a conversation in line with the expressed personal interest. This increases verbal activity accompanied by positive emotions. Phrases can be useful here: “Can you ...”, “Would you agree ...”, “Do you think ...”, “Do you think ...”, “Do you have the opportunity. ..” etc. It is important to follow the rule - start with the positive. Much depends on your awareness of the nature of intonation, facial expressions, gestures and their correct reading.

Depending on the goals, the interlocutor (journalist, interviewer, etc.) chooses different communicative and speech tactics. You need to not only use them yourself, but also understand what tactics your interlocutor chooses (without this it is impossible to adjust).

So, for example, A. van Dijk describes the moves used in the dialogues:

• move "generalization" ("And so it always is", "It is repeated endlessly" - the speaker shows that unfavorable information is not random and not exceptional);
• the move “giving an example” (“Take our neighbor. He ...” - the general opinion is substantiated by a specific example);
• the move "amplification" ("It's terrible that ...", "It's outrageous that ..." - this speech move is aimed at controlling the attention of the interlocutor);
• move “shift” (“I don’t really care, but other neighbors from our street are outraged” - this move refers to the strategy of positive self-presentation);
• move "contrast" ("We have to work for many years, but they do nothing", the opposition "They - we - groups" - is used in a situation where there is a conflict of interest).

Also, speech tactics used in the field of business communication can be very useful:

• "surprise" - the use of unexpected or unknown information in speech;
• "provocation" - for a short time, a reaction of disagreement with the information presented is caused, the listener during this period is preparing for constructive conclusions to more clearly define his own position;
• "introducing an element of informality" - the communicator tells the interlocutor about his delusions, mistakes in order to avoid bias and change the interlocutor's opinion in his favor;
• "humor" - funny, paradoxical examples are given, jokes, funny stories are used (this tactic can be successfully used in speech communication of different levels);
• “yes-yes-yes” - the interlocutor is asked several questions, to which he must answer “yes”, after that, most likely, he is more likely to answer “yes” to the next key question.

The means of creating a communicative contact can be authorization - a way of manifesting the "I" of the speaker "using a variety of means that give the message a subjective character and contribute to the establishment of communicative contact between speakers and listeners." These funds are:

• personal pronouns - the first source of subjectivity in the language ("I", "you", "we");
• verbal forms, along with personal pronouns, convey the meaning of the person, the attitude of the speaker to the addressee - “we think”, “we will clarify”, “let's try together”;
• constructions with introductory elements (“in my opinion”, “it seems to me”) express some doubt (these are assessment tools that enhance the contact of speech);
• constructions using explanatory clauses: "it is clear that...", "it is clear that...", "it is known that...".

As for oral speech, the analysis of existing works and speeches of famous speakers allows us to identify ten factors of effective speech.

• 1. Clarity. Clear speech is called, the content of which is quickly and reliably perceived by the addressee. The form of clear speech perfectly matches the content. This gives the speech persuasiveness: the presentation is logical and motivated. It was clarity that Aristotle considered the main quality of persuasive speech.
• 2. Clarity of speech. You need to carefully monitor your diction. Words must be pronounced clearly, otherwise very unpleasant misunderstandings are possible. Often people confuse the sounds G1 and B, T and D, S and S by ear. Only the absolutely correct articulation of all sounds ensures that you will be correctly understood by the audience. Obviously, adequate intonation and normative stresses are of particular importance.
• 3. Correct speech. Correctness - compliance of speech with accepted language norms. Correctness of speech is controlled by orthology, which includes spelling, punctuation and orthoepy - the science of correct pronunciation.
• 4. Conciseness. One of Grice's postulates in a free presentation is as follows: speak as much as necessary to be understood. Don't talk too much.
• 5. Accuracy. No verbal garbage. Avoidance of ambiguous words and expressions. Accuracy is primarily a problem of choosing terminology and defining all essential concepts.
• 6. Relevance, expediency. Expediency is the quality of speech, which consists in the correspondence of speech, the chosen language means (out of several possible ones) to the goals of communication, the characteristics of the addresser and addressee, the subject of speech.
• 7. Completeness of content. The main sign is the desire to exhaust the entire mental field around a given subject, enumeration and description of all possible versions.
• 8. Correctness and courtesy. Avoiding categorical statements.
• 9. Visibility and descriptiveness of speech.
• 10. Emotional expressiveness of speech. Under the expressiveness of speech is understood the ability of speech to attract attention to itself, as well as to keep it.

In turn, written speech provides another opportunity - to “slow down”, “freeze” one’s thought and carefully consider it in the form of an alienated phenomenon (written text), which creates an exceptional opportunity for the intellectual development of the individual and humanity. It is no coincidence that with the advent of writing, human culture enters a completely new round of its development - the period begins, which we call the era of civilization, or history in the proper sense of the word.

Today, written speech is the main carrier and transmitter of cultural information. All types of indirect, remote communication are carried out by means of written speech. The most important feature of written speech is that it can be corrected, in other words, corrected and edited.

The written text has specific means of influence. This is the so-called metagraphemics, in particular its means such as supragraphemics (the choice of typefaces, font selection tools - italics, underlining, spacing, the use of capital letters, varying the saturation and font size) and topographemics (methods of placing printed text on a plane). For example, a number of typefaces have distinct historical associations. The so-called square fonts, Italian and Egyptian, which were popular at the beginning of the 20th century, used for posters and preserved in the logos of the leading Soviet newspapers (Pravda, Izvestia), are strongly associated with the "people's revolutionary" theme. The Elizabethan typeface is associated with the pre-revolutionary past of Russia, especially since the 18th century; the Carolingian minuscule is perceived as a reference to the Western European Middle Ages, etc. Other fonts may have emotional associations - elegance and frivolity, or, conversely, solidity and solidity, etc. A rich style and large sizes iconically (i.e., based on a non-random association with the idea being conveyed) indicate importance and/or loudness, and italics in the Russian written language has a very complex set of uses, including those based on associations.

The diagonal arrangement of text on a plane (technically made in the form of an oblique line or "ladder") has several different associations: in the case of a diagonal arrangement from the lower left corner to the upper right, these are the ideas of movement and swiftness; or negligence and arbitrariness; or decisiveness (“diagonal resolution”); in the case of placing text diagonally from the upper left corner to the lower right, the idea of ​​choice (“menu diagonal”) is traced and often implemented.

However, regardless of the oral or written form of their existence, the verbal resources of communication exist in the form of a text that has specific characteristics and possibilities of influence. At the same time, the text is the form of verbal communication in which oral speech is first recorded in writing at the level of the “source”, and then requires decoding and reverse transformation into oral speech at the level of the “recipient”. At the same time, unlike what was said orally, the interpretation of written texts no longer has anywhere to look for help. What is spoken orally interprets itself to a very large extent: with the help of manner, tone, timbre, etc., as well as the circumstances under which it was said.

At the same time, the separation of the text from the speaker, the isolation of the text from the context deprives it of its communicative orientation. M. Bakhtin, criticizing structuralism in linguistics for an approach to the study of language in isolation from speech, real communicative contexts, argued that "the immediate social situation and the wider social environment completely determine - moreover, so to speak, from the inside - the structure of the utterance" .

The specificity of the text as a communicative unit is manifested in its structure, form and content, but is realized only in the process of communication. It is the direction and purpose of creating a particular text that ultimately determines its structure: “the word is focused on the interlocutor, focused on who this interlocutor is: a person of the same social group or not, higher or lower (hierarchical rank of the interlocutor), connected or not associated with the speaker by some closer social ties (father, brother, husband, etc.). An abstract interlocutor, so to speak, a man in himself, cannot exist; we really would not have a common language with him, either literally or figuratively.

Not only the direction of the text and ideas about its addressee, but also the situation of its generation is important for understanding its communicative nature. In the process of communication, the text is considered as its main unit. Within the framework of the linguistic approach, the text is considered as a set of syntagmatic, or linear logical relationships that are established between words directly when they are used in the text and combine them into sentences and phrases. In contrast, the communicative approach to the text considers it as a unit of communication, inseparable from the process of communication. In the works of T. M. Dridze, attention is repeatedly focused on the position that communication is carried out in the form of an exchange of actions for the generation and interpretation of texts. The text, in contrast to the linguistic interpretation, is considered not as a unit of speech and language, but as a unit of communication, which is a systematically organized hierarchy of communicative-cognitive programs, cemented by a common concept or plan (communicative intention) of communication partners.

Considering the text as a hierarchy of communicative-cognitive programs, Dridze singles out the macrostructure and microstructure in the text. Macrostructure is a hierarchy of semantic blocks of different order (predications). First-order predications are those linguistic means that convey the main idea of ​​the message. Other predications are used to convey the descriptive part of the message, interpretation, argumentation and "coloring" of the first order predication. The microstructure is a complete set of intratextual links between the basic semantic nodes of the text of all orders, which form a logical and factual chain, the semantic core of the text.

According to G. V. Kolshansky, the communicative aspect of the text is determined by the fact that the text is an “indivisible” unit of communication, i.e. only the text as a whole has semantic communicative completeness. It is well known that if the word denotes (nomination), the sentence establishes (proposition), then the text generalizes (information). It is at the text level that all units with their subordinate functions merge together and are revealed in a single function, and, consequently, in the very essence of language - communication Dridze TM Text activity in the structure of social communication. Moscow: Nauka, 1984.

Written speech consists of a system of signs that conditionally designate sounds and words of oral speech, which, in turn, are signs for real objects and relationships. Gradually, this median or intermediate connection dies off, and written speech turns into a system of signs that directly symbolize the designated objects and the relationships between them. the mastery of this complex system of signs cannot be carried out exclusively mechanically; from the outside, the mastery of written speech is in fact the product of the long-term development of the complex functions of the child's behavior. (5.3, 155) written speech is a completely different (from the point of view of the psychological nature of the processes that form it) process than oral speech; its physical and seminal side also changes in comparison with oral speech. The main difference: written speech is the algebra of speech and the most difficult form of complex volitional activity. (18.1, 61) the slowdown in written speech causes not only quantitative, but also qualitative changes, since as a result of this slowdown, a new style and a new psychological character of children's creativity are obtained. Activity, which was in the first place in oral speech, fades into the background and is replaced by a more detailed peering into the described object, listing its qualities, features, etc. (11.1, 54) Difficulties of written speech: it is without intonation, without an interlocutor. It is a symbolization of symbols, it is more difficult to motivate. Written speech stands in a different relation to inner speech, it arises later than inner speech, it is the most grammatical. But it stands closer to inner speech than outer speech: it is associated with meanings, bypassing outer speech. (1.1.9, 163) The situation of written speech is a situation that requires a double abstraction from the child: from the sounding side of speech and from the interlocutor. (1.2.1, 237) Written speech is more arbitrary than oral speech The child must be aware of the sound side of the word, dismember it and arbitrarily recreate it in written signs. (1.2.1, 238 - 239, 240) the most verbose, precise and detailed form of speech (1.2.1, 339) If we take into account the above points: speech without real sound, speech divorced from the speech activity that we have , and speech passing in silence, we will see that we are not dealing with speech in the literal sense, but with the symbolization of sound symbols, i.e. with double abstraction. We will see that written language is related to oral speech in the same way that algebra is related to arithmetic. Written speech differs from oral speech also in terms of motivation. .. in writing, the child should be more aware of the processes of speaking. The child masters oral speech without such complete awareness. A young child speaks, but does not know how he does it. In writing, he must be aware of the very process of expressing thoughts in words. (3.5, 439 – 440) See Inner Speech, Sign, Motivation, Thought, Speech, Word, Function

We have already said that speech is divided into oral and written. One of the principles of the speech development methodology is the interconnected development of oral and written speech. The methodology for the development of written speech at school has been developed much more thoroughly than the methodology for the development of oral speech. Therefore, work on the development of written speech is going on in a more organized manner.

Oral and written speech- these are two forms of the process of communication between people through language, each of which has its own specific features.

Oral speech marks the process of direct, live communication between people; it presupposes the presence of a speaker and a listener. Its nature depends on the specific situation of communication, i.e. the one who speaks with whom, about what, sometimes and for what. Oral speech has such rich expressive means as intonation, pauses, logical stress, gestures, facial expressions. All this allows you to understand oral speech from a half-word, which cannot but be reflected in its specific design. The syntax of oral colloquial speech is usually distinguished by the presence of short sentences, often incomplete, the absence of complex constructions, isolated turns with various forms of participles and participles, etc. Oral speech also allows the reduction of word forms.

Written speech always graphic, mostly monologue, not implying the presence of an interlocutor. It often uses complicated simple sentences and complex syntactic constructions.

It has been observed that good speakers usually express their thoughts well in writing. On the other hand, many shortcomings of written speech are closely related to the irregularities of oral speech.

In this regard, the development of oral and written coherent speech is equally important.

When developing a system of exercises in oral speech, one should take into account the specific features of one type of speech in comparison with another. Oral speech requires the speaker to be quick in choosing the right words, in constructing sentences and constructing speech in general. Oral speech does not allow amendments, going back. It is somewhat more economical, since the speaker uses such additional means of expressing thoughts as intonation, pause, gesture, facial expressions.

Written speech, by its design, is more verbose, more bookish, does not, as a rule, allow "liberties" of style, which are often quite appropriate in colloquial speech.

Oral speech can be both dialogical and monologue.

It has a number of features: - intonational expressiveness; - intonation of the whole text, a separate sentence, which is associated with the logical division of the text, the place of logical stress, etc.

Work on oral speech should go in parallel with work on the development of writing. So, for example, a written presentation should be preceded by an oral presentation of the same or similar text, an essay based on a picture - an oral story based on the same or a specially selected picture or oral drawing. A written essay may be preceded by an oral essay on the same literary topic, a plan can be drawn up not only for a written, but also for an oral essay.

The concept of the forms of speech: oral and written is given in grade 5: oral is the kind of speech we make written, which we write and see (p. 8, § 2, 5 class). On page 10, special attention is paid to speech aids: people can speak in different ways: cheerful and sad, fast and slow. Much can be said without words, with the help of hand movements or facial expressions, that is, gestures or facial expressions. means expressiveness oral speech are the pitch of the voice, its timbre, the rate of speech, facial expressions, gestures.