Poetonymics of Modernist and Postmodernist Prose.

Abstract

The thesis is devoted to the analysis of the modernist and postmodernist prose poetonymics in terms of its origin, structure, and functional stylistics.

The thesis represents the first attempt of a holistic complex analysis of the poetonymics in modernist and postmodernist prose literary works. The epoch-making role of the poetonyms as an artistic and expressive lexical stratum, which marks the writer’s style, explains the author’s ideological and literary intentions.

First, the paper concentrates on the onomastics basic concepts, indicates the issues of the proper names historical development, terminology, classificatory features, and their functions. Peculiarities of onyms in the artistic text serve as the research subject for many native and foreign scholars; the choice of the poetonyms, their semantic-stylistic features in particular, become the focal point of many works. Anthroponyms are believed to be the most illustrative means within the proprietary vocabulary in the artistic text, they function as an integral component of the artistic expressive means. The following functions of proper names in the artistic text can be singled out: nominative, characteristic, stylistic, expressive-emotional, allusive, deconstructive, and the function of the language game.

Further on, the results of the modernist poetonymics study are outlined, i.e. the proper names genealogical, structural, and semantic features are singled out; the ethnonym and native vocabulary quantitative analysis is carried out; the prevailing role of the borrowed names is revealed; names from the native language are scarce.

The thesis also considers the poetonyms semantic-stylistic functions and their connotative peculiarities; lexical and semantic analysis of the surnames with their subsequent classification is carried out; the anthroponyms structural features of anthroponyms are clarified; the types of nomination within different anthropomodels are differentiated.

The analysis of the toponymics denotative-nominative structure makes it possible to state that the main features of the modernist literature poetonymics are: 1) the spread of toponyms – the urban objects names, which is explained by the general urbanization of the era life-style; 2) the active use of suverenonyms, kontynentonyms, kosmonyms as a response to social globalization. As the study outcome, the denotative background of the precedent poetonyms inventory is also identified and analysed.

Finally, the thesis presents the analysis of the postmodernist writers poetonymics, which differs from the previous era, i.e. the differential feature of this period, revealed through genealogical approach, is the increase of the borrowed anthroponyms. In prosaic works of both periods, the vast majority of borrowings come from Old Greek, Latin, and Hebrew. In addition, common sources of anthroponyms borrowings are the English, Arabic, Italian, German, and Turkish languages. In the analysed literary works of both periods, anthroponymic derivatives from different languages are found: in modernist texts, these are the names from Chinese, Swedish, Aramaic, Phoenician, Sanskrit; in postmodernist prose – from the Scandinavian languages, French, and Georgian. Unique anthroponyms are presented in modernist prose marginally, as well as in the works of the postmodernism period.

In terms of the anthroponyms modifications, typical postmodernist methods of intertextuality and language play are distinguished.

The analysis of the surnames reveals the changes in the quantitative correlation of the distinguished types, i.e. neoplasms unique for the author are singled out. Lexical and semantic analysis of the names in both periods reveals the following groups: patronyms, toponyms, household units, floronyms, ornitonyms, animalonyms, etnoonyms, professionalisms, job units, and notable types. Modernist novels are dominated by descriptives, patronyms and professionalisms, whereas in postmodernist prose those are patronyms, descriptives, and toponyms. It is noteworthy that within structural models there appear shortened surnames, the domination of nicknames, the increase in female names.

Denotative-nominative analysis demonstrates that toponyms, horonyms, oykonyms, oronyms, terronyms, and hydronyms are widely spread in postmodernist prose; in addition, nominations of geographic objects located abroad are found in abundance. The paper also focuses on the unique poetonyms where spheres of «literature», «history», «religion» serve as a basis for their formation both in the novels of postmodernism and those of modernism. The overwhelming majority of the above-mentioned sources for unique names coining are shared by the prose of the both periods, however the original ones are also found: in the modernist prose these are lexical units belonging the criminal world and folklore, in the postmodernist prose – to the sphere of the cinema.

The distinctive feature of the postmodern period is the presence of the background proper names, the units based on the names of cars, newspapers and magazines, ergonyms. In the texts, the background propriety onyms are presented both in the transplanted (the original language form) and in the transcoded version.

Thus, it is proved that the proper names are an integral element of the stylistic and organisational structure of the artistic work, which reflect the author’s style and their perception of the world.