Article

Name: Text universals as a theoretical concept

Authors: Yuri V. Shatin, Igor E. Kim, Igor V. Silantev

Institute of Philology of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Science,s Novosibirsk, Russian Federation

In the section Study of literature

Abstract: The universals of the artistic language are fundamentally different from the universals of other language systems. The artistic language itself is opposed to both the so-called “natural” languages and artificial systems since it acts as a secondary modeling system resulting from the removal of such universals inherent in ordinary speech as automatism in the use of already existing statements, an orientation towards ease of understanding, etc. Secondary modeling systems are immanent, unique, and exclusive in each case. The paradox of the universals of the artistic language is that its code uniqueness is created anew every time and does not depend on the thematic content of the statement. At relatively late stages of development, the artistic language creates specific universals that are fundamentally impossible in other language systems. The most significant universal of artistic language is the presence of two co-opposed speech systems – verse and prose – in their various ratios, depending on the genre and direction. A more complex case can be observed in folklore and early literature, where syncretic forms predominate. The universals of the artistic language, as a rule, turn out to be closely tied to the artistic text. The article identifies five pairs of oppositions that claim to be called universals of a literary text: repetition – contrast, symmetry – asymmetry, background – figure, one’s own – someone else’s, discrete – continuous.

Keywords: universals, artistic language, literature, repetition, contrast, symmetry, asymmetry, background, figure, own, alien, discrete, continuous

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