Использование метаграфемных средств для выражения эмоций в интернет-комментариях

Abstract

Оur research object is online comments to a text about reducing pension expenses and a sharp reduction in the number of pensioners in Russia. The text had a strong conflict potential due to the manipulative techniques used by the author; it caused a large number of aggressive comments from readers – people of retirement and pre-retirement age. The study subject is metagraphematic (singragraphemic and supragraphemic) means used by the authors of Internet comments as negative emotions expressing means along with verbal means of speech aggression. The following text analysis methods were used: formal, logical, semanticand syntactic analysis method. Features of metagraphemic means use in online comments were identified. In singraphemics this is the use of non-regulated by the Russian grammar rules punctuation marks and their homogeneous and heterogeneous combinations,etc. In supragraphemics – unmotivated and grammatically unsound use of uppercase and lowercase letters, as well as the use of specific emoticon signs indicating negative emotions experienced by the author of the comment. The reasons for this metagraphematic means usage in the comments may be the following: communicants’ state of emotional tension caused by the publication content and leading to an increase in the pace of computer typing; their age and the insufficient proficiency level of the typing techniques as well as the liberalization of language norms in Internet communications and poor grammatical rules knowledge by communicants. Our research showed that metagraphematic means are actively used in Internet comments to express the communicants’ emotions.