Functions of Word Play in a Comedy Television Show (Based on Good Omens TV series)

Abstract

Despite the great interest of scientists in word play, this phenomenon is still insufficiently studied. Many researchers highlight the comic function as the basis for word play. In this study, word play is viewed as the intentional use of a non-standard language code in order to express the inner world of the speaker, which is not always associated with the creation of a comic effect. The subject of this research deals with cases of language play in the Good Omens comedy series. Film discourse can be interpreted as a reflection of the current state of culture and the society, as well as of the language, which became a decisive factor in the choice of research material. The author of the article comes to the conclusion that the comic function does not play a key role in the use of word play in a comedy television series, being exceeded in frequency by such functions as characterological, meaning-forming and expressive. The article contains numerous material from a modern television series, which gives one the ground to realize the relevance of the conclusions.
 .