IMPLICIT EXPRESSION OF UNCERTAINTY IN THE ENGLISH-LANGUAGE POSTMODERN FICTION ТEXTS

Abstract

The article discusses the specificity of implicit representation of uncertainty by means of the English language in the British postmodern literary discourse. The data for analysis was selected from the novels written by I. McEwan, D. Mitchell and D. Lodge. Implicitness is viewed as an inherent feature of language and is a promising object for linguistic analysis, as its mechanisms are unfolded in a new way within the cognitive-discursive paradigm. Within any language, uncertainty is verbalized not only explicitly, but also through a wide range of implicit means. While explicit statements can directly express doubt or lack of certainty, implicit expressions of uncertainty add subtlety and nuance to communication. Uncertainty can be verbalized by various language means in English directly and indirectly. The English language provides a rich array of choices that enable speakers to express uncertainty implicitly. Uncertainty is a key concept of postmodernism, therefore postmodern authors attach great significance to representing it in their texts. Postmodern fiction conveys uncertainty which underlies and shapes the characters’ perception and self-identity via a number of language means and some communicative strategies that are of special interest for our research. The paper analyzes the implicit expression of uncertainty in the British postmodern fiction discourse represented by the novels of I. McEwan, D. Mitchell, D. Lodge. It has been identified that the main language means that the authors opt for are hedging, various means of expressing modality, “vague” expressions, qualifiers, euphemisms, іnterrogative sentences in inner represented speech, filler words, and aposiopesis. The article examines how their usage contributes to the nuanced portrayal of uncertainty in the Englishlanguage fiction, and in what ways the authors combine these means in order to reach their goal – give the readers the impression of the characters’ lack of certainty, hesitation, indeterminacy and doubt. The analysis reveals that these implicit meanings are not directly stated, but are suggested in the wording or can be understood from the context. The writers mostly resort to a combination of various language means that imply the characters’ uncertainty, in order to intensify the implied meanings and to make sure the reader interprets them adequately.