On the expressivity of nominal suffixes in modern Russian

Abstract

Second, particular cases of expressive formation, namely, nouns with suffixes of subjective evaluation, are quantitatively analyzed from the point of view of their productivity and their semantic tendencies. Any analysis with an ambition to obtain complete information on the proportional relations of expressive elements of a language should be based on three sources : The first source is the spoken language as manifested in spontaneous discourse, the linguistic area where expressivity usually originates. A speaker tries to keep a listener's attention and to make him share his feelings. He might also attempt to persuade him or to involve him in the topic of conversation. The formal means by which such reactions are achieved are more often than not different than the means that are familiar in the neutral plane of language. If the expressivity of a word or an utterance wears off as a result of too frequent use, speakers replace the expression with a new linguistic item or formation which better serves their function of attracting attention.