Language Fundamentals: Description, Adverbs, Dialogue

Understanding Description: Types, Language, and Application

Description is the presentation of the characteristics of people, objects, places, or events, pertaining to a real or imaginary context, so that the receiver forms a true idea of it.

Classes of Description

Descriptions are classified according to:

• The attitude of the issuer towards what is described:
  • Objective: Shows reality without providing personal ratings.
  • Subjective: The issuer shows their particular vision.
• The treatment given to what is described:
  • Static: Describes a stable, non-moving reality.
  • Dynamic: Describes a changing reality with movement.

Language in Descriptions

In descriptions, the following become important:

• Adjectives: Which express qualities.
• Space Markers: To place the described subject in space.
• Stylistic Devices: Such as epithets, similes or comparisons, and metaphors.

Description of Characters

Character descriptions include:

• Appearance: Prosopography
• Psychological Traits: Etopeya
• Combination: Portraits (combining appearance and psychological traits)

The characterization of characters can be objective, idealizing, or distorting (the latter often having a humorous character).

Description of Places

The description of a place is called topography.

Adverbs: Definition and Function

Adverbs are invariable words that express affirmation, negation, doubt, or circumstances of place, time, quantity, or manner.

They can function as a complement (circumstantial or sentence complement) or as a modifier (of a verb, adjective, or another adverb).

Sentence Constituents: Subject and Predicate

Understanding the core components of a sentence.

Subject

The Subject: is a Noun Phrase (NP) that maintains consistency with the verb and refers to the person, object, or thing about which something is said. It may be:

• Lexical: Explicitly present in the sentence.
• Grammatical: Implied by the verb's ending, where the verb form functions as a subject (impersonal sentences do not support a lexical subject).

Predicate

The Predicate: is a Verb Phrase (VP), which contains a verb in a specific person, indicating what is said about the subject in the sentence. It can be:

• Nominal (or Copulative): Expresses a quality or state. Uses linking verbs (to be, to seem, to appear). The complement is an attribute. These are copulative or attributive sentences.
• Verbal (or Predicative): Expresses an action or process. Uses predicative verbs. The complements of these verbs are varied and complement the meaning of the verb. These are predicative sentences.

Dialogue: Forms and Structure

Dialogue is the exchange of information between two or more people. Dialogues can be:

• Spontaneous: Do not follow a previous plan, such as conversations.
• Planned: Developed with a specific plan, such as political debates or interviews.

Spontaneous Dialogue: Conversation

Conversation: is a spontaneous dialogue that occurs naturally between participants who are on an equal footing and in an informal situation.

Its typical structure includes:

• Opening: A greeting.
• Body: Exchange of information.
• Closing: A farewell.

Planned Dialogue

Interview

Interview: is a dialogue in which one participant asks questions to an interviewee, and the interviewee provides answers.

It typically consists of three parts:

• Presentation: Introducing the case and the interviewee.
• Development: The main interview questions and answers.
• Conclusion: Summarizing and concluding the interview.

Debate

Debate: is an argumentative dialogue of a formal character where two or more people, guided by a moderator, confront their views on a controversial issue.

A debate typically offers:

• Introduction: To introduce the topic and participants.
• Initial Exposure: Each participant states their position on the subject.
• Discussion: Participants argue and confront their views.
• Conclusion: Each participant summarizes their posture.
• Farewell: Summarizing the debate and final remarks.

Dialogue Organization

Dialogue is based on alternation, and requires:

• Cooperation: To ensure the coherence of the dialogue.
• Courtesy: To control the behavior of participants.

Language in Dialogue

Key linguistic elements in dialogue include:

• Addressing the Speaker: To maintain communicative contact, using vocatives and imperatives (e.g., "see," "tell me") and fillers (e.g., "understand," "okay").
• Modalizers: Introduce the viewpoint of the speaker (e.g., verb phrases and adverbs).
• Deixis: The ability of some words or expressions to point out. This includes Anaphora (referring to something mentioned before) and Cataphora (referring to something mentioned after), which can signal places, people, or times.