Sydoruk, H.
(2022).
Functional and pragmatic role of euphemisms and dysphemisms in English political discourse and the mass media .
International Journal of Philology,
13(4),
56-64.
https://doi.org/10.31548/philolog13(4_2).2022.006
This article discusses the definition of euphemisms, areas of use, positive and negative aspects, usage styles and the relationship between euphemisms and dysphemisms, their role in modern English-language texts of political and journalistic orientation. It also highlights the functioning of euphemistic and dysphemistic units in political and journalistic discourses, and analyzes all the reasons for their occurrence in various communicative situations. We have tried to present the main functions and role of euphemisms and dysphemisms in political discourse and the mass media. In the language of politicians and modern media, the phenomenon of euphemia and dysphemia is one of the brightest indicators of social transformation. Researchers of these phenomena speak about the tendency to avoid direct nomination of objects and abstract things, because of the unwillingness to offend others. In order not to hurt someone's feelings, people often try to mitigate the potentially negative effect of statements by using more acceptable alternatives. This means that whenever we encounter a sensitive topic, we choose words that minimize offensive or abrupt actions on the audience. A crucial role for distinguishing between euphemisms and dysphemisms is played by the broad context of the utterance, which includes the extralinguistic situation, as well as the direct linguistic environment of the lexeme. Euphemia and dysphemia reflect social, cultural, moral values, and even the peculiarities of worldview and thinking not only in the speech of individuals, but also in the language portrait of modern society as a whole. Euphemisms and dysphemisms completely depend on the accepted assessments of certain phenomena in society, on determining what is acceptable and what is not. Hence the need for their systematic study in connection with cultural and social changes
euphemisms; euphemization; dysphemisms; dysphemia; direct nomination; secondary nomination; political discourse; journalistic discourse
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