Deminutyvų seka ir funkcionavimas tekste

ACTA LINGUISTICA LITHUANICA XLVI (2002), 59–71 The Sequence and Functioning of Diminutives in Text Jurgita Macienė Šiaulių universitetas In the Lithuanian linguistic tradition, diminutives are described as an expressive device belonging to the domain of stylistics. Diminutives are often used in combination with their basic nouns. The two can be used in immediate juxtaposition or be separated from each other. The diminutive may either precede or follow the basic word, and sometimes the two patterns are combined. The examples (from the concordance compiled by the Centre of Computational Linguistics of Kaunas University and from literary and publicistic writing) reveal four functions of diminutives, two of them basic (specifying and evaluative), and two secondary (aesthetic and cohesion-enhancing). A diminutive can perform several functions at the same time. The above-mentioned functions can also receive various degrees of emphasis, depending on the position of the diminutive, the type of diminutive and its referential status. Sometimes these properties are additionally marked by other linguistics devices. 0. INTRODUCTION A diminutive is “a word with a diminutive, affectionate, or generally emotional meaning, formed with a special suffix” (Gaivenis, Keinys 1990: 46); it is a means characteristic of the Lithuanian language for characterizing people, animals, and things, and conveying feelings. The various shades of meaning of diminutive derivatives are particularly prominent in works of folklore: this was already observed by L. Rėza (1825), and the derivatives were later discussed by B. Sruoga (1927), A. Piročkinas (1974: 208–210), and others. The use of diminutives in Lithuanian folk songs was analyzed most thoroughly by K. Aleksynas (1971: 7–300). Lithuanian linguists devote most attention to the formation of diminutive (affectionate) words (see Ulvydas, ed. 1965: 253–288; Jakaitienė et al. 1976: 262; Urbutis 1978: 270, 288; Paulauskienė 1994: 65–66; Ambrazas, ed. 1996: 87–94; Keinys 1999: 51–53; LKE 1999: 130). A. Gudavičius (2000: 124–139) emphasizes the axiological aspect of diminutives. Diminutives are of particular interest to scholars exploring problems of stylistics. Understandably, more attention is paid to diminutive derivatives in languages where they are used more frequently and in greater variety, and where their role in texts is more pronounced. For instance, Polish linguistics classifies diminutives as part of the stylistic system of language (Milewski 1976: 124–125), whereas the term DIMINUTIVE does not appear at all in a large English-language encyclopedic dictionary of stylistics containing more than six hundred terms (Wales 1990). In this respect, Lithuanian is much closer to Polish. As a phenomenon of the stylistic system of language, diminutive (affectionate) words are discussed in 60 | JURGITA MACIENĖ J. Pikčilingis’s Lithuanian Stylistics (Pikčilingis 1975: 30ff.). The term DIMINUTIVE is even included in a small explanatory glossary of stylistics terms in a school textbook (forty-two entries; see Župerka 2001: 115). Both literary scholars and linguists emphasize the importance of diminutive (affectionate) words for the expression of thought, but only an occasional remark or reflection has been offered on the functions of diminutives in text1; therefore, this article aims to discuss in somewhat greater detail how diminutives function in text. In a text, a diminutive derivative and its base word often occur in the same or an adjacent sentence. For example: I must have looked foolish and strange to the cars and little cars whizzing past KUNČKK 302; Ašara dreamed that she was woken by footsteps. Very, very tiny footsteps IVANMV 5; – Aaaaaa! Aaaaaa! Cut off my little leg! Cut off my leg! Aaaaaaa! JUKNŠ 48. Elsewhere, the derivatives mentioned above occur in later sentences, even in other paragraphs. For example: Well, let’s say our Vincukas writes a love letter... <...> – Thank you, Vincuk, for the little letter RAČŠ 69. In cases where diminutives clearly link the text, the terms CONTACT POSITION and DISTANT POSITION from text linguistics can be used to describe the distance between the base word and the diminutive derivative; cf.: “Connection (linking) is CONTACT (proximal) when adjacent sentences are linked <...>, and DISTANT (remote) when the connectors are expressed only in later sentences, in another paragraph, or even farther away” (Sirtautas, Grenda 1988: 188; see also Sirtautas 2001: 47). Not all linguists define the terms CONTACT and DISTANT POSITION so specifically, or discuss them precisely and in detail. M. Nekula (2000: 685) offers the following understanding of the concepts: “Anaphoric reference may point to the first element occurring adjacent or nearly adjacent (CONTACT LINKING), or to an element that does not immediately precede the reference (DISTANT LINKING).” Cf. also J. Hrbáček’s definition (Hrbáček 1994: 47): “Linking with the immediately preceding utterance is called contact linking; linking with any of the utterances used earlier is DISTANT LINKING”; and J. Hoffmannová’s comment (Hoffmannová 1997: 128): “contact (between adjacent text units) and distant (between more remote text units) relations.” This article takes into account the distance between a diminutive derivative and its base word: they may occur adjacent or nearly adjacent, nearby (contact position), or farther apart (distant position). The greater the distance between the base and diminutive (affectionate) words, the weaker and less noticeable the text-linking function performed by the diminutive becomes. 1 Some of the claims in this article were first published in a conference paper (see Macienė, Župerka 2001: 32–35). DEMINUTYVŲ SEKA IR FUNKCIONAVIMAS TEKSTE 61 1. FUNCTIONS OF DIMINUTIVES IN TEXT The use of a diminutive and a cognate word or contextual substitute in close proximity is not accidental—such a choice of linguistic “means is related to pragmatic factors (values): to the situation and type of linguistic activity, to the speaker’s intentions and their effect” (Hoffmannová 1997: 102); that is, a diminutive derivative is used with a particular intention and performs certain functions in the text. Kalbėdama apie greta vartojamus bendrašaknius žodžius, J. Buitkienė (1993: 18–22) skiria struktūrinę, struktūrinę-semantinę ir struktūrinę-stilistinę tų žodžių funkcijas. Deminutyvai yra ryškus teksto stiliaus elementas, todėl tikslinga atsižvelgti ir į stilistikos specialistų nurodomas stiliaus atliekamas teksto sandaros funkcijas. K. Hausenblasas (žr. Hausenblas 1985: 25–27) aptaria tokias keturias pagrindines funkcijas: tematinę-semantinę, estetinę, integracinę ir charakterizuojamąją. Išanalizuotoje tekstyno ir tautosakos, grožinės literatūros, publicistikos pavyzdžiai rodo, kad galima skirti keturias deminutyvų vartojimo tekste funkcijas: dvi pagrindines – tikslinamąją ir vertinamąją (resp. ekspresyvinę) bei dvi papildomas – teksto siejamąją (resp. integracinę, tematinę-semantinę, struktūrinę-semantinę) ir estetinę; jos visos dažnai yra susijusios tarpusavyje. a. SPECIFYING FUNCTION. A diminutive derivative specifies or describes more clearly a person, animal, phenomenon, or quality denoted by another word. a.a. Together with other linguistic devices (epithets), it emphasizes a person’s small stature or an object’s smallness or thinness. For example: The hostess – a tiny, sprightly little woman – busied herself around a huge Russian stove <…> PožBSD 11; <…> Raima carefully drew what seemed to be profiles of rings, clearly indicating with little arrows how the large ring, bent inward at an angle, and the small ring, jutting out at the same angle, <…> IvanMV 85; Among the children's little voices, the father's deep voice stood out KarvNBL 49. An object’s smallness is emphasized by one of the syntactic figures—enumeration. For example: She stood naked, her teeth chattering and intensely focused, slowly unfastening her necklace, little beads, chains, wearing an endless number of bracelets and rings IvanMV 13. a.b. Indicates a person’s youth and immaturity. For example: Soon the little brothers—Stasiukas and Jonukas returned as well KarvNBL 12. Sometimes these characteristics are highlighted by a more precise name for an animal’s young, used near the diminutive, or by epithets denoting immaturity. For example: She had recently given birth to lambs2 and, so that they would not get cold in the chilly barn, Father brought them all into the main room. The lambs were small, with curly wool and long, thin, unsteady little legs JukNŠ 57. 2When diminutives are understood in the narrow sense, terms with diminutive suffixes are not considered diminutives (cf. Kniūkšta 2001: 551). 62 | JURGITA MACIENĖ The specifying function of diminutives is especially prominent when the same denotatum (referent) is named by two words formed with diminutive suffixes, and a hyperonym (generic term)–hyponym (specific term) relationship obtains between those words. E.g.: Overjoyed by his success, he brought the little animals home and shut them in a metal tub. <…> Pampered and petted, the spotless little foxes grew extraordinarily fast MALM 34. b. EVALUATIVE FUNCTION. A diminutive indicates and highlights the speaker’s attitude toward the subject being discussed or the addressee. b.a. Reveals the worth of a person or thing and the speaker’s positive attitude. E.g.: I did not miss them; I could not have missed them, my grandparents—Grandpa and dear Granny—did everything that my parents were supposed to do in my little life T. Expressiveness is brought to the fore by using two designations for the same thing side by side, through contrast, often even by pointedly setting them against each other. E.g.: These are not flour, they’re little bits of flour (rejoicing that the flour is fine) LKŽVIII 195. Favorable evaluation is especially emphasized when a gradational figure is used, as the speaker’s feelings grow stronger. E.g.: – Little sister, – he says in a weak voice. – Little sister… dear one… Little sister, compassionate one… Most beautiful of all… KAUKMG 5. b.b. Highlights the insignificance of a thing and the speaker’s negative attitude. E.g.: A little stream nearby. What kind of stream is it—it’s a mere trickle, right up to the ditch dug out in Smetona’s time when the ground was frozen in winter KARČR 8; <…> built this house in place of the old wooden shack, fitting it out luxuriously and in a modern style BUIVLN 8: Juozas Strodomskis from Vilnius donated to the village of Padurupis village (there is such a tiny village in Kelmė district, Tytuvėnai rural area, with only two farmsteads left) <…> T. Insignificance is sometimes further emphasized through irony. E.g.: It turned out, for instance, that the municipality’s citizens’ petitions book is not an official document, but merely some sort of little booklet LR 2000 02 07. Insignificance and irony are especially evident when gradation is used. E.g.: The district elder pressed his seal, K. Ignotas, while village elder Rumsas gave a little tap with his little seal; the “honest witnesses” signed <…> RAMRK 14. DEMINUTYVŲ SEKA IR FUNKCIONAVIMAS TEKSTE | 63 To criticize, condemn, and ironize—such is a particularly common purpose of diminutives nowadays, when a tendency toward declining style and the devaluation of pleasant, gentle words can be observed. This fact is also confirmed by the examples analyzed, which were most often found in the works of contemporary writers3. c. AESTHETIC FUNCTION. A diminutive is used when stylistic dissimilation seems most important, that is, when there is a reluctance to repeat the same word in the text. For example: <...> Vika even smacked her tongue. “Well, before she put me in here, Mother gave a whole monologue about a mother’s love—Shakespeare would have burst with envy IVANMV 229. The function mentioned above was also observed in one long sentence or several adjacent sentences, when a diminutive derivative and its base word or a contextual substitute occupy a distant position and link the text. For example: And when the snow began rubbing against the filly's belly, the sled's narrow, iron-shod runners made of smooth bone made from animals' ribs and thighbones stopped as if stuck fast – it lashed and lashed the mare, and to no avail, except perhaps that he himself did not get cold ŠALTKV 10; <...> would bring him bananas, chewing gum, and sweets, but otherwise – the little boy would snatch it away. A wildly mischievous lad was T. The aesthetic function of diminutive use is often associated with the evaluative function. d. TEXT-COHESIVE FUNCTION. Sometimes a diminutive, used together with its base word or a contextual substitute and occupying a distant position, performs a text-cohesive function. For example: Could it be true that all empresses (male and female occupiers) behave as in the motherIrish joke? A son complains to the doctor that his dear little mother eats nothing T. As can be seen, the text-cohesive function of a diminutive is often associated with its other functions, such as the evaluative function. Sometimes diminutive derivatives can perform all four functions in context. For instance, in the Lithuanian folk game “The Little Geese,” the wolf speaks using diminutives, while the geese do not: The geese go up to the wolf and ask: / – Wolf, what are you doing here? / – I’m digging a little hole, the wolf replies. / – What’s that little holefor? / – I’ll cook a little fire. The excessive use of diminutives characterizes the wolf as a pretender (evaluative function) who wants to lure the geese and therefore speaks in affectionate, endearing terms (clearly, the opposition DIMINUTIVE–NON-DIMINUTIVE distinguishes and highlights the characters’ speech). The diminutive little hole can also serve a specifying purpose—to indicate the actual size. The alternating use of a diminutive derivative and its base word brings out stylistic dissim- 3 Prof. Habil. Dr. R. Koženiauskienė kindly drew the article author’s attention to this tendency. Changes in trends in the use of diminutives would make an interesting subject for further research. 64 | JURGITA MACIENĖ …ation (aesthetic function), while one thought is linked to another as theme and rheme (the cohesive function of the text). 2. THE SEQUENCE OF DIMINUTIVES IN THE TEXT Analysis of the collected material revealed that diminutives perform different functions depending on the position they occupy in the text in relation to base words or contextual synonyms and substitutes. In this respect, three patterns of diminutive use can be distinguished: postpositional, prepositional, and a combination of two diminutives. 2.1. Postpositional use of a diminutive Examples selected from literary and journalistic texts, as well as from the corpus compiled by the VDU Centre of Computational Linguistics, show that diminutive derivatives are used postpositionally in the text in relation to the base word most frequently (69% of the examples collected). Thus, a person, thing, or quality is first named by the unmarked member of the stylistic opposition and is then characterized, specified, or evaluated by a diminutive. Of course, a diminutive derivative used postpositionally may also perform other functions—an aesthetic function and a cohesive function in the text. The sequence non-diminutive–diminutive may be supported by analogy with tautological collocations (for the concept of tautology, see Koženiauskienė 2001: 165–166), in which the second component is a diminutive of the same word, adding a nuance of pleasure and tenderness (evaluative function). E.g.: But look at people’s customs and times: / You give them a word a little word, and they answer / With a long, metallic thunder and a cry, / A rumbling… ČIGRLJVM 15; [I shall crucify loneliness] So that a dream as white as a little cloud / At night, night after night would no longer be troubled MACIJŽU 7; Adoniukas ran about, though cleanly washed, but with patches upon little patches all decked out MALM 10. Sometimes a diminutive derivative expresses the matter being discussed more clearly and specifically (specifying function). E.g.: Even in the days of the late Gediminas, craftsmen summoned from distant lands built them, adorned them with colorful glass brought from beyond the sea, with towers and little towers, embellished them with winding upon winding, with corners and little corners, buttressed and decorated them, making them look like a toy MATALV 41. Tokių pavyzdžių gausu tautosakoje, jų pateikta J. Balkevičiaus (1963: 433–434), V. Sirtauto ir Č. Grendos (1988: 59; 112) sintaksės vadovėliuose. Taking into account the grammatical structure and syntactic features of the utterance that relate to the base word and the diminutive derivative, the designation of the same or different denotatum (referent)4, and the functions performed, several cases of the usual sequence in the text can be distinguished. 4 “A denotatum is that which is named by a word or indicated by a sign” (Gaivenis, Keinys 1990: 46); a referent is “an object of thought associated with a particular linguistic expression” (ibid.: 169). For further discussion of the concepts of DENOTATUM and REFERENT, see also Drotvinas (1986: 49–54), Gudavičius (1994: 20). For a stylistic perspective on them, see Wales (1990: 113–114; 396–397). DEMINUTYVŲ SEKA IR FUNKCIONAVIMAS TEKSTE 65 a. The base word and the diminutive derivative designate different denotata (referents) and function as homogeneous sentence constituents. E.g.: Others and others, I will tell you, unchanged—they bear their crosses and little crosses <…> KaukMG 180. b. The base word and the diminutive designate different denotata; the diminutive also names a smaller thing, performing a specifying function. However, the base word and the diminutive derivative function as different sentence constituents. E.g.: <…> tall crosses with thick patterns—for adults, and tiny, rotten ones, barely reaching children’s waists—for children JuknŠ 103. c. An intermediate position between the aforementioned tautologies (clusters) and homogeneous sentence constituents is occupied by a base word and a diminutive, separated by intonation (in writing, by a dash) and denoting the same referent. E.g.: “Oh, my will, my little will.” Grigalius touched his split lip with his tongue <…> BubnTTA 240; “Gods, little gods…” the old woman put her hands together MATALV 50; “Alas, miss, I hardly know your chosen one, but if I were in your mother’s place, I’d clutch my head and wail: oh, what misery, little misery, why have you laid such a heavy cross on my only daughter…” IvanMV 230. (The last example sounds like an imitation of folklore, a stylized ancient lament.) A gradation is used, intensifying the emotional coloring—the diminutive performs an evaluative function. d. The base word and the diminutive designate the same referent but occupy different syntactic positions. The base word is used as one component of a place name, while the diminutive derivative names a person. E.g.: One night, a woman is brought to the children’s ward with a tiny, puny little child JuknŠ 62; But the same is true, say, of Arimų Street, where there isn’t a single ploughed patch of land, <…> or Dziūkų, where you won’t meet a single genuine Dzūkian… RačKŠI 54–55. In the latter sentence, a kind of wordplay emerges, in which different things (denotata) are named through an etymological figure—the repetition of a word’s root to strengthen its semantic force (cf. Koženiauskienė 2001: 277)—while the diminutive derivative performs an aesthetic function. e. The base word and the diminutive designate the same denotatum (or at least the same referent); they are used in neighboring sentences, farther apart from one another, and occupy a distant position. One can discern the text-linking function of the diminutive, similar to that of other words with the same root, synonyms, and so forth: “Thus, as the root recurs in related words, it recurs in sentences, connecting them into a larger linguistic unit—the text” (Buitkienė 1993: 17). E.g.: Elžbieta drew back the curtain threads, and the overcast flatlands of the meadows came close to the windows <…>. Neatly folding the little curtains as she had always done, she glanced once more over the whole cottage <…> 66 | JURGITA MACIENĖ JUKNŠ 160; A POPULAR WORD – CORRUPTION. It has completely replaced the lower-value, lower-register little word—bribe, bribery LM 1993 03 06; But perhaps new tires would suit your car[automobile – J. M.] too? <…> Win a brand-new set of tires ŠN 2001 02 17. f. A NON-DIMINUTIVE – DIMINUTIVE sequence has also been observed in cases where, alongside the earlier mention of an object, a diminutive derivative of another word with a similar meaning, serving as a contextual substitute, is used in the subsequent text rather than a diminutive derivative of that same word. Cf. combinations: Birch, little brother, how did you grow so tall— / Trembling, pure, all radiant? DEGA 25; Three poor little weepers SRUOGRI 48. A hypernym–hyponym relationship arises between a non-diminutive and a diminutive. For example: The first person encountered was a petite, slight little woman PožBSD 153; The father lifted the child into his arms: / “Our home is over there, dear Ben APUTDA 7. First, a word with a broader meaning is used, sketching a general picture in which no details are distinguished. The diminutive derivative identifies the specific object more precisely and adds detail to the picture—it performs a specifying function. g. When a hypernym–hyponym relationship is present, the NON-DIMINUTIVE – DIMINUTIVE forms also acquire an emotional coloring; that is, diminutive derivatives perform an evaluative function. For example: A “fixer” for “that sort of business” was found master, some little paramour of spirits little feldsher <…> JO- NUŠkDS 7; At last, the mummy who had become a winterer on the ninth floor of the block is roused by the doorbell—a girl from the care service, let inside, sprays the old man in the eyes with a lilac-scented liquid <…> KUNČKK 6. h. Sometimes the diminutive derivative is considerably removed in meaning from the first word, especially when the diminutive is used figuratively; they are understood as synonyms only in a specific context. For example: The sun—a cheerful red little motorbike VILRO 122; <…> threw the whole collection of Aro’s bottle caps into the garbage container, which he had been so proud of and kept saying, “If some Rick Wakeman can collect Rolls-Royces, then why can’t I at least have little cars like these?” IVANMV 207. In the latter example, the diminutive little cars is used both literally, referring to the Rolls-Royces, and figuratively, as another name for bottle caps. This use of the diminutive avoids monotony of expression; the diminutive (affectionate) word performs an aesthetic function. 2.2. Preposed use of a diminutive There are cases (31% of the examples collected) in which the base word and its diminutive derivative are arranged in reverse order in the text, that is, the diminutive comes first. In such cases, the diminutive most often serves an aesthetic function, since repetition of the same word is avoided. DEMINUTYVŲ SEKA IR FUNKCIONAVIMAS TEKSTE | 67 In poetry, the reverse order of the components is chosen for the sake of rhyme and rhythm. For example: Where are the little homes, the homes? NĖRRI 167. If the diminutive and the base word are switched, the meaning of the sentence remains the same; no new stylistic nuances arise. The DIMINUTIVE–NON-DIMINUTIVE sequence referring to the same referent is chosen when repetition of exactly the same word is avoided, that is, when the principle of stylistic dissimilation is at work. For example: He fastens to the door a little heartwoven from oak leaves, studded with white daisies; a red peony is threaded through the loop of the heart…<…> JUKNŠ 98; Crouched beside the little stove, he feeds the fire with logs. The stove door is open, yellow reflections of the fire flicker on the wall <…> JUKNŠ 107. An evaluative function is sometimes associated with the aesthetic function as well. For example: People and little animals live on Earth. Of all the animals, I love little hedgehogs best VILRO 122. The following sequence occurs in the landscape description in Žemaitė’s “Petras Kurmelis”: little sun – sun – opposite the sun – little sun – before the sun ŽemPK 45–46. When a diminutive derivative and a base word denote different referents (denotata), the aesthetic and specifying functions of the diminutive are emphasized. For example: [I cannot say] I have dedicated verses to you as well / At least a little bundle, like a bundle of flax STRIELKEN 26; She climbed down the ladder, opened the pantry, and began carrying outside wooden troughs, a ladle, a huge trough JUKNŠ 162. The DIMINUTIVE–NON-DIMINUTIVE sequence is also observed when the two words have different roots and become synonymous only in a specific context. Contextual synonyms denote different referents. For example: Making little paths for ourselves / (We were still short on legs...) / Hopped over to visit / Two little dinosaurs SKUČLS 20. The concept expressed by the non-diminutive is somewhat broader than that expressed by the diminutive derivative, which serves a specifying function. The diminutive performs an evaluative function when the concept expressed by its non-diminutive substitute is somewhat more precise. Contextual synonyms denoting the same referent are used (almost) next to one another in the same or adjacent sentences, i.e., they occupy a contact position. For example: 68 | JURGITA MACIENĖ Not a little stone in a woman’s breast—the heart flutters and begins to beat faster BUBNŽS 12; <…> everyone slept together on the last night before the parents returned—mummy, daddy, and me. The grandparents talked all night <…> T. The diminutive, sometimes also used figuratively, first names something more abstractly; the non-diminutive that follows then specifies and makes it more concrete. For example: —Where are you running, / grey little creature of the earth, mouse? BALT V 120; Our dear motherland is Dzūkija! KUDSSK 14; I lie by the kennel, my head resting on the boards, and see greenish little flames glimmering in the garden’s velvety darkness. They are fireflies LIEGŠDŽG 5. 2.3. Diminutive–diminutive combination A quarter of all the examples collected (slightly more than diminutives used prepositionally) belong to the third group of diminutive use in the text, in which two diminutive derivatives occur together. There are cases in which two diminutive terms of endearment with different roots are used as tautological combinations, without a pause between them (no comma is placed). In such cases, the epithet function becomes important rather than synonymy: the second diminutive derivative indicates a property of the object named by the first diminutive. For example: Little grey stone, / Are you asleep, are you asleep? DEGA 18; Little cold spring, / Can you hear, can you hear?.. DEGA 18. Analysis of diminutive placement in the text revealed the use of two diminutives with the same root, which jointly perform the functions of specification and evaluation. a. Two diminutives denoting the same referent and used in different sentences (a distal position) provide new information and emphasize the speaker’s evaluation of the subject under discussion. For example: When they reached the bank of the Neris (not the Neris that flows past Vilnius—there is another Neris, a small stream, a tributary of the Viduaja), the friends were already on the other side of the little river (T). (The latter example also illustrates the aesthetic function performed by diminutives.) b. There are cases in which two diminutives are used in one sentence but denote different referents. For example: <…> very nearby begins a lake that has finished silting up, from which a little stream flows, running right past Palkabalis and noisily emptying into the village stream (T); — Teresiu, do you know that mammy is not your mummy, and daddy is not your father (T). One of the diminutives is formed with a more frequent, more widespread suffix, whereas the other has a more complex formation: a less frequently used suffix is attached, and the word is formed with several suffixes. A diminutive with an unusual formation acquires new semantic and emotional (evaluative) nuances. Sometimes diminutives are used as contextual synonyms: the same person, thing, or phenomenon is named by two diminutive derivatives with different roots. Two diminutive terms of endearment denoting the same denotatum (referent) occupy a distal position, function as contextual synonyms, and provide new information, i.e., perform a specifying function. For example: DEMINUTYVŲ SĄSAKA IR FUNKCIONAVIMAS TEKSTE 69 I licked little Monika’s hands and little face, <…> the tip of my nose goes sniff, sniff to the side, because the little girl smells so deliciously LIEGŠDŽG 10; – Monikute, look, your Jim has come. Little granddaughter, wake up, – says the hostess, brushing the hair from her forehead LIEGŠDŽG 11. When composing a text, efforts are made to avoid repeating identical words and to seek contextual substitutes; diminutive derivatives serve an aesthetic function. Their cohesive function in the text is also clear, when contextual substitutes bring together separate constituents of a long sentence. E.g.: <…> Benutis’s father glanced timidly at the blue-white underwear of that young lady, peeking out from beneath her flowered dress, and she, that little German girl, noticing this, smiled broadly… APUTDA 9. 3. CONCLUSIONS Lithuanian diminutive derivatives and their base words may be used next to or almost next to one another (in contact position), or farther apart (in distance position). With respect to their base words, diminutives occur in postposition or preposition, or as a combination of two diminutive (affectionate) words. In a text (within one sentence or a longer passage), diminutive derivatives perform four functions: two primary ones (related to word formation)—specifying and evaluative—and two supplementary ones—aesthetic and textual cohesive. Depending on the position of the diminutive derivative relative to its base word and on whether it denotes the same or a different denotatum (referent), these functions emerge in different ways. Sometimes they are further emphasized by other linguistic devices used alongside the diminutive (affectionate) word. When a diminutive occurs in postposition in a text, it can perform all four functions: a. The specifying function—when the base word and the diminutive derivative denote different denotata (referents), occur as coordinate or different sentence constituents, or a hyperonym–hyponym relation arises between the diminutive and its contextual synonym. b. The evaluative function—when the base word and the diminutive derivative denote the same referent and are distinguished by intonation (in writing, by a comma), or, where a hyperonym–hyponym relation has arisen, the diminutive emphasizes the evaluative aspect. c. The aesthetic function—when the base word and the diminutive derivative denote different referents occupying different syntactic positions, or when the diminutive is used figuratively. d. The textual cohesive function—when the base word and the diminutive derivative denote the same denotatum (or at least the same referent). The following functions of a preposed diminutive emerge in the text: a. The specifying function—when the diminutive and its contextual synonym denote different referents. b. The evaluative function—when the diminutive derivative and its contextual substitute denote the same referent. c. The aesthetic function—when the diminutive derivative and the base word are used in poetry for rhyme and rhythm, and denote the same or different referents. 70 | JURGITA MACIENĖ When forming DIMINUTIVE–DIMINUTIVE combinations, the derivatives perform the following functions: a. Both a specifying and an evaluative function—when diminutive (endearing) words denote the same or different referents. b. An aesthetic function—when diminutives denote the same referent. c. A text-cohesive function—when diminutive derivatives denote the same denotatum (referent). ABBREVIATIONS AputDA – Aputis J. Dvi apysakos, Vilnius, 1996. BaltV – Baltakis A. Vienuolynas, Vilnius, 1998. BubnŽS – Bubnys V. Žalios šiuoklės, Vilnius, 1992. BubnTTA – Bubnys V. Teatsiveria tavo akys, Vilnius, 1993. BuivLn – Buivydaitė I. Laiko tiek nedaug… Vilnius, 1998. ČigrLJVM – Čigriejus H. A. Po laiko juokas – vėlyva metigė, Vilnius, 1994. Dega – Degutytė J. Artumas, Kaunas, 1995. IvanMV – Ivanauskaitė J. Mėnulio vaikai, Vilnius, 1988. JonuškDS – Jonuškaitė B. Didžioji sala, Vilnius, 1997. JuknŠ – Juknaitė V. Šermenys, Vilnius, 2000. KarČR – Karčiauskas M. Ričas. Agavos žiedas, Vilnius, 1992. KarvNBL – Karvelytė S. Jei norite būti laimingi, Kaunas, 1995. KaukMG – Kaukas K. Musei vis dar geriau, Klaipėda, 1993. KudSSK – Kudarauskaitė M. Sekunde smėlio karalienė, Vilnius, 1989–1997. KunčKK – Kunčinas J. Kasdien į karą, Vilnius, 2000. LiegŠDžG – Lie gūtė E. Šuo Džimas – geras, Vilnius, 2000. LKŽVII – Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language 8, ed. J. Kruopas, Vilnius: Mintis, 1970. LM – Literature and Art LR – Lietuvos rytas MaciŽŪ – Macijauskienė M. Žaidimas su ugnimi, Jonava, 1994. MalM – Malūkas E. Migla, Panevėžys, 1999. MatALV – Matusevičiūtė O. Amžinas Lietuvos vainikas, Vilnius, 1994. NėrRI – Nėris S. Writings 1, Vilnius, 1984. PožBSD – Požėra J. Baltos saulės diena, Vilnius, 1989. RačKŠI – Račickas V. Kita šlepetės istorija, Vilnius, 1998. RačŠ – Račickas V. Slipper – 3, Vilnius, 1999. RamRK – Ramonas A. Ramybės kalva, Vilnius, 1997. SkučLS – Skučaitė R. Laiškas Sekmadieniui, Vilnius, 1998. SruogRi – Sruoga B. Writings 1, Vilnius, 1957. StrielkEn – Strielkūnas J. Einu namo: Meilės ir lemties dainos, Vilnius, 1999. ŠaltKV – Šaltenis S. Kalės vaikai, Vilnius, 1990. ŠN – Šiauliai News T – Corpus of the Centre for Computational Linguistics at VDU VilRO – Vilimaitė B. Roj aus obuoliukai. Čiuožyklos muzika, Vilnius, 1999. ŽemPK – Žemaitė. Petras Kurmelis, Vilnius, 1976. DEMINUTYVŲ SEKA IR FUNKCIONAVIMAS TEKSTE | 71 LITERATŪRA ALEKSYNAS, K. 1971: Lietuvių liaudies dainų kalbinės stilistinės ypatybės. Literatūra ir kalba 11, 7–300. AMBRAZAS, V., red. 1996: Dabartinės lietuvių kalbos gramatika, Vilnius: Mokslo ir enciklopedijų leidykla. 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