ARTISTIC TROPES AND FIGURES AS EXPRESSORS OF AXIOLOGICAL MODALITY IN CONTEMPORARY GERMAN POLITICAL DISCOURSE: FUNCTIONAL ASPECT

Abstract

Summary. The article is devoted to the study of stylistic means, namely, artistic tropes and figures that express the axiological modality. The material of the research is based on analytical articles in the journalistic style taken from the online editions of the German magazines «Stern» and «Spiegel». The purpose of the article follows from its topic and consists in a qualitative and quantitative analysis of the identified stylistic means and substantiation of the research results. The method of general sampling was used to find and analyze 20 semantic and structural unities that constitute one thematic whole. We consider the number 20 to be sufficient for this research format. The possible margin of error does not affect the reliability of the results. To achieve this goal, other research methods were used, in particular: the analytical method, which was used to study scientific sources using analysis and systematization; the method of theoretical analysis, which helped to substantiate scientific positions and formulate the conclusions drawn. The scientific novelty of the study lies in the choice of the rubric of journalistic articles, as well as not only qualitative but also quantitative analysis of the results obtained. The article conducts a chain analysis of the axiological modality, which is one of the varieties of the subjective modality, artistic tropes and figures as means of expressing the above-mentioned linguistic category and comments on the authors’ own choice of the examples found. Based on the results obtained, it was concluded that the functional aspect has become decisive in the linguistic design of articles by their authors, since the main tasks of journalistic discourse are embodied through the prism of the functional aspect. These tasks are: informing the reader, influencing his or her opinion, persuasion, education and enlightenment. The main functions of tropes and figures of speech are to influence the listener, to attract and retain his attention, to make him interested in the content, to make the language imaginative, persuasive, sophisticated and beautiful. Therefore, having compared the tasks of journalistic discourse with the functions of tropes and figures, we come to the conclusion that by using these stylistic means, the author of an article demonstrates his or her skills as a journalist and forms a general public opinion on a particular phenomenon, problem or event. Thanks to artistic tropes and figures, the author seems to wrap a candy in a beautiful wrapper, and it is the wrapper that determines how successfully the candy will be sold.