Markemes in Jane Austen's novels through the mirror of English realism of the late XVIII^th - the early XIX^th century

The paper aims at analyzing and using one of the methods of formalized (algorithmic) content-based analysis of a literary text language known as markeme analysis of a literary text language. The authors form a rationale for choosing Austen's novels as a unit of analysis. The reason is determined by reinterpretation in literature studies Jane Austen's place in English literature of 19^th century and her role in forming the basis for critical realism development. Modern literature studies considers Jane Austen a writer who being a Romantic prose writer at the same time provides the successive transition from traditions of Enlightenment realism to critical realism. Therefore, literary scholars consider her ‘a link' between these literary movements. Our purpose is to determine the place Jane Austen occupies in English literature and her role in English literature history by means of linguistic methods, which allow verifying the results obtained by means of literary analysis. The base of the present study is a markemological approach to a literary text analysis that allows extracting markemes, which we consider specific keywords capable to represent basic thematic preferences in an individual writer's works or in a literary period. Thus, it becomes possible to penetrate into a writer's artistic world and identify his or her values. The method of markeme analysis suggested by A.A. Kretov as one of the means to formalize the semantical analysis of the text is used to solve the set tasks. The method of separation thematically neutral words from thematically marked words suggested by A.A. Kretov makes the keywords extraction procedure algorithm-based and allows minimizing human factor influence and accounting informative value of each word in contrast to all other words used in each particular text. A.A. Kretov and A.A. Faustov's scientific studies promote to the markemology development. Under their academic advising the group of programmers headed by I.Ye. Voronina (Dr.Sc.) continue developing necessary software environment. Markeme analysis is a method of computerized key words extraction. Such keywords A.A. Kretov called markemes. Automatically calculated Index of Textual Markedness (InTeM) for each word in the text could serve as a marker whether its frequency in this text is abnormal. The computational formula expresses functionality between a frequency weight and a length weight of a word. The word length weight being a constant parameter, so the value of the word frequency weight determines the value of InTeM. When a word distribution in the text exceeds a standard frequency distribution threshold for this word, the value of its InTeM becomes positive thereby expressing the level of significance for this word in the particular text. Markemes are nouns because they represent the least marked part of speech, which denotes the most important categories of culture, describe the inward man and his interpersonal and human relations, basic notions, etc. The potential markeme should undergo special system of filtration including grammatical, grammar and semantic, thematic and semantic, dialogical and classifying filters. The system of filters prevents including onyms and animate nouns, except such words as man, creature; connota-tive words; names of months and days of week; names of artifacts in case they do not possess connotative or symbolic meanings; words associated with a definite literary genre; addresses and classifying words. As a result, it makes possible to separate the story line words from those words that represent the reason the author had when he or she started writing about. Thus, we get a list of 50 markemes ranged in descending order of their InTeM. These words are considered the most important words for the author. The paper specifies the methodology of the study and the markeme extraction algorithm, describes the application of the markeme analysis method, and explains the meaning of necessary markemological terms. The study results in determining dominant (disappointment) and vice-dominant (disinterestedness) markemes in Austen's works and in data structuring into semantic blocks. The calculation of Inverted Rank for each markeme makes it possible to evaluate its importance for Austen's novels. Graded semantic classification of markemes shows that all Austen's markemes belong to the following semantic blocks: mental and perceptual markemes, emotional markemes, social markemes, qualitative markemes, moral and ethical markemes, interpersonal relations, fundamental notions. Such semantically complex markemes as approbation, understanding, tranquillity, mortification, inconvenience are concurrently the members of two semantic blocks. Thus, formally we analyze 55 markemes. Qualitative and quantitative analysis of semantic blocks of markemes demonstrates prevailing of mental and perceptual markemes (14) in Jane Austen's novels. The second large semantic block is the block of emotional markemes (12). There are also many markemes, which represent interpersonal relations (10) and personal traits (qualitative markemes) (9). According to the quantity of markemes and the fraction of total markeme weight it is possible to single out three central semantic blocks in Austen's novels. They are the semantic blocks of mental and perceptual markemes, emotional markemes and markemes represented interpersonal relations. It was established that about 83% of Austen's markemes deal with the description of emotional and psychological state of a human being with reference to interpersonal relations that is typical for romantic prose of the late 18 - early 19 century. But, content-based analysis of the semantic blocks of qualitative, social and fundamental markemes and markemes, which represent interpersonal relations as well as identification of disappointment, which later became the central focus that characterize English prose of 19 century, as Austen's dominant markeme indicates that Austen brings up new non-romantic subjects such as social and interpersonal inequality, mortification and wretchedness. Besides, it should be noted that there are 18 markemes with negative meaning among Austen's markemes. Their number constitutes 36% of total number of Austen's markemes. The obtained data proves that at the turn of the century Jane Austen being a romantic writer was one of the first who brought up new for English prose subjects thus contributing to laying the groundwork for critical realism development in English literature. Thus, from markemology position literary scholars statement that Austen's writing is a ‘link' that provides the successive transition from traditions of Enlightenment realism to critical realism finds its linguistic confirmation.

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