“Text length” as a factor of variety and its interpretative functioning

The research is carried out in line with the theory of variable-interpretive functioning of the text. It is based on the assumption that, on the one hand, the variability of the perception of the interpreted text semantic content is determined by the system-language factor and, on the other hand, it is determined by the factor of the language personality language activities. The author suggests considering this problem in the aspect of the communicative activities of the addresser and the addressee, text production and text perception to continue the discussion on the role of the principle of saving speech efforts in the process of language functioning. The article deals with one of the factors determining plurality and variability of the interpretation of text by the addressee-recipient, the factor of “text length”. Using the materials of the linguistic interpretive experiment the author proves the neutralization of some semantic versions and actualization of other versions in the process of “text length” gradual enlargement. The author used four texts which were different in “length” as the material for the experiment: Machinery from Germany; Good machinery from Germany from the best companies-manufacturers: Bosch, Liebherr; Good machinery from Germany which will facilitate your every day life. From the best companies- manufacturers: Bosch, Liebherr. The materials of the experiment show that, on the one hand, the enlargement of “text length” and the increase of the communicative role of explicit components reduces the implicitness. It leads to the reduction of the number of semantic versions based on the principle of semantic inference. On the other hand, each of the new components determines the development of additional semantic versions. It is due to the fact that the increase of the degree of text explicitness (verbalization) reduces the degree of its implicitness, and it means that it reduces the degree of the addressee inferred meanings. Furthermore, every structural-semantic component has the potential of its interpretation variability. The degree of the text implicitness / explicitness is determined by its pragmatics, the type of the addressee-interpreter language personality and the character of interpretation strategies used. In the process of text perception the addressee-interpreter actualizes the interpreting speech acts while applying different interpretation strategies - holistic or elementaristic. The author proves that the increase of “tet length” does not influence the result directly, if the addressee applies the holistic strategy of interpretation. But if the addressee belongs to the type of language personality who tends to use the elementaristic strategy, increasing “text length” by including “new” language units (first of all lexical) impacts the result of the interpretation activities that determine the multiple variability of the interpreted text semantic versions. Increasing “text length” aimed at making it more informative for all readers as well as text reduction aimed at removing extra lexical-semantic elements does not allow us to decide the problem of creating the text that could be optimal in “length”.

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