Administrative and legal styles

   

   Administrative and legal styles of English use linguistic means at the levels of discourse,
   syntax, word groups and vocabulary, serving to enable and facilitate transmission of
   information in the most accurate way and avoid ambiguity. The means to achieve this aim are as
   follows:

   ˙        postmodification in nominal groups (particularly frequent in legal English)

   ˙        zero or low determination

   ˙        rare use of intensifiers

   ˙        marked or unusual work order

   ˙        use of a limited range of verbs

   ˙        abstract nouns and verbs

   ˙        modal verbs

   

   Language of law: frequent occurrence of archaisms, formal words and phrases, pair synonyms and
   words of Romance (i.e. French and Latin) origin in its lexis.

   

   Administrative style and its genres (such as announcements and advertisements) overlaps with
   the journalistic or newspaper style. These texts share with typically administrative genres
   (such as instructions, directives, etc.) the emphasis on clear, unambiguous formulation and
   use of modal verbs and imperative forms.

   

   Language of business is a subtype of the administrative style. Several different genres can be
   distinguished within it depending on their medium (spoken or written), domain or field of
   discourse, tenor (although neutrality and formality prevail) and function. E.g. commercial
   correspondence comprises variety of texts such as offers, enquiries, orders, invoices, claims
   and complaints, forms, etc. Other: e.g. application forms, requests, questionnaires, etc.

   

   At the lexical level, the necessity of maintaining terms must be highlighted because
   expliciteness, clarity and stability of expression are essential for the coherence of
   administrative discourses.

   Administrative texts are

   -         rather traditional

   -         bookish

   -         syntactically and lexically stereotypical

   -         unambiguous

   -         non-expressive, i.e. neutral or formal

   -         stressing visual markers 

   

   

   Scientific or technical style

   

   It aims to communicate message which is lexically dense, with high information value, complex
   structure and standardised form. Mistrík[1] distinguishes two types of technical (odborný)
   style:

   -         administrative

   -         didactic (naučný) (further divided into scientific and popular varieties).

   

   The written (and monological) form predominates. Its main function is to express ideas
   accurately, excisely and fully. There is no feedback, no reliance on support provided by
   prosodic features (stress, intonation, loudness, etc.) or paralinguistic means (e.g.
   gestures).

   

   Texts must be linguistically and stylistically obvious, clear and transparent so that the
   process of communication is made smoother and the message is unambigious.

   

   Typically:

               - strict organization of expressions (i.e. syntax)

   - structure of a text (its division depending on the content)

   - order within a sentence (to show relations between ideas)

   

   Tools used:

   -         connectors

   -         referential and deictic expressions

   -         subordinating/hypotactic conjunctions (to achieve hierarchical organization, to show
   relations between clauses).

   

   Tools avoided:

   -         other than the objective/unmarked word order

   -         alternation of verbal categories serving for topicalization

   -         substitution of pronouns for other pronouns

   -         unusual or expressive constructions.

   

   Sentences (which the scientific style shares with the administrative/official style) are:

   -         relatively independent,

   -         rather stereotypical,

   -         schematic,

   -         more condensed (i.e. include non-finite clauses and constructions),

         and have

   -         condensed syntax,

   -         logical internal structure,

   -         high objectiveness (i.e. use impersonal constructions and passive voice).  

   

   Lexis -- based on terms. Typical word classes are nouns and adjectives. Terms must be
   unambiguous (but not necessarily monosemous).

   Subjective and expressive/emotive expressions are avoided.

   The more scientific the style is, the narrower the terms are.

   Individual scientific disciplines make use of a rather limited vocabulary. Lexemes are subject
   to high repetitiveness (absolutely highest compared with other styles).[2]

   

   Lexis is stereotypical (and so is syntax), but the stereotype suits the functions of the style
   -- in consequence, it allows easier, more accurate and unambiguous understanding.

              

   The main aim of scientific texts -- to define things accurately and organize ideas logically
   and clearly. The principal technique is explanation, consisting of the functions of
   explanation, clarification, provision of arguments, examples, following a strictly logical
   approach.

   

   Two branches of the style of science:

   -         objective, matter-of-fact (věcný), concise

   -         popular didactic, close to prose, essay

   

   Popular technical/scientific style: close to the conversational and publicistic styles.
   Attempts to be attractive, to characterize things and their properties. Bigger segmentation of
   texts. Descriptive techniques. Shorter sentences, not very specialised terminology. Terms
   explained, paraphrased.

   

   Galperin -- distinction between the styles of humanities and exact/natural sciences -- in
   impersonal expression (passive constructions or general subject we), typical for the latter.

   

   Condensation of expression: semantic condensers - noun groups.

   

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   [1] cf. Knittlová, D.: Funkční styly v angličtině a češtině, p. 26.   

   

   

   [2] Knittlová, D.: Funkční styly v angličtině a češtině. Olomouc: Filozofická fakulta
   Univerzity Palackého, 1990. P. 27.