The article as a meaning-forming operator in the English language Contents: Introduction

The article as a meaning-forming operator in the English language
Contents:
Introduction……………………………….………………………………………..3
Chapter I. Linguistic status of the article and its accuracy category……..………14
1.1 Linguistic status of the article………………………………………………….7
1.2 Name: Clarity category………………………………………………………14
Summary for Chapter I…………………………………………………………..15
Chapter II. About the Article Zero with a/an…………………………………….28
2.1 The ambiguous meaning expressed by a/an………………………………….21
2.2 Indefinite meaning with zero article………………………………………….28
Summary for Chapter II…………………………………………………………29
Conclusion………………………………………………………………………..30
Bibliography……………………………………………………………………...32


Introduction
The theme of course paper is «Theoretical and practical aspects of the article in Modern English». The topicality of course work is connected with contrоversial article usage in Modern English. The articles perform a discourse function, by indicating new and old information. And this function is realized in practice through certain articles usage. The problem of article determination has given rise to much controversy; there is much dispute about the status of the article itself and the status of its combination with the noun.
The article is generally treated as a marker of the noun - full or partial, e.g. a man, the rich. However, not all nouns are invariably used with the `material' article, e.g. strength. Even countables are not always preceded by the material article, e.g. books. Besides the article, nouns are identified in the sentence by other determiners (pronouns, numerals), prepositions, by the presence of appropriate affixes, their relative position. The role of the article is often secondary, or supplementary. To prove this, compare the texts below: the original and its version in which the nouns have been stripped of the articles:
It was a hot day. The two windows opened upon the distant murmur of London. The burning sun of July danced on the rosy and grey waters of the Thames (J.Galsworthy).
It was hot day. Two windows opened upon distant murmur of London. Burning sun of July danced on rosy and grey waters of Thames
The article is often defined as a unit whose main function is to actualize the concept of the referent in a particular text; in other words, the article correlates the notion of the referent with actual reality subjectively, as presented by the speaker (writer).
The object of course paper is: indefinite meaning expressed by articles a/an and zero article, usage of the definite article the with examples being selected from the novel « Everything is illuminated» by Jonathan Safran Foer.
The aim of course paper is to investigate the linguistic status of the article in Modern English along with its main function of noun determiner providing main tendencies in article usage with examples from the novel « Everything is illuminated».
The task of course paper is to show the articles applying tendencies based on their usages, most of which can not be fully underpinned by general rules.