Graphic means of transmitting the emotional state of communicants in electronic discourse (on the material of the French forum posts )

Abstract

The article presents linguistic and pragmatic analysis of graphical tools used in emails in order to identify their pragmatic load. The concept of electronic discourse is described from the variable points of view of different language teaching. Particular attention is paid to internet symbols to describe emotional states communicants. In this article the electronic discourse signifies communicative activity, mediated by electronic means of communication, or electronic communication. The author lays the stress on the language specificity of the Internet discourse, to be exact – on a combination of written and oral French
language registers in electronic correspondence. The pragmatic specific using graphical tools and smiles in texts by the participants of relevant communicative situations are disclosed in factual French forum emails. With the absence of a real contact between participants of communication, graphical symbols gain the role of mood and emotion markers. It had been analyzed and described the different types of emoticon; described semantic specificity of graphic symbols from the positions of communicants’ emotional states. It had been distinguished the semantic loading of graphic symbols that represent both positive and negative feelings. The special attention is paid on the abbreviation and phonetic ways of writing the words.