Marked Features In Review Articles Of Journalistic English

Theory of iconicity in cognitive linguistics probes primarily into the reflectional relationship between linguistic signs and their meanings. It is of great value for us to get a further understanding of the essence of linguistic signs, playing a key role in unveiling the connection between language and cognition. Interdisciplinary studies related to stylistics have proved that iconicity of linguistic signs is an important approach to stylistic features and effects.By marked iconicity, it is meant that the natural sequence of cognition and normal order of organizing linguistic signs is from unmarked terms to marked terms, which symbolize extra meaning and certain intention. Marked iconicity, one of manifestations of motivation between linguistic signs and their meanings, is also one important approach to stylistic features and effects. There have always been studies on stylistic features of journalistic English inside and outside China. However, they are just summary of superficial stylistic features without deeply probing into underlying extra meanings and intentions. Marked iconicity is an important approach to stylistic features and effects, little systematical research has yet covered the relationship between marked iconicity and stylistic features and effects of journalistic English.Now that marked language elements, forms or structures deviating from norm symbolize extra meanings and certain intention on one hand, on the other, aim of review articles in journalistic English to clarify viewpoints particularly entails prominent language elements, forms or structures to better perform the function of conveying viewpoints, marked iconicity must be able to play a great role on achievement of stylistic features and effects in review articles. With review articles from original English newspapers as research materials, the present study intended to prove the importance of marked iconicity to achievement of stylistic features and effects of review articles in journalistic English by analyzing underlying extra meanings and intention of marked features in such aspects like phonetics, lexicon, syntax, figures of speech, graphology and writing tone, in other words, by exploring motivation between forms and meanings of marked features.Systematical and comprehensive analysis of all those marked features illustrated the importance of marked iconicity to achievement of stylistic features and effects in review articles of journalistic English, and further reconfirmed the motivation between linguistic signs and their meanings, namely, iconicity of linguistic signs. Explanation on marked features by applying marked iconicity has great benefits towards teaching and learning regarding reading and writing of English review articles. Further more, it is helpful for the translation of English review articles.