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In publicistic (oratorial) style the general aim is to exert
influence on the listener, to convince him that the speaker's
interpretation is the only correct one. The task is accomplished
through persuasion and emotional appeal. For this reason
publicistic style has features in common with scientific style, on
the one hand, and declamatory style, on the other. It is especially
noticeable in public political speeches, judicial speeches, and
sermons.
Publicistic style is characterized by a number of phonetic
peculiarities. Loudness is usually enormously increased to produce
certain psychological effect. Pitch levels are greatly varied,
predominantly wide ranges are used. The speakers often use the
so-called "rhetorical trick" – High Level Heads are alternated with
the Low Level Heads. Terminal tones are mostly emphatic,
especially on emotional semantic centres; in non-final intonation
groups the falling-rising tones are used. The speed of the utterance
is moderately slow, but some unimportant parts of the speech are
pronounced quicker. The use of so-called "rhetorical pauses" is
aimed to influence the public. Rhythm is properly organized.
Voice timber is dignified, self-assured, concerned and personally
involved.
The four basic types of speeches are intended: to inform, to
instruct, to entertain, and to persuade. These are not mutually
exclusive of one another. You may have several purposes in mind
when giving your presentation. For example, you may try to
inform in an entertaining style. Another speaker might inform the
audience and try to persuade them to act on the information.
Functional styles (FS) are the subsystems of language, each
subsystem having its own peculiar features in what concern
vocabulary means, syntactical constructions, and even phonetics.
For example, the general aim of publicistic style is to influence
the public opinion, to convince the reader or the listener that the
interpretation given by the writer or the speaker is the only correct
one and to cause him to accept the expressed point of view.
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