Chapter: 4

Language
Functions, Text-
categories and
Text-types
 OUTLINE

• Buhler's functional theory of

language
• Text types as adapted by Newmark
(Examples)
 Buhler's functional theory of
language
• Newmark takes Buhler's functional theory
of language as his theoretical basis.
• According to Buhler, the three main
functions of language are the expressive,
the informative and the vocative
• these are the main purposes of using
language.
• This was later adapted by Newmark who
came up with three other functions
• Every original text exercises at the
same time these three main
functions, with a difference in the
significance of each function in the
text.

• Usually, each text features a primary

but not a single function
 The expressive function

The core of the expressive function is the

mind of the speaker, the writer, the originator
of the utterance. He uses the utterance to
express his feelings irrespective of any
response.

In other words: the focus is on the author

Examples of expressive texts

 The informative function
The core of the informative function of
language is external situation, facts,, ideas or
theories.
informative texts are concerned with any
topic of knowledge
information and knowledge are the most
important
Examples of informative texts:
• 'informative' texts constitute the vast
majority of what translators deal with in
international organizations, multi-nationals,
private companies and translation agencies.

• high proportion of such texts are poorly

written and sometimes inaccurate, and it is
usually the translator's job to 'correct' their
facts and their style.
 The vocative function
• The core of the vocative function of language
is the readership, the addressee. I use the
term Vocative in the sense of 'calling upon'
the readership to act, think or feel, in fact to
'react' in the way intended by the text.
• in all vocative text is the relationship
between the writer and the readership.
• these text must be written in a language that
is immediately comprehensible to the
readership.
• Ford's Fiera doesn't do well with
Spanish-speaking Latin-Americans, since
"fiera" means "ugly old woman".

• Mitsubishi had to rename

its Pajero automobile because the word
is a vulgar term.
the car was marketed under a different
name from the beginning.
 The aesthetic function

• This is language designed to please the

senses, firstly through its actual or imagined
sound, and secondly through its metaphors.
The rhythm, balance and contrasts of
sentences, clauses and words also play their
part.
 ‫• طرقت الباب حتي كلمتني فلما كلمتني كل‬
‫متني فقالت لي يا اسماعيل صبرا فقلت لها يا‬
. ‫ عيل صبري‬,‫اسما‬
• ‫متني‬: my back
• ‫كل‬: get tired
• ‫كلمتتي‬: she talked to me
• ‫اسماعيل‬: Ismail a proper noun
• ‫اسما‬: isma a proper noun of a girl
• ‫ عيل‬:a verb in the past means exhausted
in English
I knocked the door till she talked •
to me and when she talked to
me, my back get tired and then
she told me: be patient Oh
Ismail, and I replied: Oh Isma,
my patience has exhausted .
 The phatic function

• The phatic function of language is used for

maintaining friendly contact with the
addressee. It refers to the social interaction
of language

• Some phaticisms are 'universal', others are

cultural, and they should be rendered by
standard equivalents, which are not literal
translations.
• (Health/weather)
• Are you okey?
• Beautiful weather today isn’t it?
 The metalingual function

• the metalingual function indicates the language's

ability to explain, name, and criticise its own
features. When these are more or less universal
(e.g, 'sentence', 'grammar', 'verb', etc.) - though
they may not yet exist in languages.

in the case of metalingual texts, language may serve

to express something in a way that can’t be
transferred in the same way to another language.
• Example: Many news papers, when they
want to refer to Jerusalem in their
articles, they tend to write it with capital
u, s and a (jerUSAlem). So, readers can
infer from the article that the United
States of America is really concerned
with the Israelo-palestinien conflict. This
might be impossible to be expressed the
same way in Arabic for example.