CLIPPED ADJECTIVES: THEIR POSITION IN THE POETIC LINE


2017. № 4 (14), 202-211

Vinogradov Russian Language Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences

Abstract:

The features of clipped adjectives should be considered from the point of view of versification.

I explore the morphological, stylistic and semantic peculiarities of clipped adjectives. A special dictionary of clipped forms provides the researcher with the opportunity to analyze the role of these forms in the language of Russian poetry.

My intention is to define the concept of «clipped adjectives», to consider how clipped forms differ from short and full ones, and to examine their place in system of adjectives. The project is based on collecting the material (i.e. examples of Russian poetry from the XVII century to the present) and its multifaceted analysis.

Interesting results derive from analyzing the use of such forms by considering the research of M. L. Gasparov and T. V. Skulacheva on the relationship between grammar and poetic meter. It was found that clipped adjectives often occupy positions that are unusual for full adjectives: the beginning and the end of the poetic line.

This research will presumably allow for confirmation of a hypothesis regarding (1) the stability and considerable semantic load of clipped adjectives in poetic language, and (2) the preservation of attributive short forms on the periphery of modern Russian grammar.