Nonverbal components of communication in dialogues as a marker of character relationships in the work by A. P. Chekhov "Three Years"

Skrypnik Elizaveta Romanovna Graduate student; Institute of Philology, Journalism and Intercultural Communication; Southern Federal University 344006, Russia, Rostov region, Rostov-On-Don, lane University, 93 elskrypnik@sfedu.ru

Introduction

The reality in which a person is immersed determines a number of certain actions that form the basis of the existence and development of a personality. First of all, such a basis is social interaction or interpersonal communication. The main means of transmitting information is language, understood as "a naturally occurring and naturally developing semiotic system with the property of social purpose" ^[6]. With the help of language, it becomes possible to form objectified information about reality, to preserve, transmit and receive knowledge about the world around us.

The verbal interaction of people is realized, as a rule, verbally ? in the form of a dialogue. Through the articulation-acoustic channel, the speech utterance is translated and accepted by the interlocutor. However, in the process of live communication, it is important not only to exchange thoughts, but also additional channels for obtaining information, which are accompanied by an audio message. During communication, a visual channel is also involved, recognizing gestures, facial expressions and body movements that complement verbal communication.

A work of art is a special kind of reproduction of reality, it is a "repeated, as if newly created world" ^{[1, p. 361]}. Translating real events and life processes into written form is impossible without fixing communication — the main form of human interaction with and within society.

The speech behavior of characters in the text space can be represented by external and internal forms of communication. Dialogue, a speech structure that is "characterized by a change in the statements of two speakers" ^{[10, p. 130]}, does not exhaust the ways of linguistic "reflection" of character communication. This external form of communication, placed in the text, corresponds to how people interact in life, so it is not difficult to imagine real dialogical situations and compare them with those recreated in the space of an artistic work. Nevertheless, live communication, as noted earlier, includes not only words, but also gestures, the so-called "mute language" ^{[2, p. 145]}, which is broadcast simultaneously with speech. In a work of art, gestures, facial expressions, body movements, referred to as "non-verbal components", are fixed by the word. ^{[3, p. 4]} They are, as a rule, placed in dialogical communication and fixed in the author's comments — remarks accompanying the characters' remarks. M. K. Milykh defines a remark as the words of the author, "directly introducing and commenting on direct speech" ^{[7, p. 58]}. The minimal structure of the remark is represented by two elements ? the verb of speaking and the noun or pronoun defining the speaker. An author's comment may have an extended structure, i.e. it may consist of more than two words. The nonverbal components placed in the remark complement verbal communication, expand the understanding of the communication process and allow the reader to form a holistic image of the character. The purpose of the study is to identify ways to introduce non—verbal components of communication into the author's comments accompanying Laptev's speech in dialogues with Belavina in A. P. Chekhov's novella "Three Years", to describe the remarking parts in terms of structure and semantics and to trace how they represent the change in Alexei's attitude to Julia.

Description of the study

In A. P. Chekhov's novel "Three Years", verbal communication between Alexey Laptev and Yulia Belavina is accompanied by non-linguistic means. The dialogues of Chekhov's characters are two-dimensional. The replicas are presented as spoken, sounding, but at the same time another dialogue develops ? gestural, visual.

The plot of the work focuses on the story of difficult family relations between Alexey Laptev and Yulia Belavina, "the transformation of the initial feeling into further everyday realities" ^{[8, p. 145]}. The variability of feelings, the fading of love in Alexei and its development in Julia, can be traced through the communication of the characters.

A constant non?verbal characteristic of Laptev's communicative behavior, his non-verbal constant is a change in the clarity and sonority of his voice. This indicates the character's self-doubt and emphasizes the instability of his emotional state: Alexey is often restless, agitated.

Laptev's speech is accompanied by remarks, which include both verbs of neutral meaning ("say", "ask", "answer", etc.) and verbs containing a paralinguistic characteristic ("whisper", "shout", "mutter", etc.). There are several reasons why the character's voice is changeable: the sonority and loudness of pronunciation depends on Alexey's interlocutor, the event Laptev is experiencing and, as a result, his inner state. When communicating with Julia at the beginning of the story, Laptev, carried away by a love feeling, is restrained. The author's comments accompanying the character's remarks have a simple structure, since they consist of two mandatory components ? the verb of speaking and the pronoun: "he said" ^{[11, p. 7]}, "he asked" ^{[11, p. 9]}. However, before the onset of communication, Alexey's condition is different: he is very excited, which is recorded verbally and manifested nonverbally. While waiting for Yulia after the vigil, Laptev is worried about their upcoming meeting. Alexey's experiences are conveyed by his gaze ("he stared intently" ^{[11, p. 7]}), facial expressions ("despair seized him" ^{[11, p. 7]}) and voice ("he whispered" ^{[11, p. 8]}). The excitement becomes unbearable and is verbally expressed: "This is terrible, terrible! He whispered, jealous of her. — This is terrible!" ^{[11, p. 8]}. The triple repetition of the adverb "terrible" in barely audible speech exposes the depth of Laptev's feelings. It is worth emphasizing that the replica is graphically framed in the text as part of internal speech ? it is placed in quotation marks. Laptev's words are a simple internal replication, which is represented by a separate, brief and incongruous utterance with the speech plan. The replica represents the character's emotional assessment of the event, captures the thought that escaped.

Non-verbal components are also included in the description of communication in the following meetings of Laptev and Belavina. There is no initial restraint in Alexey's remarks. In relation to Yulia Laptev, "emotions move, which is more typical for women" ^{[9, p. 116]}. During the first explanation and Julia's proposal to become his wife, the description of the character's voice contains complex structural remarks. In addition to the obligatory elements, the author's commentary includes adverbs ("passionately", "uncontrollably" ^{[11, p. 19]}), as well as an expanded construction represented by the adverbial turnover ("... he pressed it to his chest and spoke passionately, uncontrollably, giving himself up again to the sweet delight that he experienced last night, sitting under an umbrella" ^{[11, p. 19]}). The volume of the voice changes in the process of communication, another characteristic is also presented in quite a detailed way: "He again pressed an umbrella to his chest and said softly, unexpectedly to himself, not recognizing his voice" ^{[11, p. 19]}. An indication of the sonority and loudness of Laptev's voice is placed in a prepositive remark, directly introducing the character's subsequent remark. Alexey's emotions and his attitude towards Yulia are conveyed not only in his voice, but also through looks ("He looked at her with ecstasy, silently" ^{[11, p. 19]}, "admiring her youth" ^{[11, p. 19]}), body movements ("She stretched out her hand to take an umbrella, but he pressed it to his chest" ^{[11, p. 19]}).

After the explanation, Yulia does not immediately accept Laptev's offer, but nevertheless agrees. Alexey's response is represented by non-linguistic means. Laptev expresses his emotions, a feeling of satisfaction with Yulia's consent with tactile movements ("He <...> kissed her hand" ^{[11, p. 26]}, "He <...> hugged her passionately, pressed her to his chest and, muttering some words, calling her you, kissed her neck, then cheek, in the head..." ^{[11, p. 26]}), shortening the distance ("he bent down" ^{[11, p. 26]}, "... hugged her passionately, pressed her to his chest" ^{[11, p. 26]}). The character's words are presented in an inappropriate, direct form of speech. Alexey is "deprived" of a verbal replica, the reconstruction of his thoughts and feelings is given in the narrator's retelling. Nevertheless, the character expresses his thoughts about what happened with an internal remark: "Why did this happen?" ^{[11, p. 30]}. Laptev addresses himself with a question, thus dialogizing inner speech. Thinking about what happened, sounding to oneself, is a complex internal psychological process that reflects "the various mental states of the characters, their self-doubt, dissatisfaction with some circumstances of life, disagreement with oneself" ^{[5, p. 210]}.

Julia also uses this remark to herself: "... and both of them asked themselves in embarrassment: "Why did this happen?"" ^{[11, p. 30]}. The words are attributed to "both characters at the same time, which reinforces the idea of the complexity of their relationship" ^{[4, p. 122]}. The internal replica correlates with the sounding speech and external non-verbal manifestations of Belavina's communicative behavior: she "squeezes her hands" to herself ^{[11, p. 26]}, "forcibly smiles" ^{[11, p. 27]}, which indicates Julia's unwillingness to marry.

Laptev's thoughts and actions, on the contrary, show a weak congruence. External manifestations, i.e. facial expressions, body movements, gestures, do not quite correspond to his thoughts and feelings. Alexey expresses his joy at the agreement he has received, but at the same time he has doubts. The difference in the ratio of the external and internal sides of communication indicates a different degree of awareness of the upcoming event ? marriage.  

The decisive moment that establishes a new "order" of the relationship between the spouses is the quarrel started by Alexei. The former tremulous feeling expressed by "sweet delight" is replaced by a harsh tone ("he said sharply" ^{[11, p. 59]}), silence ("he could no longer utter a single word, but stood in front of her and was silent" ^{[11, p. 59]}), a scream ("he shouted" ^{[11, p. 60]}). Laptev's remarks in the episode of the showdown are accompanied by verbs that line up in gradation: "said" — "continued with despair" ? "continued, gasping" ? "shouted". A gradual change in the volume of the voice indicates a critical emotional state of the character — he loses control of himself due to difficulties in family life. Alexei's scream is replaced by a mutter ("Enough, enough," he muttered. I insulted you because I love you madly," he suddenly kissed her leg and hugged her passionately. ? At least a spark of love! ? He muttered. ? Well, lie to me! Lie! Don't say it's a mistake!.." ^{[11, p. 60]}). The author's commentary accompanying the character's speech contains a verb indicating a quiet, slurred pronunciation. However, the external, "sounding" side emphasizes the loudness of the utterance, which is formally represented by exclamation marks.

Over time, not only the order in family relationships changes, but also the order in life. Alexey acquires "true gender functions", becomes the owner of a barn on Pyatnitskaya Street, puts things in order ^{[8, p. 149]}. Laptev's feelings for his wife are weakening. This can be seen in the non-verbal communicative behavior of the character. There are fewer remarks to Alexey's remarks. If they are represented, then by a verb and a pronoun or verb forms that meaningfully determine Laptev's position in space ("I asked, turning to my wife" ^{[11, p. 86]}, "he said, looking at the street" ^{[11, p. 86]}). The spouses change places: Julia becomes the initiator of communication, Alexey continues the conversation.

The results of the study

The beginning and the end of the story represent a man declaring his love — first it's Alexey, then Julia. The spouses change places, and this change is determined by Laptev's attitude towards Belavina, represented by both sounding speech and non-verbal components of communication. The non-linguistic means accompanying the character's remarks are placed in the remarks. They can characterize the sonority and loudness of the voice, facial expressions, body movements, and gestural behavior. It was revealed that the most frequent are paralinguistic descriptions, which are most often included in prepositive remarks introducing the character's speech. In the author's comments to Alexey's remarks, other non—verbal components are presented - body movements, facial expressions, gestures. As a rule, they are placed in interpositive remarks that break up the character's speech. The ways of representing nonverbal components in the author's commentary are different: they can be expressed by a simple structure, i.e., a verb of speaking a neutral meaning or a verb containing a paralinguistic characteristic in semantics, and a complex, extended structure, i.e., adverbs, verbal and nominal phrases, sentences. The analysis of the main episodes of the relationship between Alexei and Julia allows us to imagine a "straight line" of verbs that fix and reflect Laptev's inner state: "he spoke passionately" ? "he spoke, giving himself up to sweet delight" ? "pressed, muttering" ? "asked, approaching her" ? "said sharply" ? "shouted" ? "muttered" ? "he said, looking at the street" ? "he asked, turning to his wife." The presented words and phrases were taken from the author's comments accompanying Laptev's speech when communicating with Julia and containing paralinguistic characteristics, i.e. timbre, tone of voice, volume and clarity of pronunciation. From this straight line, it is clear that Alexey's feelings are gradually weakening, the character is disappointed in love.