The noun phrase in advertising English. essay
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ELSEVIER Journal of Pragmatics 29 (1998) 155-171
The noun phrase in advertising English*
Susan Rush
Fonds Gustave Guillaume, Ddpartement de langues et linguistique, Facult~ des Lettres, Pavillon Charles-de Koni.~ck, Universit~ Laval, Quebec G1K 7P4, Canada
Received 17 August 1995; revised version 7 April 1997
Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to give a formal description of two unusual features of the noun phrase in English print advertising: its ability to operate as an independent clause in all areas of an ad - headline, subhead, signature line and text - and its complex premodifying structures. Premodification in the noun phrase is characterized by the abundant use of comparative and superlative adjectives and of colourful compounds, and by the tendency to place the product (or trade) name in first or early position in lengthy designations. This last, unusual feature disrupts the traditional word-order of premodifying adjectives in the noun phrase. Examples selected for analysis are chiefly from current (1993-1996) Canadian and American newspapers and magazines.
1. Introduction
This paper examines various features of the noun phrase in English print advertising, more specifically, the noun phrase 's ability to operate as an independent construction in the headline, signature line and body copy (i.e. text) of an ad, and its complex and often bizarre premodification structures. I am primarily interested in presenting a formal description of advertising language, rather than a semantic description, although an overlap of the two is somewhat unavoidable at times. I will first investigate the noun phrase '!; status as an independent clause in advertising English, and will then analyse its unusual structural features - more specifically, the complexity of the pre-modifying part. Though some theories on the word-order of adjectives are touched upon, the aim of the present paper is not to incorporate my observations in the framework of a
ELSEVIER Journal of Pragmatics 29 (1998) 155-171
The noun phrase in advertising English*
Susan Rush
Fonds Gustave Guillaume, Ddpartement de langues et linguistique, Facult~ des Lettres, Pavillon Charles-de Koni.~ck, Universit~ Laval, Quebec G1K 7P4, Canada
Received 17 August 1995; revised version 7 April 1997
Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to give a formal description of two unusual features of the noun phrase in English print advertising: its ability to operate as an independent clause in all areas of an ad - headline, subhead, signature line and text - and its complex premodifying structures. Premodification in the noun phrase is characterized by the abundant use of comparative and superlative adjectives and of colourful compounds, and by the tendency to place the product (or trade) name in first or early position in lengthy designations. This last, unusual feature disrupts the traditional word-order of premodifying adjectives in the noun phrase. Examples selected for analysis are chiefly from current (1993-1996) Canadian and American newspapers and magazines.
1. Introduction
This paper examines various features of the noun phrase in English print advertising, more specifically, the noun phrase 's ability to operate as an independent construction in the headline, signature line and body copy (i.e. text) of an ad, and its complex and often bizarre premodification structures. I am primarily interested in presenting a formal description of advertising language, rather than a semantic description, although an overlap of the two is somewhat unavoidable at times. I will first investigate the noun phrase '!; status as an independent clause in advertising English, and will then analyse its unusual structural features - more specifically, the complexity of the pre-modifying part. Though some theories on the word-order of adjectives are touched upon, the aim of the present paper is not to incorporate my observations in the framework of a
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