STUDY OF THE CATEGORY OF NEGATION IN KAZAKH AND ENGLISH LANGUAGES

ИССЛЕДОВАНИЕ КАТЕГОРИИ ОТРИЦАНИЯ В КАЗАХСКОМ И АНГЛИЙСКОМ ЯЗЫКАХ

Шамыгулова Багылан Кайркызы

магистрант, кафедра иностранных языков, Актюбинский региональный университет им. К. Жубанова,

РК, г. Актобе

Жумаханова Анаргуль Жумахановна

магистр гум. наук, старший преподаватель, кафедра иностранных языков Актюбинский региональный университет им. К. Жубанова,

РК, г. Актобе

ABSTRACT

Negation is in the first place a phenomenon of semantic opposition. This article is an overview of the current state of research works on negation in Kazakh and English languages. The importance of this work is indicated by the fact that the features and the semantic nature of negation in Kazakh and English languages have not yet been the subject of a comparative study. The study looks at the similarities and differences of negation between English and Kazakh languages. Lexicographical method and method of comparative-contrastive analysis were utilized in the study. The research results pointed out that negation remains insufficiently studied in the Turkic languages including Kazakh language, while the problem of negation is comprehensively covered in the research works of grammarians, in special studies of English linguists.  A comparative analysis of negation in Kazakh and English languages reveals the quantitative and qualitative heterogeneity of the components of negation.

АННОТАЦИЯ

Отрицание - это в первую очередь феномен семантической оппозиции. Данная статья представляет собой обзор современного состояния исследовательских работ по отрицанию на казахском и английском языках. На важность данной работы указывает тот факт, что особенности и семантическая природа отрицания в казахском и английском языках до сих пор не были предметом сравнительного исследования. В исследовании рассматриваются сходства и различия отрицания между английским и казахским языками. В исследовании использовались лексикографический метод и метод сравнительно-сопоставительного анализа. Результаты исследования показали, что отрицание остается недостаточно изученным в тюркских языках, в том числе в казахском языке, в то время как проблема отрицания всесторонне освещена в научных работах грамматистов, в специальных исследованиях английских лингвистов. Сравнительный анализ отрицания в казахском и английском языках выявляет количественную и качественную неоднородность компонентов отрицания.

Keywords: negation; the category of negation; Kazakh language; English language; comparative analysis.

Ключевые слова: отрицание; категория отрицания; казахский язык; английский язык; сравнительный анализ.

Introduction

In modern linguistics, the problem of "negation" occupies a significant role, despite a large number of insufficiently explored studies [4, p. 3]. Negation in language is one of the most important general linguistic categories studied by all sections of modern theoretical linguistics. It is necessary to point out the relatively high frequency of the use of means of negation in oral and written speech [17, p. 4]. Negation is a complex phenomenon that is fairly considered the object of the study of philosophy, logic, linguistics, psychology [23, p. 4].

Negation is one of the inherent for the entire linguistic picture of the world initially existing undifferentiated semantically connotational categories that cannot be defined by means of simple semantic elements. Negation can be expressed by negative words, negative prefixes, negative verb forms, and can also not be expressed separately, that is, act as a component of the meaning of the word or the whole sentence. Since there is nothing negative in the objective world, therefore, negation can be considered as a tool to prohibit something or to express unwillingness or disagreement with something, as well as to reject or refuse someone's opinion. [4, p. 18].

The choice of the category of negation as the subject of research is due, firstly, to the absence in Kazakh linguistics of theoretical works interpreting linguistic negation as a complexly structured functional and semantic field, and secondly, the lack of any studies devoted to this category in comparison with the English language. In this connection, it is interesting to explore and compare the category of negation in the linguistic cultures of the Kazakh and English languages and to identify its functional-semantic specificity in the linguistic domain of the Kazakh and English languages. The aim of our study is to overview the current state of studies on negation in Kazakh and English languages as well as to identify means of expressions of negation in Kazakh and English languages in a contrastive way. The set goal outlines the range of the following specific tasks:

• Critical analysis of research works on the problem of negation in Kazakh and English languages;
• Interpretation of the category of negation as one of the main linguistic categories.
• Comparative analysis of negation in Kazakh and English languages;

Literature Review

Negation is primarily a phenomenon of semantic opposition. Thus, the negation connects the one expression with another expression that somehow opposed to the meaning of the first expression [13, p. 1].

In other words, negation is a deviation from the common state of things, connections and their rejection. Theoretically, negation is a statement of non-existence [11, p. 180].

It should be noted that many scientists have been engaged in linguistic nature of negation. A significant contribution to the study of this issue was made by foreign scientists as V. N. Bondarenko, N.A. Bulakh, E.I. Shendels, O.S. Akhmanova, N.G. Ozerova, M. N. Orlova, L.R., Solovyova V. I. and etc. [1, 3, 24, 28]

There is no consensus in the scientific literature regarding the linguistic status of language negation. It is defined as a syntactic (N.A. Bulakh), grammatical (E.I. Shendels, N.G. Ozerova), logical-grammatical (V.N. Bondarenko) category. This category remains insufficiently studied in the Turkic languages including Kazakh language [7, p. 4].

In common linguistics, different definitions are devoted to the phenomenon of negation. Negation means the actual absence of communication established between the elements of speech using lexical, phraseological, syntactic and other means of language [1, p. 292].

The term "negation" was introduced into philosophy by the German philosopher Georg Hegel, but he put an idealistic meaning into it. In his opinion, the basis of negation is the development of an idea, the development of thought. Other German philosophers, such as Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, retained the term "negation" and explained it materialistically. They showed that negation is an integral development of the material reality itself. Negation is also characteristic of the development of knowledge, science.  Negation is not something introduced into a phenomenon or object from the outside, it is the result of its own, internal development. Objects and phenomena, as we know, are contradictory and, in order to move into a new, higher quality, they themselves create conditions for their own destruction, developing on the basis of internal opposites. Negation is the overcoming of the old due to internal contradictions, the result of self-development, self-movement of objects and phenomena. [11, p. 180].

Negation is a communicative operation that rejects or corrects the addressee's opinion, in other words, negation is a speech action, the purpose of which is not to convey new information, but to negate the addressee's opinion [4, p. 18].

Negation in the Kazakh language

Negation is considered in the general grammatical and linguistic studies of Kazakh scientists in special chapters and sections, in spite of the category of negation is not extensively studied in Kazakh linguistics.

In the Kazakh language, the category of negation is considered as a category of verb. The verb is divided into two because it indicates two different cases, whether it was or not: 1) negative; 2) affirmative. In other words, the concept of negation is accompanied by affirmation [2, p. 80]. There is no negative particle in the Kazakh language, which in English stands before the verb. The main means of negation in the verb is the six-variable affix “-ма, -ме, -ба, -бе, -па, -пе”. [21, p.172]

According to the Linguistic Explanatory Dictionary by A. Salkynbai, the notion “negation” in Kazakh language is explained by the terms as “negative verbs”, “negative sentences”, “negative pronouns”. The verb also means the absence of an action such verbs are called negative verbs. The negative verb is formed by adding the suffixes “-ма, -ме, -ба, -бе, -па, -пе” to the main root of the verb and by combining the words “жоқ”, “емес” with the positive form of the verb. For example: бар-ма, айт-па, көр-ме, келген жоқ, айтқан емес etc. A negative sentence is made on the basis of an affirmative sentence. The message says that the objective reality, the contemplated thought of the phenomenon does not exist. Negative sentence not only negates thought or objective reality but also gives a special stylistic background to the sentence, transforms the sentence, makes it expressive. Negative pronoun is a type of pronoun with a negative meaning. They are: ештеңе, ештеме, ешкім, ешбір, ешқашан, ешқандай, ешқайдан, еш қайсысы, дәнеңе, дәнеме, түк, бірде-бір. Negative pronoun is often formed by combining the word “еш” and pronouns such as “бір”, “кім”, “қашан”, “қандай”, “қайдан”, “қайсысы”. So they are written together. And the word “еш” is written separately if it is combined with nouns. For instance: “Сенен басқа еш жерден таба алмадым орнымды” [26, p. 37-38].

Darmenkulova studied the features of the use of negative predicates and their use in the Kazakh language [8, p. 79-84]. A verb defining an action is not performed is called a negative verb. Salkynbai notes some ways that negative verbs are expressed: synthetic approach and analytical approach. There is a significant difference in the nature of the attachment of persons of inferiority to a complex verb: sometimes they are attached to the first syllable of a complex verb (айтпай  жүр, оқымай  келді,  барғызбай қойды, сөйлетпей жатыр, бітіртпей отыр, келмей кетті, ойланбай айтты, білмей сөйледі, etc.); sometimes it is connected to the second syllable of a complex word (айтып  қойма,  күліп  жіберме,  білдіріп қойма, сөйлеп отырма, ойнап жүрме, беріп жіберме, керіп қойма, ойланып  отырма, etc.) [27, p. 110, 29, p. 70, 82].

Negative prefix “бей” is added only to a very limited number of certain Kazakh words that answer questions What? or How? For example: бей-таныс (unknown), бей-әдеп (ill-manner), бей-бақ (unhappy), бей-күнә (innocent), бей-маза (restless), бей-мәлім (unknown), бей-шара (unhappy, helpless), бей-ресми (unofficial) [30].

With words answering the questions Who? or What? the negative form can be formed with the help of negative suffixes “-сыз”, “-сіз”. For example: мұғалім-сіз (without a teacher), Әсел-сіз (without Asel), дәрігер-сіз (without a doctor), немере-сіз (without a grandson), сүйкім-сіз (unsympathetic), шыдам-сыз (impatient), сүт-сіз (without milk), ар-сыз (dishonest), ұят-сыз (shameless), жұмыс-сыз (unemployed), үй-сіз (homeless), хабар-сыз (missing), ақы-сыз (free) [30].

Negation in the English language

In English linguistics, the problem of negation is sufficiently completely and comprehensively covered in the research works of grammarians, in special studies. The category of negation, the disclosure of its essence and nature, the description of the means of realization of negation are defined in works of N.A. Bulakh, E.I. Schendels, Horn, Ladusaw, Dahl, Jespersen etc., definitions of syntactic distribution of the particle “not” in the role of general and particular negation are explored in studies of Klima, Lasnik, Lakoff, Jackendoff etc. [13; 16; 18; 19; 20] Negation is considered in general grammatical works in special chapters and sections.

Haegeman concentrates the syntactic aspects of negation, focusing almost exclusively on what is usually referred to as sentence negation [12, p. 2]. Jespersen’s main interest is connected with the negation on modern English language. Jespersen reasons that there are a lot of interesting problems that can be solved in connection with the language, in everyday conversation, as well as in comprehensive literature [16, p. 7]. According to Gabbay and Wansing, at the moment, negation is a “hot topic”, and there is an urgent need for a comprehensive description of this logical key concept.  In the book "What is Negation?" which consists of four interrelated thematic parts, they consider two characteristics of negation, one semantic, and the other proof-theoretic, as well as consider a detailed theoretical and comparative classification of various concepts of negation from the point of view of the properties of a binary relation interpreted as incompatibility [10, p. 5].

The term “negation” in the Collin’s English Dictionary is defined as [32]:

• something is complete opposite or something which destroys it or makes it lose its effect;
• disagreement, refusal, or denial;
• the opposite or absence of something;
• a negative thing or condition;
• the act or an instance of negating;
• the operator that forms one sentence from another and corresponds to the English not;

Cambridge Dictionary records the following definitions [31]:

• the action of causing something to not exist or to have no effect;
• the exact opposite of something, or a complete lack of it;
• the act of saying no;
• the act of saying that a sentence or part of a sentence is not true;

The analysis shows that the concept of "negation" in English dictionaries is widely presented in various aspects, reflecting something opposite, negative, disagreement, refusal or absence of something.

In many studies on the English language, the area of negation is revealed as a system of the following components:

1. the particle "not";

2. the pronoun "no";

3. negative pronouns and adverbs (nobody, no one, nothing, nowhere, neither, hardly, etc.);

4. privative phraseological units (be in someone’s bad book, close one’s eyes to something, get one’s marching orders, go back on one’s word, turn a deaf ear to something, dig one’s own grave, etc.);

5. prefixes and suffixes of negative meaning (a-, un-, non-, im-, ir-, il-, -less, etc.);

6. privative verbs (reject, refuse, fail, lack, object, etc.) [14, p. 125-127].

Dahl explores standard negation in a sample of 240 languages.  He draws the main distinction between syntactic and morphological negation.  In the first case, the negative markers are particles or auxiliary verbs, and in the second - affixes (with some exceptions). Some attention is also paid to other structural aspects of negatives.  The placement of negative markers is discussed in detail [6]. Payne addresses various aspects of negation, but mainly focuses on standard negation.  There are three main types of negative markers: morphological negation, negative particles and negative verbs [25]. Miestamo provides an overview of the domain of negation in a typological perspective. The current comparative analysis of the category of negation in Kazakh and English languages is due to the different classifications of means of expressing negation.

The term standard negation was coined by Payne, who defined it as "the type of negation that can be applied to the most minimal and basic sentences. Such sentences are characteristically basic sentences and consist of a single predicate with as few nominal phrases and adverb modifiers as possible" [6, p. 198]. As discussed above, three main types of negative markers can be observed in standard negation negative affixes, negative particles and negative verbs [22].

Conclusion

In conclusion, it should be noted that the types of negation categories are much more complex than their samples given in research papers and textbooks.

Analyzing the studies on the category of negation in Kazakh and English, it is possible to see syntactic and semantic differences and similarities. The "most specialized" language units are the particle not in English, and the affix –ма/-ме in Kazakh. So, the meaning of the verb is formed by combining the suffixes “-ма, -ме, -ба, -бе, -па, -пе” in Kazakh, while in English it is formed by the particle “not” and the pronoun “no”. In the Kazakh language, the modal words "жоқ, емес" are also words defining negation. Adverbs and pronouns in English (nobody, no one, nothing, nowhere, neither, hardly, rarely, etc.) are also found in Kazakh language (ешкім, ештеңе, ешқайда, ешнәрсе, etc.). There are mainly two types of negative formation that appear in both languages. One of these is formed by verbal modifiers such as not, never, hardly, etc., in English and жоқ, емес in Kazakh (sentence negation). The other type of negative makes uses of negative prefixes, such as in-, dis-, un- etc. in English and prefix “-бей” and suffixes “сыз-, сіз-”, “-ма, -ме, -ба, -бе, -па, -пе” in Kazakh (affixal negation). So, the English language has an extensive arsenal of lexical and grammatical means of negation. The universal marker of negation is the particle “not”. In the Kazakh language, the ways of expressing negation are more unified, while they are clearly divided into nominal and verbal. The study of the category of negation in the contrastive design remains relevant.

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