Padėkos raiškos galimybės
Possibilities of expressing gratitude

Summary/Abstract: By gratitude one shows attention to the addressee, demonstrates that the addresser takes notice of the addressee’s actions and appreciates them. The very words of gratitude perform a referential function of a speech act. It can be expanded when the cause of gratitude is specified. Quite often, an addressee is mentioned in the formulae of gratitude. The expression of gratitude is usually expanded with various modifiers, evaluative words, which perform an expressive function.The article discusses the causes of the situation of gratitude and possibilities of expressing it in the Lithuanian language. The sources used are data from Dabartinės lietuvių kalbos tekstynas (Corpus of the Contemporary Lithuanian Language) as well as from the live speech and letters of different writers, cultural workers collected by the author herself. The article is essentially based on the method of semantic analysis.The situation of gratitude is presupposed by several actions of the addressee: physical aid, varied verbal support (assent, inquiry, compliment) or a promise to provide assistance in future. Direct gratitude is usually expressed by an interjection ačiū, less often – dėkui, a performative verb dėkoju and analytic constructions esu (būsiu, būčiau) dėkingas(-a). The formal relationship between the addresser and addressee is indicated by expressions of gratitude where an action is denoted by analytic forms with the noun padėka and some verbs.As many as 6 semantic shades can be discerned in the expression of implicit gratitude: a wish, an opportunity, a request, an obligation, completion of a speech act, lack of expression. These semantic shades are usually determined by chosen modal verbs, e.g. a wish is implied by verb forms norėti or trokšti, need – reikėti, obligation – verbs denoting necessity. Semantic shades are also evident from the grammatical forms chosen: the imperative mood should first of all be linked to a request, subjunctive mood – indefiniteness of an action. The addressee’s embarrassment (actual or merely apparent) is signalled by the use of verbs with the prefix ne- (nerandu; nėra žodžių).

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