E-sports discursive space: theoretical aspects of analysis

Abstract

The article is devoted to the notion of discourse and discursive space and revealing the specifics of e-sports discursive space. The article touches upon some problems of research of the discourse and discursive space in Anglo-American, French, German and Russian linguistic conceptions. The notion of e-sports discursive space is introduced for the first time in the linguistic analysis and is characterized as a hybrid dimension incorporating interplay e-sport discourse, mass media discourse, sport medical discourse and internet-discourse. E-sports discursive space may be exposed as a field structure the kernel link of which appears e-sports interplay discourse, uniting game patches and some commands and orders uttered by the cyber-sportsman in the process of the game. It is compressed, well-packed by terminological nominations and directive speech acts, comprising instructions and recommendations on using the avatars. It nominates the user name as an avatar, its game characteristics (forces, power, dexterity etc) and innovations in the system of a game. The other mentioned types of discourses lay on a periphery of the discursive field. Mass-media discourse advances the e-sports discursive space in the field of media translation giving it liveliness, fancy, imagination, expressiveness and evaluative characteristics opposite to some dryness and laconism of interplay e-sports discourse. Sport-medical discourse concerns and discusses physical, psychological and emotional states of e-sportsmen. Internet discourse is realized in the form of chats, blogs an vlogs of e-sportsmen arguing about qualities of sportsmen, advantages and disadvantages of avatars ans strategies of the game. The uniting link of all the discourses included into the single whole e-sports discursive space proves to be the criterion of integrity that is expressed through the unity of the topic, semantics, structure, time and space and event and situation continuum. A special place and significance in the e-sports discursive space is taken by a discursive personality. E-sports discursive personality is realized in e-sports discursive space heterogeneously: on the first level - as a text personality of the avatar and on the second level - as a language personality of the real e-sportsman avatar carrier. The values underlying the e-sports discursive space correspond to sport discourse values getting a victory and with personal discourse orientation getting maximum success in self-development in the field of physical and mental health, psychological robustness, reaction speed, logical strategies etc. E-sport discursive space may be represented as also a cognitive one where an important place is taken by e-sport terminology.