Functional semantics of the author’s editing of comments in English-language Internet communication

Abstract

The paper focuses on the process of verbalization of human speech and mental activity within the framework of computer-mediated communication using the example of the editing history of comments posted on the Thomson Reuters news agency page on social networks. The aim of the study is to identify the cognitive and pragmatic characteristics of the step-by-step changes that the text of an Internet comment undergoes during the author’s editing. The work is novel in that it is the first to explore the process of verbal thought formulation on the basis of the authors’ editing history of Internet comments. In addition, the paper represents the first attempt to determine the functional and semantic potential of both the cognitive and pragmatic transformations and the corresponding linguistic means. The results showed that the functional and semantic potential of cognitive and pragmatic procedures and the corresponding linguistic means is aimed at verbalizing emotions, expressing attitudes towards new information, clarifying the modality and reference of language units, which indicates the transition of Internet communication from the oral and written register to the mental and written one.