Ðóñ Eng Cn Translate this page:
Please select your language to translate the article


You can just close the window to don't translate
Library
Your profile

Back to contents

Philology: scientific researches
Reference:

Inventing Anna: phraseology in the headlines of the English-language press

Belozerova Ekaterina Yur'evna

PhD in Philology

Senior Lecturer, Department of Foreign Languages and Intercultural Communication, Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation

125993, Russia, g. Moscow, ul. Leningradskii Prosp., 49, kab. 319

ebelozerova@hotmail.com
Other publications by this author
 

 

DOI:

10.7256/2454-0749.2022.6.38204

Received:

30-05-2022


Published:

06-06-2022


Abstract: The article examines a number of modern phraseological units (phraseological units, derivatives of phraseological units and author's formations) on the example of the headlines of the English-language press. All the presented empirical material is analyzed according to the context of the publications, as well as the time frame (January 2022 – May 2022). The relevance of the research is due to the emergence of secondary nominative means of modern English as a communicative necessity. The object of research in the article is phraseological units of the language used in the headings of articles devoted to the study of the phenomenon by Anna Sorokin. The subject of the study is the communicative and pragmatic functions of phraseological units in the media used to describe and characterize the main character and her act. The purpose of the work is to study and analyze the received phraseological units for the possible identification of a new phraseological unit describing the distinctive features of both Anna Sorokin and her history. The scientific novelty of the research lies in the quality of the material (modern English-language press), as well as attempts to establish a phraseological unit directly pointing to Anna Sorokin and her fraudulent actions. The main method of research is an inductive approach to the analysis of empirical material, in which conclusions are based on the study of specific phraseological units. To identify derivational transformations in the structural and semantic organization of phraseological units, the work uses structural and semantic analysis. The result of the analysis reveals the constant use of one proper name and two author formations, which can later be attributed to the phraseological fund of the English language. This research contributes to the development of principles and approaches to the study of phraseology of the English language, its enrichment, as well as the understanding of phraseology in a broad way.


Keywords:

phraseology, pragmatic function, the communicative task, modern phraseological units, derivation, authorial formations, Anna Sorokin, Anna Delvey, Inventing Anna, idiomatic

This article is automatically translated. You can find original text of the article here.

Introduction

According to the teachings of A.V. Kunin, phraseological units are understood as "highly informative units of language" [1, p. 7], the main features of which are: semantic complexity, separateness and reproducibility. In this study, phraseology is considered in a wide range, which is why not only phraseological units, but also their derivatives and author formations are subject to analysis. The author's formations are understood as linguistic units that have the main features of phraseological units (according to the teachings of A.V. Kunin), but have not received fixation in the dictionary.

 

The material for the study was authentic publications of leading English-language gossip magazines (HarpersBazaar, Vogue, Elle, Cosmopolitan, GQ, Esquire, VanityFair, Girl's life magazine, New Beauty), as well as the world-famous streaming service Netflix. The total amount of the reviewed material is 50 articles, 50 titles for the period: January 2022 – May 2022.

 

The analyzed phraseological units are used by journalists (authors of articles) not only to express emotions and personal attitude to Anna Sorokin and her offense, but also to form the public's attitude to what happened.

 

"The thing is, I’m not sorry. I’d be lying to you and to everyone else and to myself if I said I was sorry for anything. I regret the way I went about certain things"[2].

 

Phraseologismfeel sorry for has the meaning to regret, to sympathize with what has been done(to empathize with or feel compassion for another person and their 

sorrows, problems, or plight) [3]. In his interview with Cosmopolitan Anna Sorokin says that she has no regrets about what she did or, more precisely, what she is accused of: I went about certain things. A.V. Kunin's phraseological dictionary includes the phraseology go about one's business in the meaning to do your own thing, not to interfere in other people's affairs [4]. In an interview with the BBC Anna will give a more detailed explanation of her life position:

 

“[Others] portrayed me as someone very manipulative, which I don’t think I am. I was never too nice of a person. I was never trying to talk my way into anything. I just told people what I wanted and they [either] gave it to me, or I would move on” [5].

 

I was never too nice of a person ? No less a person than [4] none other than. Let's look at some expressions that journalists used to describe and characterize Anna:

 

A fake German heiress – a fake German heiress / impostor from Germany; a Russian immigrant – a Russian immigrant; a fashion student – a student of the fashion industry; a New York socialite – a socialite from New York; an arts and culture entrepreneur - an entrepreneur in the field of culture and art; a Rikers Island inmate – a prison inmate Rikers; a well-heeled, celebrity defender – a wealthy and famous defendant; a convicted felon – a convicted criminal; the inspiration behind Netflix juggernaut – a source of inspiration for Netflix; a deportee in waiting – deported in waiting, etc.

It should be noted that none of the above phrases fully defines either Anna Sorokin herself or her story, does not distinguish her from other scammers of her time. However, given the number of publications devoted to Anna and her history, it is possible that later Anna Sorokin will gain a foothold in a phraseological unit that will define, characterize and distinguish her from other modern scammers who have gained worldwide fame.

 

"I did what I did. And I was, I don't know, 23, 24, 25. I'm just trying to fix things and move on” [6]. The phraseology fix something (- Sl. to pay money in secret to have something turn out the way you want) [7] tells the reader that Anna is currently paying back debts and making plans for the future. The phraseology move on (- to stop focusing on someone or something in order to progress with other tasks or one's life) [3] occurs repeatedly in Anna's speech, which indicates her optimistic mood.

 

The story of Anna Sorokin is the subject of many publications in the media

The story of Anna Sorokin is actively covered in various TV shows and in articles published in English-speaking countries in the period 2017-2022 inclusive. The name Anna Delvey gets worldwide fame after the release of the mini-series "Inventing Anna" (Inventing Anna) on the streaming service Netflix. Journalists continue to pay attention to Anna Sorokin, her person and life, thereby fueling the interest of their readers in the events related to Anna.

 

The story of Anna Sorokin, known to everyone under the pseudonym Anna Delvi, began in 2017 and her popularity is only gaining momentum. The result of the query in the Google search engine shows the growing interest among readers in the heroine and her story.

 

Year

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

2022

The number of queries in the search engine

980 000

1 810 000

2 710 000

2 550 000

2 820 000

6 640 000

 

Journalists in their publications about Anna often retell basic information, rewrite well-known facts from each other, and sometimes add something new. The authors of the articles act as an intermediary or conductor between the event and the consumers of information. However, the broadcast image of the main character depends entirely on the form of coverage of her story, starting with the headlines of articles. The title of the article plays an important role in attracting the readership. In addition, headings are a set of keywords and expressions that determine the importance or uniqueness of the event being covered. The present study is aimed at analyzing phraseological units in headings in order to identify author formations as possible phraseological units defining Anna Sorokin.

 

Phraseological units in the headings of articles

Consider a few headlines of articles (February-March) according to their publication dates: February 02, 2022: Erasing Anna: From ICE detention, Anna Delvey talks about her new Netflix show and life behind bars Anna Sorokin — aka Anna Delvey — was convicted in 2019 for a scam in which she pretended to be an heiress with a $60 million fortune. Her story is the subject of the Shonda Rhimes-produced Netflix limited series "Inventing Anna." [6]. This title gives accurate information about what is contained in the article. The title includes the name of the heroine (Anna Sorokin), a pseudonym (Anna Delvey), the name of the world-famous streaming service (Netflix), an additional description (an heiress with a $60 million fortune), the title of the film (Inventing Anna), the name of the famous American producer (Shonda Rhimes), the phraseology behind bars (-i n jail or prison) [3], reporting on Anna's imprisonment. 07 February 2022: Anna Delvey Is So Much More than a "Fake German Heiress" Here's what you need to know about the subject of Netflix's Inventing Anna [8]. In the title: pseudonym (Anna Delvey), additional description (a "Fake German Heiress"), a well-known multimedia service of films and TV series (Netflix), the name of the film (Inventing Anna), there are no phraseological units.

08 February 2022: Maybe She Had So Much Money She Just Lost Track of It Someone had to foot the bill for Anna Delvey's fabulous new life. Thecitywasfullofmarks[9]. This title is interesting because in addition to the pseudonym (Anna Delvey), two phraseological units are used in it:

Phraseology lose track of (- to lose visibility of, forget about, misplace, or neglect to pay close attention to

something) [3] - to lose track of money; phraseology foot the bill (- to pay for something) [3] – to pay bills. The title consists of two sentences that tell the reader: about the luxurious life that Anna had; about her huge expenses; that she posed as a person who was not.

February 10, 2022:The Scammer-Chic Costumes in Inventing Anna Tell Their Own Story [10]. The title contains the title of the film (Inventing Anna), the phraseology tell its down tale/story (- explain or show something) [3], the author's education (Scammer-Chic Costumes) emphasizes the fictitious image of Anna Sorokin, her origin and position in society.

February 15, 2022: Inventing Anna Is a “Dangerous” Distortion, Says Rachel Williams. The former V.F. staffer, who was conned out of $62,000 by Anna Sorokin, questions Netflix’s decision to pay the proven criminal more than $300,000 for her life rights [11]. The title contains the following information: the title of the film (Inventing Anna), the name of the heroine (Anna Sorokin), the name of one of the victims (Rachel Williams), the name of the streaming service (Netflix), the name of the magazine (Vanity Fair), the phraseology con (someone) out of (something) (- to get something from someone through deception) [3] to express the main thing - the size of fraud, an additional description (the proven criminal), the phraseology pay for (something) (- to suffer as a punishment or atonement for some ill deed or wrongdoing) [3] to denote punishment, a derivative of the phraseology right to life (-holding such beliefs) [3] to convey the philosophy of self-determination of the personality of Anna Sorokin.

February 16, 2022: Why ‘Inventing Anna’ Has a ‘Seductive’ All-Red Newsroom

Production designer Henry Dunn and his team wanted to “sell the sexy side of chasing a story.” [12]. In the title: the title of the film (Inventing Anna), the phraseology a/one side of the story (- a single perspective or point of view about a given situation, incident, or account) [3] to indicate the lopsided coverage of events, the phrase All-Red Newsroom conveys the importance of news, literally "hot news", the name of the famous director of photography Henry Dunn (Henry Dunn) gives the status of the covered event. Each word and phrase, being a component of the title of the article, plays a key role in attracting readers' interest. The attention of the public is heated not only by the constant mention of famous names in the headlines, but also by the frequency of publications on a given topic.

02 March 2022:Fact vs fiction: Five things that Inventing Anna got wrong Tatler weighs up the truth against the embellishments [13]. In the title: the title of the film (Inventing Anna), the name of the British magazine about fashion and social life (Tatler), the phraseology weigh against (someone or something) (- to compare the benefits and disadvantages of two things or options against one another in order to choose the best one) [3] compares real and fictional facts that are mentioned in the film "Inventing Anna".

March 15, 2022: Where is Anna Delvey, the millionaire scammer that Netflix's 'Inventing Anna' is based on, now? The scammer (real name Anna Sorokin) wasn't out of jail for long [14]. The title of the article provides the following information: the pseudonym of the heroine (A nna Delvey), her real name (Anna Sorokin), her definition (the millionaire scammer is a fraudster of millionaires), the title of the film (Inventing Anna), her pre–history (jail - the fact of being in prison) and the present situation (wasn't out ofjail - arrested again). The length of Anna's stay at liberty emphasizes the phraseology for long (- for a long time) [3]. Thus, the reader is broadcast the following: the fraudster has served her sentence in prison and has again committed a crime = the leopard can't change its spots (- the grave of the hunchback will fix it) [15]. The article reveals the reason for Anna's re-arrest, as well as the circumstances surrounding the impossibility of extending a visa to stay in the country. However, the title of the article does not speak about the reason for the detention and, thereby, projects a negative image of Anna in the eyes of readers before reading the article itself. The phraseology (not) for long (- not long) [4] is a key component of the title, as it emphasizes the short duration of Anna's law-abiding.

 

March 16, 2022: Anna Delvey Has Lived Many Lives. After Inventing Anna, This Is Where She Is Now. The fake German heiress was deported, but never boarded her flight to Frankfurt [16]. This title includes a pseudonym (Anna Delvey), the title of the film (Inventing Anna), an additional description (the fake German heiress). The title attracts the reader's attention, creating intrigue: what happened, why Anna was deported, but never boarded a plane to Frankfurt. The derivative of the phraseology live a life (- to lead a life typified by some quality, condition, or style) [3] informs the reader that Anna lived someone else's life, posing as a person she was not. The title is intriguing and appealing to readers.

March 17, 2022:What Happened To Anna Delvey, The Subject Of Netflix's Inventing Anna?Everything you need to know about the fate of the fake heiress after her con fell apart [17]. In the title: a pseudonym (Anna Delvey), an additional description of the main character (the subject of Netflix, the fake heiress), the title of the film (Inventing Anna), an intriguing phrase (everything you need to know about the fate of – everything you need to know about fate). The phraseology fall apart (- to break into pieces) [3] tells about the complete exposure of Anna. The article talks about the problems with visa extension, which can lead to deportation. The title of the article does not reflect the essence of the article, serves as a bait for the reader.

Conclusion

Based on the above examples of article headings and their analysis, three constantly used linguistic units are distinguished: a proper name (Anna Sorokin), a pseudonym (Anna Delvi) and the title of a film based on real events (Inventing Anna). The pseudonym and the title of the film can be attributed to the author's formations that have the main features of phraseological units: semantic complication, separateness and reproducibility.

The proper name and the analyzed author's formations serve as the fundamental and key components of all the headings of the articles under consideration for the time period January-May 2022. The frequency of publications using the name of Anna Sorokin and author's formations (her pseudonym and the title of the film), phraseological units, derivatives of phraseological units and additionally characterizing linguistic units – all this contributes to the formation and consolidation in the minds of readers of the following: fraud on a large scale, fraud, pretense, a false heiress of millions. Which of the above three linguistic units will enter the phraseological composition of the language (like phraseological units - proper names Do a Lord Lucan - disappear without a trace; Walter Mitty - hovering in the clouds; according to Cocker – quite correctly) time and further research will show.

 

References
1. Kunin, A.V. Kurs frazeologii sovremennogo anglijskogo yazyka. Ucheb. dlya in-tov i fak. inostr. yaz.-2-e izd., pererab. / A.V. Kunin.-M.: Vyssh. shk., Dubna: Izd. centr "Feniks", 2005. – 381 s.
2. Savvin, J. Where is Anna Delvey, the millionaire scammer that Netflix's 'Inventing Anna' is based on, now? [Elektronnyi resurs]. – Rezhim dostupa: https://www.cosmopolitan.com/uk/reports/a38895802/anna-delvey-now/
3. FDI – Farlex Dictionary of idioms, Farlex Inc., 2017. – 472p.
4. ARFS – Anglo-russkij frazeologicheskij slovar', Kunin A.V., Russkij yazyk, 1984. – 944 c.
5. Baker V. Fake heiress Anna Sorokin: “Crime pays, in any way” [Elektronnyi resurs]. – Rezhim dostupa: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-56339463
6. Sorokin A. Anna Delvey writes about Inventing Anna and life in jail [Elektronnyi resurs]. – Rezhim dostupa: https://www.insider.com/anna-delvey-writes-about-inventing-anna-and-life-in-jail-2022-2
7. MGHD-McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.-McGraw-Hill Education, 2002.-1104 p.
8. Mackelden A. Anna Delvey Is So Much More than a "Fake German Heiress" [Elektronnyi resurs]. – Rezhim dostupa: https://www.harpersbazaar.com/culture/film-tv/a38994142/who-is-anna-delvey-sorokin-fake-german-heiress
9. Pressler J. Maybe she had so much money she just lost track of it [Elektronnyi resurs]. – Rezhim dostupa: https://www.thecut.com/article/how-anna-delvey-tricked-new-york.html#_ga=2.92750877.126468588.1648195358-1683711306.1648195355
10. Allaire Chr. The Scammer-Chic Costumes in Inventing Anna Tell Their Own Story [Elektronnyi resurs]. – Rezhim dostupa: https://www.vogue.com/article/inventing-anna-costume-designers-interview
11. Miller J. Inventing Anna Is a “Dangerous” Distortion, Says Rachel Williams [Elektronnyi resurs]. – Rezhim dostupa: https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2022/02/inventing-anna-delvey-netflix-real-rachel-williams
12. Roffman M. Why ‘Inventing Anna’ Has a ‘Seductive’ All-Red Newsroom Production designer Henry Dunn and his team wanted to “sell the sexy side of chasing a story.” [Elektronnyi resurs]. – Rezhim dostupa: https://www.netflix.com/tudum/articles/new-york-magazine-anna-delvey-inventing-anna-newsroom
13. Davies-Evitt D. Fact vs fiction: Five things that Inventing Anna got wrong Tatler weighs up the truth against the embellishments [Elektronnyi resurs]. – Rezhim dostupa: https://www.tatler.com/article/fact-vs-fiction-five-things-that-inventing-anna-got-wrong
14. Savvin J. Where is Anna Delvey, the millionaire scammer that Netflix's 'Inventing Anna' is based on, now? [Elektronnyi resurs]. – Rezhim dostupa: https://www.cosmopolitan.com/uk/reports/a38895802/anna-delvey-now/
15. CALD-Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus, Cambridge University Press, 2013. – 1884 c.
16. Covington A. Anna Delvey Has Lived Many Lives. After Inventing Anna, This Is Where She Is Now [Elektronnyi resurs]. – Rezhim dostupa: https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/tv/a39033776/anna-delvey-where-is-she-now/
17. Dibdin E. What Happened To Anna Delvey, The Subject Of Netflix's Inventing Anna?Everything you need to know about the fate of the fake heiress after her con fell apart [Elektronnyi resurs]. – Rezhim dostupa: https://www.elle.com/culture/movies-tv/a39015250/where-is-anna-delvey-now/

Peer Review

Peer reviewers' evaluations remain confidential and are not disclosed to the public. Only external reviews, authorized for publication by the article's author(s), are made public. Typically, these final reviews are conducted after the manuscript's revision. Adhering to our double-blind review policy, the reviewer's identity is kept confidential.
The list of publisher reviewers can be found here.

The article "Inventing Anna: phraseology in the headlines of the English-language press" submitted for publication in the journal "Philology: Scientific Research" is undoubtedly relevant. The author refers to the story of Anna Sorokin, who was actively covered in various TV shows and in articles in print publications of English-speaking countries in the period 2017-2022 inclusive. The name Anna Delvey is gaining worldwide fame after the release of the mini-series Inventing Anna on the Netflix streaming service. Journalists continue to pay attention to Anna Sorokin, her person and life, thereby fueling the interest of their readers in the events related to Anna. It should be noted that in the study the author considers both the theoretical basis of the problem field concerned and the practical problems. The research was carried out in line with modern scientific approaches, the work consists of an introduction containing the formulation of the problem, the main part, traditionally starting with a review of theoretical sources and scientific directions, a research and a final one, which presents the conclusions obtained by the author. Structurally, the article consists of several semantic parts, namely: introduction, literature review, methodology, research progress, conclusions. The article presents a research methodology, the choice of which is quite adequate to the goals and objectives of the work. The author turns, among other things, to various methods to confirm the hypothesis put forward. This work was done professionally, in compliance with the basic canons of scientific research. We note the scrupulous work of the author on the selection of material and its analysis. The material for the study was authentic publications of leading English-language gossip magazines (Harper's Bazaar , Vogue, Elle, Cosmopolitan, GQ, Esquire, VanityFair, Girl's life magazine, New Beauty), as well as the world-famous streaming service Netflix. The total amount of the reviewed material is 50 articles, 50 headlines for the period: January 2022 – May 2022. The bibliography of the article contains 17 sources, among which both foreign and domestic works are presented. However, like any major work, this article is not without drawbacks. First, let's pay attention to the quality of the bibliographic list. Thus, the article does not contain references to fundamental works such as monographs, PhD and doctoral dissertations. A greater number of references to authoritative works, such as monographs, doctoral and/or PhD dissertations on related topics, which could strengthen the theoretical component of the work in line with the national scientific school. Secondly, it is unclear why the author neglects the generally accepted arrangement of the bibliographic list in alphabetical order. However, these remarks are not essential and do not relate to the scientific content of the reviewed work. In general, it should be noted that the article was written in a simple, understandable language for the reader, typos, spelling and syntactic errors, inaccuracies in the text of the work were not found. The work is practice-oriented, representing the author's vision of solving the issue under consideration. The article will undoubtedly be useful to a wide range of people, philologists, undergraduates and graduate students of specialized universities. The article "Inventing Anna: phraseology in the headlines of the English-language press" is recommended for publication in the journal from the list of the Higher Attestation Commission.