2019 Issue №2

The article explores the basic properties of language as a person’s achieve­ment. The author proceeds from the interpretation of language pro­posed by L. V. Shcherba and A. A. Zalevskaya, in which language is represent­ed as a so­cio-personal continuum of linguistic phenomena of different ontolo­gy. The pur­pose of the article is to describe the basic properties of human lan­guage as a complex self-organizing system of processes. Active and subjective character of reality and knowledge representation in human mind determines the main pro­perties of language. The author offers a definition of language correspond­ing to this approach and describes the differences between anthro­pocentrism and anthropomorphism in linguistics. The author investigates the role of ‘hu­man factor’ in the analysis of different linguistic phenomena.

The article is a result of the theoretical interpretation of the conceptual component of Will in the semantics of deontic modality expressing the atti­tude to one's own or other people’s actions to achieve a certain state of things. Will determines the potential and voluntary nature of deontics. These seman­tic characteristics are to be taken into account for a systemic description of the concept of Will. Volitional orientation in the semantics of deontic modality creates the basis for its classification either as a volitional or voluntary modal­ity. These approaches demonstrate lack of clarity in the differentiation between communicative, intentional and pragmatic (functional) aspects in the analysis of deontic modality. Voluntary modality is the attitude of the performer to the realization of a certain action; modality of Will is the basic invariant of imper­ative/impulse meaning, which is, in effect, setting a goal. The author considers deontic modality as a means of expressing tmeaning incorporating a volitional component. It is characterized by certain factors and attributes causing the need for a reported action.

In modern science, metaphor is associated with human thinking. It is an important research issue in psycholinguistics and cognitive science. The anal­ysis of the formation of a conceptual metaphor is relevant since it is a phenom­enon associated with cognitive and conceptual processes; it reflects the inter­dependence of the individual's thinking and the peculiarities of the language representation of certain concepts. Understanding the process of information transfer through conceptual metaphors is becoming one of the most important components of communication. The objective of this study is to describe the mental processes of the formation of conceptual metaphors based on a certain algorithm. The author analyses different approaches to the study of conceptual metaphor and offers a description of the role of the language corpus, categori­zation and conceptualization processes in the study of conceptual metaphors. The author employs the following methods and techniques: conceptual model­ing, componential analysis, quantitative analysis, and proposes an algorithm of conceptual metaphors formation based on the identification of metaphors of the Praglejaz Group. The author attempts to describe the formation of the fol­lowing conceptual metaphors: ECONOMY IS A LIVING BEING and ECONOMY IS A MECHANISM. The initial research shows that the pro­posed algorithm needs further improvement since it does not cover all mental operations.

Signs and superstitions currently make a promising object of research in cognitive linguistics. However, they are often confused with constructs of a different nature— usually with folk magic prophecies. The article presents a set of criteria that clearly distinguish between the two. The most important criterion is the focus on action (or rejection thereof) in magical prophecies and the principled external eventfulness in signs. A sharp delineation between the two objects opens up the possibility for their further interdisciplinary re­search.

The authors analyse the process of word formation in Russian media as a reflection of the global trends in modern communication. A structural and semantic analysis of word formation is done to identify the most productive models. The authors employ pragmatic analysis to determine the role of neolo­gisms in media texts. The following phenomena are characteristic of the mod­ern media discourse: the presence of foreign language elements (derivational models and affixoids) as a manifestation of functional dynamism and the asso­ciated stylistic contrast between the stem and the formant. Stylistically heter­ogeneous neologisms with foreign affixoids reflect the tendency of internation­alization of communication. Neologisms built on the basis of precedent phe­nomena and contaminated neologisms of the non-conventional type are a manifestation of the so-called game component of communication. Some neol­ogisms are created as a result of a deviation from the traditional derivational models. There are also polycode neologisms. Generally speaking, neologisms are used as a means of increasing the expressiveness of media texts and a means of expressing assessment.

The linguistic and pragmatic analysis of expressive means in political texts is gaining popularityamong researchers. The study of the role of meta­phor in enhancing the pragmatic effectiveness of political speech is relevant due to the fact that metaphor, being not only a way of expressing thought, but also being a thought itself, creates the necessary conditions for influencing the addressee's perception. This research is aimed at establishing linguistic and pragmatic means of achieving the planned pragmatic effect and exerting emo­tional pressure on the audience. Metaphor is an important tool for determin­ing the role of language means in enhancing the pragmatic potential of a polit­ical text. The main aim of the study is to explore the pragmatic potential of meta­phor by means of a systematic analysis of different types of metaphors typical of political discourse. Metaphors in political discourse are an effective tool of influencing the addressee's intellectual, volitional, and emotional state. Our research has shown that a wide range of metaphors is used for achieving a powerful information and emotional effect of political texts contributing to the pragmatic potential and a strong effect of a political speech.

Using the poem “Dead souls” by N. V. Gogol and its two English trans­lations made by D. J. Hogarth and R. A. Maguire, the author considers lexical units having a cultural component and belonging to the following semantic fields — Clothes, Transport and Food. The lexical units selected are examined from the point of view of their translation into English in the target texts. By means of a comparative analysis of the source and the target texts, the author establishes a set of criteria for the identification of the most adequate and se­mantically motivated English equivalents to the original lexemes.