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THE WIND AS A LINGUISTIC AND CULTURAL SYMBOL IN THE RUSSIAN AND ENGLISH WORLDVIEW

Linguistics , UDC: 81’367 DOI: 10.25688/2619-0656.2021.15.13

Authors

  • Karasik Vladimir Doctor of Philology

Annotation

The paper deals with the wind as a symbol in Russian and English cultures. Its conceptualization and evaluative relevance is determined by its objective physical properties — air in motion, intangibility, gradable force, damageability, exploitation of its energy, on the one hand, and its comparison with breath, and hence taking it as embodiment of life, youth and joy, on the other hand. Wind as a linguistic and cultural concept may be analyzed as notion, image and value. Notional features of wind are subdivided into basic and specifying ones, the former include 1) motion of air, 2) physically felt, 3) natural, 4) horizontal, 5) moving in a certain direction, whereas the latter characterize wind from the point of view of 1) its force, 2) temperature, 3) usage, 4) uncontrollability, 5) changing circumstances. Properties of wind as conceptualized in the English worldview are specified concerning navigation. Basic associative features of wind are determined by its essential nature and metaphorically express breathing, and hence they symbolize life in general, movement, and therefore changing, novelty, freshness, and uncontrollability which is expressed as unpredictability and chaos. Ethnic specificity of is symbolization is mostly vivid in proverbs because this genre of speech reflects concrete circumstances of human everyday existence, that’s why in English proverbs and sayings we come across with many examples of sailing as a metaphor of life, whereas Russian allegoric interpretation of the wind is connected with various aspects of living on the firm ground. Proverbs about the wind express various recommendations of taking into account possible damage symbolically illustrated by this phenomenon of atmosphere. Wind is spoken about in proverbs as a dangerous force which however can be made use of. In aphorisms the idea of resistance to adversities comes to the fore, especially, in English aphorisms. Poetic texts emphasize the feeling of admiration people have when they think about the wind as a symbol of heavenly presence in our life, freedom and unpredictability. It should be mentioned that in poetry we come across not the ethnic specificity of the symbol in question but mostly its individual perception by an author

Tags:
concept , image , notion , symbol , value , wind

How to link insert

Karasik, V. . (2021). THE WIND AS A LINGUISTIC AND CULTURAL SYMBOL IN THE RUSSIAN AND ENGLISH WORLDVIEW Bulletin of the Moscow City Pedagogical University. Series "Pedagogy and Psychology", № 15. 2021, 219-235. https://doi.org/10.25688/2619-0656.2021.15.13
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