Lexical units with the semantics of spatial extension in the Russian and English linguocultures
A.V. Arzhanovskaya – Yulia N. Kulichenko – Olga Yu. Popova –Yulia I. Linkova – Ekaterina M. Korolevskaya
DOI: 10.18355/XL.2017.10.02.07
Abstract
The article is devoted to the means expressing the concept of space in the Russian and English languages; the concept of space is viewed with concern to its national and cultural peculiarities of perception. The focus of the issue is the semantic structure of the lexical units with the meaning of extension on the horizontal axis in the Russian and English languages (далеко, близко, far, close and others). The semantic structure of the analyzed lexical units is considered in terms of a hierarchy of categorical, integral and differential semes. The categorical seme ‘spatial extension’ is realized through integral semes ‘nature of extension’ and ‘nature of orientation’ which are represented by set of differential semes.
The article analyzes the results of existing researches in this area. The analysis of factual material allows to draw conclusions about analyzed problem and to compare these results with the work of predecessors. The analysis of semantics shows that concept of extension on the horizontal axis has much in common both in the Russian and English languages but for the Russian and English native speakers there is certain ethnic differentiation typical of national linguocultures as far as perception of space is concerned within the aforementioned lexical systems. National peculiarities of space perception make themselves evident in the fact that representatives of the Russian linguoculture have «unrestricted» space perception, but for the British one it is important to provide clear borders and the structure of space.
Key words: comparative linguistics, linguoculture, concept of space, semantic structure, seme, spatial extension