The article explores phraseological units with the somatic component “heart”, which serve to denote emotions, psychological states and feelings in the Ancient Greek language of the classical age. The authors analyze the meaning of the verbs, used in the structure of the somatic phraseological units and compound metaphors with the somatic word “heart”. It is determined that more than hundred somatic phraseological units with the component καρδία / κραδίη / κῆρ “heart” are used in Greek tragedies of Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides and 62 units of them serve to denote emotions, psychological states and feelings. It is revealed that somatic phraseological units with the component “heart”, which denote negative emotions and feelings, are predominant in the language of Greek tragedies. In particular, these emotions and feelings are sadness, sorrow, fear, anger, annoyance, irritation, malice, mental pain, despair and depression. The sphere of positive emotions, such as joy, exaltation, satisfaction, calmness and pacification, represented by the language material show the correlation of 15 % to 85 % with the phraseological units of negative meaning. It is found out that the meaning of verbs, used as a part of the phraseological unit, refer to physical action, which is committed over the heart, particularly harm, violence and abuse, physical pain, fast or slow heart rate, cold or hot feelings. In the phraseological units, which denote depression and despair, verbs indicate causing physical injuries of heart, for example, θλίβω “squeeze”,“compress”, δάκνω “bite”, μαστιγόω “slash”, ἐκτήκω “melt”. The verbs, used in the phraseological units with the meaning of fear, indicate changes of heart’s temperature and its pace, for instance ζωπυρέω “flare up”, ὀρχέομαι “dance”. Mental anxiety is verbalized via the cognitive metaphor “heart – water”, therefore waves arise in an alarmed heart or heart rages from an inevitable cycle. The results of the research confirm the thesis that the ancient Greek culture is a “culture of the heart”.
Somatic Phraseological Units with the Component“Heart” in Ancient Greek Tragedies of the Classical Age
