Mythological Subtext as a Specificity of the Writer’s Idiostyle (Based on the Example of Yuri Polyakov’s Novel “The Mushroom Tsar”)

The best works of modern literature often have mythological overtones that allow us to raise the deep layers of human experience. Mythologism of the XX - XXI centuries is a wide, complex and contradictory phenomenon, requiring also serious penetration into the linguistics of the text of the studied work. The analysis of the literary process, from the 19th century to the 21st century, clearly shows that it is traditional to have vocabulary referring the reader to various cultural subtexts, which we call mythopoetic paradigms that have an associative connection with mythological images and are a means of creating mythological subtext, as well as a means of enriching a literary text with additional meanings. Mythopoetic paradigms help in creating the subtext of a work by their ability to evoke certain models, images, whole cultural traditions in the reader’s mind. A.A. Potebnya believes that the doctrine of ‘mythological devices’ of thought should be given a place in the history of literature: if the previous content of our thought is not a subjective means of cognition, but its source, and the image (being recognized as ‘objective’) is completely transferred into meaning, then in this the case the researcher comes across myth-making. Many myths are generated by the external and especially the internal form of the word. The research of Yu. M. Polyakov’s texts convincingly shows a mythopoetic type of thinking of this writer, since mythopoetic paradigms are cross-cutting and cover almost all of the author’s texts. In this regard a novel “The Mushroom Tsar” by Yu. M. Polyakov is especially specific. Yu. M. Polyakov’s works are rich in mythologemes of various types that allows us to talk about his texts within the framework of the neo-mythological tradition, which provides a deep understanding of the writer’s texts and the system of his idiostyle as a whole.

COLORONYMS AND LUXONYMS AS A MEANS OF CREATING ARTISTIC IMAGE IN HISTORICAL PROSE BY V. IPATOVA AND V. KARATKEVICH

The article examines the color and light vocabulary, with the help of which the authors create a figurative system of artistic text. It is a universal tool for creating a figurative and expressive characteristics of a real, ethnocultural space. The use of coloronyms and luxonyms in the historical prose of the authors, their linguistic interpretation indicates the determination of the individual author’s specificity of the perception of color by the writer and the adequate associative connection of color combinations arising from the reader. Creating a masterfully figurative picture or model of a certain ethnic group in the context of a work of art is an important task of every writer who conveys his vision of the world through different semantic groups of words as elements of artistic imagery. This also applies to the corresponding group of vocabulary denoting color and light. The semantic group of words denoting color is used in any work of art: in one the frequency of use of color designations is greater, in the second - less. Selected literary works on historical themes by V. Ipatova and V. Korotkevich are widely saturated with color vocabulary, which deserves a multifaceted analysis. The perception of the artistic word is an individualized phenomenon and is unique in the history of national literature and culture in general. The writers virtually penetrated into ancient events, rites and customs, skillfully described their heroes, national color, ethnic culture, social and spiritual life not only of Belarusians but also of other nations. The authors have made extensive use of the color palette, which involuntarily attracts the attention of readers and affects their figurative imagination. The peculiar style of writing of each author, the lexical and systemic organization of their texts, which organically include coloronyms, give the opportunity to vividly imagine the verbal picture of the world created by the writer. It should be noted that when describing a broad historical panorama, the authors often use color in the lexical microsystem as a means of creating a highly artistic text. Language in works of art of the historical genre acts not only as a means of communication, but also as a carrier of artistic imagery.

Uves Telkampa romāns „Tornis” – stāsts par kādu nogrimušu valsti

Uwe Tellkamp’s novel is “a tale from a lost country” (Tellkamp), which depicts a myriad of problems in different strata of the society (intellectuals, army, artists, teachers, and scientists) in Germany a short while before and after the fall of the Berlin Wall. Applying the terms introduced by Mikhail Bakhtin, “chronotope” and “micro-chronotope”, the author has tried to describe the complex time-space of Tellkamp’s novel “The Tower”, which reveals some of the last years before the total collapse of the German Democratic Republic. The novel presents a broad gallery of characters – there are more than a hundred characters who help to mirror different layers of the society, the feelings in them, the relations among people, and “the survival strategies”. Tellkamp’s novel allows apprehending diverse associative connection with the German literature of different time periods. The novel is a multi-layered, intertextual, and instigating literary work that abounds in many associations, allusions, and symbols; a part of them is examined in this article.

PSYCHOSEMANTIC INVESTIGATION OF VISUAL PERCEPTION OF ENGLISH ICONIC WORDS DEPENDING ON DE-ICONIZATION STAGE

Рассматривается вопрос визуального опознания звукоизобразительных слов английского языка на различных стадиях их деиконизации русскоязычными испытуемыми (N = 106) с подтвержденным уровнем владения этим языком (В2-С1). Психосемантическое исследование проведено методом «Лексическое решение». Дана характеристика стимулов, включающих три типа слов: 32 ЗИ – слова, распределенные на четыре группы по критерию утраты иконичности (по восемь слов в каждой группе), 32 нейтральных слова и 64 не-слова. Стимулы предъявлялись визуально на экране компьютера в случайном порядке в условиях дефицита времени. Описаны полученные результаты – слова с наивысшей степенью звукоизобразительности опознаются медленнее и с большим количеством ошибок, что свидетельствует о когнитивной задержке в опознании этих слов. Проблема опознания также может быть связана с интерференцией параметра экспрессивности и процесса декодирования семантики слова. Результаты исследования приближают нас к пониманию когнитивных механизмов восприятия ЗИ. The present psychosemantic study investigates visual perception of English iconic (imitative) words by Russian L2 learners. The Lexical decision task was conducted to collect the data. The participants (N = 106) were visually presented with three type of experimental stimuli: 32 iconic words divided into four groups according to their de-iconization stage (8 words per group), 32 non-iconic words and 32 non-words constructed according to English phonotactic rules. The pre-selection of iconic vocabulary into four groups was performed by the method of diachronic evaluation of the imitative lexicon. The linguistic status of iconic words was controlled for in the Oxford English Dictionary (OED), the 3d edition (section “Etimology”). The stimuli were presented visually in random order under a strict time limit. The parameter under investigation – the stage of de-iconization of an iconic word – refers to the degree of preservation of original iconic (according to Pierce) associative connection between form and meaning. De-iconization takes place under the influence of two system factors: regular phonetic changes (“distortion” of a word form) and semantic shifts (“expansion”, broadening of a word’s meaning). The findings of the study revealed that the participants need a different amount of time to recognize 1) iconic and non-iconic words, 2) iconic words at different stages of de-iconization. The least de-iconized words are characterized by slower recognition time and higher error rates than non-iconic words and highly de-iconized words, which makes them similar to non-words. It signifies a delay in cognitive recognition of these most “vivid” iconic words. Word recognition impairment may also be accounted for by the interference of the expressiveness parameter and by the semantic processing. It is assumed that the use of iconic words in language teaching contributes to vocabulary learning. This assumption is not fully supported by the empirical data of our study since deiconization is an important variable in psycholinguistic studies of this kind. The results of our research enable us to gain a better understanding of cognitive mechanisms of the perception of iconicity.

ONLY STAYING THE COURSE REALLY MATTERS

This article addresses the peculiarities of genre, style and personages of V. Sorokin’s new novel «Doctor Garin» (2021) with the reference to the latest critical reviews. It is stressed that «Doctor Garin» is the first writer’s experience in the adventure fiction and that because of this fact his novel for the first time has both the happy ending and a protagonist with positive character traits. Also the genres of romance, fairy tale, menippea and even stealth are mentioned as having some features in common with Sorokin’s novel. A special attention is paid to the associative connection with Russian literature.

ASSOCIATIVITY AS A FORMATION SOURCE OF A MUSICAL COMPOSITION EDITING FORM OF THE SECOND HALF OF THE 20TH CENTURY

The object of the research in this article is associativity as a characteristic feature of 20th century art. The nature, the role of the association in the work of artistic thinking, the principles of its functioning are considered. The subject of the research is the editing form of a musical work of the second half of the 20th century. Particular attention in the article is paid to the consideration of such an important factor influencing the formation of a stable associative connection as repetition. At the same time, it is specified that repetition is caused by a specific life situation. This repetition forms a chain of associations that create an integral content space of a musical work. The work uses general scientific research methods in the framework of comparative and logical analysis, including generalizations and comparisons. The work is based on the analytical method and has a systemic interdisciplinary nature as well. In revealing the specifics of the installation form, the author of the article turns to the theory of compositional ellipsis V. Bobrovsky. The main conclusion of the study is that the importance of associativity in the work of Russian composers in the second half of the 20th century is increasing, reaching the status of a characteristic feature of artistic thinking. The process of expanding associativity manifested itself, in particular, in the emergence in musical creativity of a new type of form creation - editing. The analysis revealed the features inherent in the montage type of construction of a work of art. This is the dismemberment of thematic material, the syntactic isolation of thematic structures, the organization of the form «from the end», the internal unity of the mosaic structure, and others. The novelty of this research lies in the fact that for the first time associativity is considered as a source of montage shaping, in the choice of research methodology, as well as in the identification of special features of the composition, manifested in the conditions of montage drama.

Transonymization of toponym Chernobyl in the Ukrainian poetic discourse

The article analyzes the phenomenon of transonymization of the toponym Chernobyl in the Ukrainian use and poetic discourse. It is proved that according to the traditional metonymic model ‘place [city] of event → event’ a homonymous chrononym is formed, in particular such its variety as catastrophony or excithonym (name of world catastrophe) as a more narrow variant. It is emphasized that researchers of semantic-associative development of the onym Chernobyl did not discover the phenomenon of transonymization. It is stated that both the toponym Chernobyl and the chrononym, which is formed as a result of transonymy, exist in the Ukrainian poetic discourse. The peculiarities of their paradigmatics are revealed. In particular, the use of the oikonym Chernobyl is accompanied by the following semantic increments ‘a place of accident, danger’, ‘an uninhabited / abandoned city’, ‘an exclusion / disaster zone’, ‘radiation’, ‘life’, ‘death’. In literary texts, the catastrophony Chernobyl clearly reveals temporal semantics with the help of temporal prepositions or comparison with the temporal lexeme. This onym shows a strong associative connection with death, sometimes actualizing the semes, which testify to the closeness of its referent with the corresponding natural elements ‘fire’, ‘wind’. The chrononym Chernobyl also reveals the meaning of a large-scale all-Ukrainian or global disaster, often used with other excitonyms, combined with the meaning of ‘nuclear explosion’. In the poetic discourse, the case of further transonymization of the catastrophony Chornobyl, from which the corresponding zoonym is formed, is revealed, as well as the noticeable movement of this chrononym in the direction of pragmatonymy. The writers use a step-by-step individual-authorial unfolding of the semantics of the onym Chornobyl, accompanied by the obligatory sacralization or, conversely, demonization of its referent. On the example of the onym Chernobyl we can observe the connection of poetic discourse with the usual tendencies of transonymization, which gives grounds to reveal the specifics of the individual-author approach to the creation of new proper names in this way.

Associative connection “war – victory” in the Russian language consciousness of students and military cadets (psycholinguistic aspect)

The paper focuses on studying the associative connection “war – victory,” as represented in various Russian associative databases. The databases under examination include two all-Russian associative dictionaries of the end of the last century, two modern Russian regional associative bases combining verbal reactions of students who live in the European part of Russia and Siberia, respectively, and the sub-corpus of associations obtained in the psycho-linguistic experiment with the military cadets of one of the Russian military academies. The study shows that the associative connection “war – victory” has a low degree of relevance in the ordinary linguistic consciousness. This phenomenon, also found in American, British, French, and Spanish associative databases, turns out to be universal and does not depend on geographical area, generation, or nationality. The most frequent reactions to stimulus “war” obtained from Russian civilian students in different years and different geographical regions may be grouped into approximately four semantic zones: the war as the opposite of peace, Lev Tolstoy’s novel “War and Peace,” death, the Great Patriotic war (1941–1945). The rele-vance of the associative connection “war – victory” is stronger in the linguistic consciousness of the military servicemen. The reactions to stimulus “war” in the military cadets’ associative base show that the cadets refer the word war not to a historical event but a professional activi-ty, with victory being its product and desirable result. Thus, the professional identification of experiment subjects is found to affect the semantic and statistical characteristics of the associates.

THE SEMIОTIC NATURE OF THE SPATIAL STRUCTURE OF MODERN PROPERTY

The article determines the semiotic nature of the spatial structure of the modern city, clarifies the reasons and conditions of its transformation under the influence of intangible factors. The city is determined by the main expression of the spatial structure, oriented to the person. Despite the unity and integrity of the city, its internal organization indicates the presence of a sufficient number of relatively autonomous elements and a variety of communication links that carry a semantic and value load. Based on the fact that the city and its space have always been a synthesis of various functional processes, united by one or another system of communications, the relationship between them was influenced by tangible and intangible factors. At the same time, the intangible is what unites the city at the existing semantic level. Historically, it was the presence of a spiritual or cultural center in the settlement that gave it urban status. Functional indicators of the intangible are defined as a person's desire to remain part of this space, to form its structure. It is established that if the material component of the city is formed in the process of interconnection of existing stationary processes and communication links, the intangible - gives the existing processes a value aspect, and at the same time acts as one of the elements of communication. If in the material sense communications are roads, means of communication, engineering and technological networks, etc., then intangible communications are faith, and also associative connection of each inhabitant of the city, with this city, its space, understanding of needs of development of city territory. Intangible communication forms a set of symbols, which ultimately make it possible to develop a "brand" of the city as an ideal space. The formed intangible semiotic signs of the city encode the perception and understanding of the human environment. Thanks to the signs, a person gives the surrounding space certain meanings, there is a distinction of own (personal, individual) space and its relationship with the space of another person, with the space of all city dwellers, as well as with the spatial structure of the city or urban system. It is established that the city as a living space has undergone a long evolution and transformation of all structures, the end result of which was the formation of a separate urban space as a self-sufficient clearly separated area, where the functional level of human life.

Metaphor in M. Proust’s Artistic World: From the Being of Art to the Art of Being

The article deals with the functions of metaphor in the artistic world of M. Proust. In the context of the novel sequence In Search of Lost Time, metaphor becomes a mechanism to implement involuntary memory, which allows to combine the present (impressions) and the past (memories). Metaphor, given by the associative connection between impressions and memories, becomes the main constructive law of the artistic model of reality created by the French writer. The multifunctionality of metaphor correlates with the three forms of the subject of consciousness that appears in the context of the artistic whole of the novel sequence as an author, a narrator and a character. The author organizes the work of involuntary memory, based on the metaphor; the narrator balances what has been fished out of the past against the present with the help of experience associations; the character experiences the impressions by going through discoveries and disappointments. Proust’s lyrical epos gives the subject the ability to move beyond the hellish circle of the present into timeless dimensions. The novels created by the author and the character, intersect creating the effect of full being, allowing the subject of creative consciousness to recover its identity by overcoming painful contradictions of individual existence in the artistic creativity as in the dialogical interaction with the other. By using the formal and the hermeneutical methods with the emphasis on the philosophy of dialogue, the article explores the peculiarities of metaphor functioning at the macro- and microlevels. The former allows to construct the experimental picture of the world at the intersection of different time-space spheres that correlate with each other due to the spiritual and intellectual efforts of the subject. The latter allows us to consider the artistic image based on metaphor the core of the modernist writer’s artistic style and the way to the new concept of artist and art.