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Bashmakova Irina Stepanovna, Irkutsk State Technical University, Candidate of Philology, Associate Professor, Faculty of Applied Linguistics E-mail: [email protected]
Categorization of mythical type knowledge by English idioms with anthroponym
Abstract: The article deals with the knowledge of mythical nature categorized by English idioms with proper name. The main directions of contextualization in terms of discourse are determined. Major categories of English idioms with anthroponym based on the myth types are defined. They are biblical, historical, folksy, bookish and Shakespearean myths. The terms "phraseologism" and "idiom" are defined as fully interchangeable.
Keywords: Paradigm shift, categorization, category, proper name, anthroponym, English idiom, phraseologism, mythological discourse, mythical type, cognitive center, symbolic meaning, contextualization, prototype.
Due to modern scientific research in the field of linguistics, of English phraseological units in terms of the internal predi-scholars started to review the prevailing ideas about man and cation. The objective of this work is to substantiate the sug-his role in the world. The periodic poles of knowledge rota- gested categorization of English idioms on the types of
myths in which phraseological contexts with anthroponym are components of mythological discourse. The topicality of the article is caused by increasing role of linguistic research aimed at studying the ways of mythological knowledge presentation in language and speech units.
Based on the Kant's idea [2], which postulates a modern man to be viewed as a unity of empirical and transcendental "I-for-myself" and "I-for-others", we can observe that any empirical content knowledge occurs only in man and through him. And more, only in man this knowledge is justified, as it is exactly in man, a natural space of a living body is associated with the historic time of people's culture. The human peculiarity is the fact that man is not an inert object but he is able to unlimited self-awareness "cogito". Simultaneously, man is a place of delusion and the source of intense appeal to knowledge and self-knowledge which makes man to be a human being [3]. Hence, the subject of numerous scientists' debate is the problem of man and history. During the structuralism
tion generates new methodological foundations of the science. When describing the dynamic of changes in linguistics, the term "paradigm shift" is used [1]. Active development of cognitive science denoted the determinism postulate rejection, as there was hard distinction between linguistic competence and language use, pro anthropocentric intentionality. Participating in acts of communication, the purpose of speaking is to understand the thoughts expressed by means of linguistic signs, accumulated in the form of meaningful, given in a certain system, data which are represented to our consciousness and form the basis of mental processes. Taking into consideration the fact that the information is delivered to person by different channels, it becomes clear that a person should be studied as a system by which such processes as mastering and accumulation of the received data as well as behavior, human activity should be described and explained in terms of "internal states".
The purpose of this article is to consider the semantic relationships between anthroponym and other components
Section 3. Linguistics
period, the idea of history as a continuous retrospective connection was lost. However, in the cognitive paradigm, the idea of the continuity of history becomes relevant. In order to learn to act in present and create a meaningful future, man has to understand his past. The history can't be redone, but it may be reconsidered. During the lifetime a person acquires information about the world, then, operates with it. This information is accumulated and fixed in language signs and symbols as proved by logic result, and form a knowledge base. The knowledge engrossed in signs and symbols is reflected in human mind adequately.
To determine the main directions of contextualization in terms of discourse within the framework of the cognitive linguistics, the semiotic aspect becomes of great significance. In the given article, idiomatic contexts with anthroponym are considered exactly as the mythological discourse components of symbolic nature [4]. Not few scientists indicated a mythological character of the context which expresses the knowledge about proper names in phraseologisms. A. F. Losev, the Russian philosopher, defines the world in which man lives as a mythical world. According to the great scientist approach in myth studying, any myth is a personal history given in words [5]. Hence, we can conclude that there is a myth, as a state of culture, there is a symbol, as a tool for expressing the state of this culture, and there is a name as a material covering to express this state. To illustrate the conclusion, given above, several examples with idiom (as) rich as Croesus are given.
1. From what he says, Cosmo observed, our friend Querini is as rich as Croesus, but dependent upon his father [6].
2. Royde wants to charter a yacht to hunt this monster and I thought it was a deal right up your street. You don't want to soak him, because although he is as rich as Croesus he hates being soaked. Charge him the top price you'd charge anybody else [6].
In ancient mythology, there is a legend about Croesus, a famous Lydian king, who possessed countless wealth and who "filled Delphi with the gifts of fabulous value" [7]. In the given examples, the anthroponym Croesus, which embodies a myth about a definite person who lived and had a great fortune, has a role of central component of the phraseological unit, the role of conservator of certain historical events. When compare the characters (Querini, Royde) with the legendary personality Croesus, it becomes evident to the communicants that the financial situation of those persons is more than fine. Thereby, there is a myth about the Lydian kingdom with its ancient culture, there is a proper name Croesus as a symbol of wealth and there is a tool as indicator of that wealth. The knowledge presentation in this way, gives the right to declare about the anthroponyms cognitive peculiarity when they are composed in idioms. By the personality, Croesus by name, the action "to possess great wealth" is attributed. This peculiarity is come out of the definite mythological context where the symbolic meaning of this proper name was formed and fixed. Further, in the fixed form, as a symbol of wealth, it becomes the Eternity World component (the term ofA. N. Whitehead).
In this peculiarity of idiomatic semiosis, the egocentric, and more widely, anthropocentric language nature is reflected.
Language is the main form of knowledge about the world fixation which is reflected in categories. Category is a structure where the center (prototype) can be identified, i. e. mental formation, reflecting the conceptually important properties of our object representation and the periphery, a plurality of members, to varying degrees, correlating with the prototype. For English idioms analysis, prototypical semantic concepts are necessary as the theory of cognitive semantics distinction from other semantic theories is that it interprets meaning of words, taking into consideration the human factor as in reality cognition, so as in language knowledge analysis. Cognitive (prototypical) semantics is based on the meaning understanding by prototypical representations which define the features of categorization expressed in human perception. The central members of categories are used to represent the entire category. Thus, they make easy the recognition, memorization and assimilation of the category members, creating the basis for generalizations in some situations. To prove the statement, some examples with idioms Hobson's choice, not to know sb. from Adam, Barmecide feast, a banquet of Lucullus are illustrated.
1. Hobson's choice means the absence of choice (myth about a man, Hobson by name, who kept a livery stable in Cambridge in the XVI century and obliged his clients to take only the closest to the exit horse).
Apparently he did not even trouble to acknowledge a very gracious epistle from Richard giving him the Hobson's choice of going to the Egypt expedition as second-in-command or returning to Mysore [8].
The reader's attention is focused on the characterization of Richard, who has a strong character and common sense. In his written polite message, that can be proved by the words: a very gracious, epistle, fascinate, Richard offered the client "choice" with zero value. Obviously, the choice qualifier is the anthroponym Hobson, which comprises in its prototypical content internal predication of the event, viz. the legend about Hobson (the person). The process of mythologization made the proper name Hobson transit from the World of Activities to the World of Eternity, turning it into a symbol, a language unit. Thus, the proper name Hobson is the center of categorization or the central member of the idiom Hobson's choice, as the prototypical event "choice without alternative" can be expressed only by the anthroponym Hobson inclusion in the English idiom Hobson's choice.
2. Not to know sb. from Adam — to know nothing or very little about sb.
Colonel Melchett was an irascible-looking man with a habit of tugging at his short red moustache. He did so now, shooting a perplexed sideways glance at the other man. Finally Colonel rapped out, "Look here, Bantry; got to get this off my chest. Is it a fact that you don't know from Adam who this woman is?". The other's answer was explosive, but the chief constable interrupted him, "Yes, yes, old man, but look at it like this: Might be deuced awkward for you. Married
man, fond of your missus and all that. But just between ourselves, if you were tied up with this girl in any way, better say so now" [9].
The verbal component of the English idiom not to know smb. from Adam can't be the central member of the category, as it has too wide informative field: not to make a difference, not to be distinguished from others, be indifferent. The cognitive center of this idiom is the anthroponym Adam, representing mythological knowledge about the first person in the world, who didn't have any identifying properties but give idea about a human being generally. Hence, the knowledge comprised in the prototype Adam means to know nothing about somebody. The The anthroponym Adam presence in the given idiom transforms the time factor (since immemorial time, since the first human) into the intensity factor (no idea).
3. Barmecide feast — imaginary abundance.
One might fancy the season over, and most of the houses gone out of town for ever with their masters. To the admirers of cities it is a Barmecide Feast; a pleasant field for the imagination to rove in; a monument raised to a deceased project, with not even a legible inscription to record its departed greatness [10].
4. A banquet of Lucullus — a variety of dishes, the meal luxury.
The tomato soup, the mysterious little pieces of white fish, the boiled mutton, the blackberry and apple tart, were transformed by their histrionic gusto into a banquet of Lucullus... [8].
The comparison of the two idiomatic contexts based on the words a feast/a banquet with identical meaning are extremely illustrative. In the first example, the description of New York, the city with glittering lights, with luxury for those who are in power, on the one hand, and its splendor, meaning nothing to the average man, on the other. The second example, vice versa, proves the craftsmen culinary ingenuity as they are able to turn trivial ingredients into delicious dishes.
The idioms meaning is characterized by the relations of antonymous nature thanks to the information comprised in the anthroponyms Barmecide and Lucullus, viz. by the myth
about a rich person, Barmecide by name, who invited the poor to have dinner with him, but ordered to serve plates, painted gold, empty; and by the myth about the ancient Roman richer Lucullus, whose feasts are famous for their unusual luxury. Thus, the cognitive centers of the given idioms are the anthroponyms Lucullus and Barmecide. This knowledge is of mythological nature. Each proper name has its myth (the myth of Lucullus, the myth of Barmecide). However, the myth, in its turn, is always a symbol (a symbol of the first man, a symbol of wealth, a symbol of an imaginary abundance).
In phraseological units, anthroponym being a symbol is a single, unique predicate. Thus, the idiom is endowed with the properties of symbolism on the one hand, and predicativity, on the other. The symbolic status is fixed by unique context formation where the definite prototypic situation is observed.
However, myths are different. According to proper names relevance to different categories, English idioms with the component anthroponym are distinguished into: folksy myths (cousin Betty; a plain Jane; a proper Charlie and others), the biblical myths (as old as Methuselah; a Judas kiss, and others), literary myths (a Barmecide feast; Aladdin's lamp; the Cinderella of and others), historical (a banquet of Lucullus; a Roland for an Oliver; Pandora's box; Achilles' heel, and others) and Shakespeare's myths (Cordelia's gift; to be a Shylock and others) [4].
The sources of origin of English idioms with proper names can be the basis of the categories as anthroponym is the cognitive center of these idioms.
Conclusions:
1. It is the human mind where the objects categorization occurs. The anthroponym in idioms defines the direction of the categorization;
2. The world we perceive by intentions is the world of myths. Myth is a live and active person. Myth is always based on facts. Any proper name in English idioms can be interpreted as myth;
3. On the basis of myth types to which English idioms date back, five major categories are defined: idioms with anthroponym in folksy, historical, biblical, literary Shakespeare's myths.
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