CC BY
40
УДК 811.111'37
ИСПОЛЬЗОВАНИЕ ЛЕКСЕМЫ «GENTLEMAN» В АНГЛИЙСКОЙ ХУДОЖЕСТВЕННОЙ ЛИТЕРАТУРЕ (НА ПРИМЕРЕ РОМАНА «БОЛЬШИЕ НАДЕЖДЫ» ЧАРЛЬЗА ДИККЕНСА)
Безкоровайная Галина Тиграновна
доцент кафедры иностранных языков, кандидат филологических наук Московский государственный университет печати имени Ивана Федорова 127550 Россия, г. Москва, ул. Прянишникова, д. 2А begati1 @yandex.ru
Булгакова Вероника Владимировна
студентка института издательского дела и журналистики Московский государственный университет печати имени Ивана Федорова 127550 Россия, г. Москва, ул. Прянишникова, д. 2А [email protected]
Аннотация. В данной статье рассматривается разнообразие значений лексемы «gentleman» и ееконнотаций, которые зависят от позиционных условий в литературных текстах. Выбранная языковая единица исследуется в контексте ее использования в известном романе «Большие надежды», написанном выдающимся английским писателем-реалистом Чарльзом Диккенсом.
Ключевые слова: джентельмен, лексема, Диккенс, значение, словарь, контекст, номинация, лингвистическая единица.
This article is about the polysemantic lexeme 'gentleman' and some basic concepts, which are realized as invariants or variants of the lexeme in fiction texts by C. Dickens. It is important to point that the lexeme will be viewed through the prism of a prototype British culture with the help of a famed novel 'Great Expectations', which was written by, with no doubt, the most prominent author in English literature of XIX century, Charles Dickens.
The semantic fields have been studied by many linguists, such as Aleksandrova O.V., Bezkorovaynaya G.T., Bridges J., Mendzheritskaya E.O., Pocheptsov O.G. , etc. [1-6] The given lexeme belongs to the semantic field gentleness/nobleness.
Topicality of this work is in the research of the same lexeme'gentleman' usage, recognized through the certain context in modern literature. This linguistic research is a very useful one, because it gives us an opportunity to trace the whole palette of meaning shades of the lexeme 'gentleman' and, also, determines its positional senses. Furthermore, the semantic study of the lexeme 'gentleman' will help to create a picture of the ideals and values of British linguistic-cultural community. Moreover, this article shows a comprehensive view of the semantic evolution of such aforementioned linguistic unit as the lexeme 'gentleman' is. In addition, it reveals the causes influencing the nomination's semantic structure and, as a result, caused some serious changes in the stylistic functions of the word 'gentleman'.
The object of this research is the lexeme 'gentleman' and an image, behind certain connotations in the novel 'Great Expectations'. The subject of this article is the
units of language, which reveal the semantic diversity of the lexeme 'gentleman' in a literary text.
The main aims are: 1) to study the stages of changes in the mental perception of this lexeme in English society and, secondly; 2) to find all possible senses, including additional Dickens' connotations, of the lexeme 'gentleman'.
The Oxford English Dictionary provides a comprehensive meaning explanation of the selected lexeme. What is more, a scientific source in tandem with Dickens' novel constitutes the material base of this article.
The Oxford English Dictionary defines one of the main lexical meaning of the word 'gentleman' as ' — (old-fashioned) a man from a high social class, especially one who does not need to work'[8]. This is the most ancient connotation of the selected lexeme, so it can be concluded that this language unit originally indicated on belonging to the upper classes of prosperous British society. In other words, the concept of gentleman' was used only to designate a person of a noble birth. It should be noted that Charles Dickens used the word 'gentleman' precisely in this connotation in his Great Expectations'. Thus, the English writer described the Pip's meeting with a small boy, who, obviously, was one of the high society representatives, in the garden of rich Miss Havisham: 'For the rest he was a young gentleman in a gray suit (when not denuded fur battle) with his elbows knees and heels considerably in advance of the rest of him as to development' [7].
There is one more example of using this lexeme in a similar meaning. It is in Pip's description of people, whom a little boy found in the house of wealthy Miss
Havisham: There were three ladies in the room and one gentleman' [7].
Likewise, precisely the same semantic of the word 'gentleman' we can see in Pip's description of Miss Hav-isham's friend: 'We went on our way up stairs after this episode; and as we going up we met a gentleman groping his way down. <.. .> He was a burly man of an exceedingly dark complexion with an exceedingly large head and a correspondingly large hand He took my chin in his large hand and turned up my face to have a look at me by the light of the candle. He was prematurely bald on the top of his head and had bushy black eyebrows that wouldn't lie down but stood up bristling .His eyes were set very deep in his head and were disagreeably sharp and suspicious. He had a very large watch chain and very strong black dots where his beard and whiskers would have been if he had let them' [7].
Therewith, an image of the person, to whom we can apply the lexeme gentleman', is defined not only by Pip, but, also, by some other characters of 'Great Expectations'. For example, when Herbert told Pip about Miss Havisham, he noticed: 'Her father was a country gentleman down in your part of the world and was a brewer' [5]. '- Yet a gentleman may not keep a public house, may he? — said I. — Not on any account, — returned Herbert — but a public house may keep a gentleman' [7].
It is interesting to mention that additional semantic shades derive from the original meaning of the word 'gentleman' . It happened, because the members of a high class had a status of well-educated people with the polished and even elegant manners and, of course, with an impeccable etiquette. So, soon a set of basic features, which could be inherited to representatives of a wealthy class, started to form in the behavior description of people, regardless of their social status. As a result, a certain image of gentleman started to emerge and connotation of class affiliation departed to the semantic periphery.
The Oxford English Dictionary gives us one another lexical meaning of the word gentleman': ' — a man who is polite and well educated, who has excellent manners and always behaves well' [8]. And Charles Dickens, predominantly, used the linguistic unit gentleman' in such connotation. The central character of 'Great Expectations' is an ordinary little boy, who grew up in a family of a blacksmith and after acquaintance with wealthy and intelligent people become obsessed with the idea to turn from a simple boy to a real gentleman. This fact can be proved by following excerpts from the book: The beautiful young lady at Miss Havisham's and she's more beautiful than anybody ever was, and I admire her dreadfully, and I want to be a gentleman on her account' [7].
'As I was loitering along the High Street looking in disconsolately at the shop windows, and thinking what I should buy if I were a gentleman, who should come out of the book shop, but Mr. Wopsle' [7].
'Therefore I made no remark on Joe's first head: merely saying, as to his second, that the tidings had indeed come suddenly, but that I had always wanted to be a gentleman, and had often and often speculated on what I would do if I were one' [7].
The beginning of stereotypical gentleman image forming was noted by some others characters in Charles Dick-
ens' literary work. They confirmed Pips view about who deserved to call 'gentleman'. This fact shows us that almost all characters of the famous novel use the lex-eme'gentleman' in such contextual conditions: 'Well Mr. Pip I think the sooner you leave here — as you to be a gentleman — the better' [7]. 'Is this young gentleman one of the prentices or articled of your office? — asked the turnkey with a grin at Mr.Wemmick's humor\'<...> Mr. Pip must express his regret as a gentleman.' [7]. 'Yes, Pip, dear boy, I've made a gentleman on yon! ' [7].
The Oxford English Dictionary gives us one more definition of the language unit: ' — (formal) used to address or refer to a man, especially somebody you do not know' [8]. The lexeme in such context was realized in 'pure' form and, what is more, with an extra tinge of irony and redicule, in the novel. For example, when this sense of the word 'gentleman' is used by men from such a lower class as prisoners are: 'He's a gentleman, if you please, that villain. Now the Hulks has got its gentleman again through me' [7].'This other gentleman,- observed Joe, by way of introducing Mr. Wopsle, — is a gentleman that you would like to hear give it out. Our clerk at church' [7]. 'Then, and not sooner, I became aware of a strange gentleman over the back of the settle opposite me, looking on' [7]. 'The strange gentleman beckoned him out of his place and Joe went' [7].
Usage of this linguistic unit with such semantic coloration is due to the ethical principle of the decency presumption, which obliges people to relate, even with a stranger, as with a decent person, who is worthy of our respect, without paying attention on social and antropo-logical qualities.
So, after analyzing the novel 'Great Expectations', written by Charles Dickens, it can be undeniably concluded that the author used the lexeme gentleman in its all semantic diversity. However, Dickens mainly revealed the meaning of this lexeme in context of the behavior of a noble man. This phenomenon reflects the development of the industrial England of XIX century, where an entrepreneurial activity acquires a leading position. The main features of the image are mostly based on the presence of a certain kind of manners such as keeping in order both: an appearance and a speech, trying to comply all rules of etiquette, etc.
It is necessary to conclude that Dickens' traditions of adding some extra meanings to the same lexeme are popular in modern literature, too. Nowadays The Oxford English Dictionary notes a few connotations of the word 'gentleman' as the English writer indirectly denoted in his perfect novel. In fact, semantic meaning of belonging to noble layer receded to the linguistic periphery and nowadays is existing like an archaism.
REFERENCES
1. Александрова О. В. Единство прагматики и лингвистики в изучении текста художественной литературы // Проблемы семантики и прагматики : сб. науч. тр. Калининград, 1996. — С. 3-11.
2. Безкоровайная Г.Т. Семантика и этимология слова «джентльмен»: анализ лексикографического материала // Вестник ЦМО МГУ, Филология. Куль-
тура. Педагогика. Методика. — 2010. — № 1. — С. 61-65.
3. Безкоровайная Г.Т. Семантическое поле GENTLENESS/NOBLENESS в английском языке и его актуализация в художественно тексте (на материале романов английский писателей XIX века): автореф. дисс. канд. филол. Наук. — Самара, 2014. — 21 с.
4. Менджерицкая Е. О. Когнитивный синтаксис художественной литературы. Современный английский язык: монография. — М.: Диалог-МГУ, 1997. — 144 с.
5. Почепцов О. Г. Языковая ментальность: способ представления мира // Вопросы языкознания. 1990. — № 6. — С. 110 — 122.
6. Bridges J., Curtis B.A. As a gentleman would say. Rutledge Hill Press, 2001. — 177 p.
7. Dickens С. Great Expectations. [Электронный ресурс] — URL: http://www.gutenberg.org/files/1400/ 1400-h/1400-h.htm (дата обращения: 03.06.16)
8. The Oxford English Dictionary. [Электронный ресурс] — URL: http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/ ru/определение/английский/gentleman?searchDictC ode=all (дата обращения: 03.06.16).
USAGE OF THE LEXEME «GENTLEMAN» IN THE ENGLISH LITERATURE (BASED ON THE NOVEL «GREAT EXPECTATIONS» BY CHARLES DICKENS)
Galina Tigranovna Bezkorovaynaya
Moscow State University of Printing Arts 127550 Russia, Moscow, Pryanishnikova st., 2А
Veronika Vladimirovna Bulgakova
Moscow State University of Printing Arts 127550 Russia, Moscow, Pryanishnikova st., 2А
Annotation. The article concerns the variety of meanings of the lexeme 'gentleman" and its connotations, which depends on the positional conditions in literary texts. The selected language unit viewed in the context of its usage in the prominent novel Great Expectations\ which was written by the famous English writer, Charles Dickens..
Keywords: gentleman, lexeme, Dickens, meaning, dictionary, context, nomination, linguistic unit.
