The evaluativity category in the paroemiological system of the German and Russian languages

Abstract

This paper represents the results of analysis of the lexico-grammar means of explicit expression of the / negative evaluative (attitudinal) meanings in the paroemiological system of the Russian and German languages. The materials of the research contain analysis of the main types of axiological meanings that may be reduced to general evaluative and specific evaluative ones. The structure of the evaluative situation is described that includes such components as subject of evaluation, object of evaluation, predicate of evaluation, basis for evaluation, motive of evaluation, type of evaluation. The characteristic of the cognitive procedure of evaluation is provided. The performed analysis of the Russian and German folk sayings allowed specifying both the variety of similarities in the evaluative fragment of the linguistic world-image of the languages compared and distinguishing some specific features of representation of the evaluative semantics explicated in the language of paroemias. The adjectives good, fruitful, nice, bad, heavy, lean, hungry characterizing the noun year may serve as lexical means of expression of evaluative meaning. In the German paroemias the similar evaluative qualifiers implementing the axiological characteristics of year are recorded: gut 'good', fruchtbar 'fruitful'. It was discovered that the yield acts as the axiological dominant by characterization of the year in general in both languages which is expressed in the high frequency of occurrence of the adjectives fruitful / fruchtbar. There were identified the language patterns that are peculiar exclusively to the Russian paroemiological system: the structure "to + N3" or the 'the dative of prediction' and the structure 'on + N4' or the 'accusative of prediction'. It was found that the use of the lexical means of explication of the negative general evaluative area due to the action of the principle of politeness is rare both in the Russian and German languages.