SOMATIC CULTURAL CODE AND ITS ROLE IN THE CHINESE LINGUISTIC WORLDVIEW (BASED ON THE CONCEPTS OF “FACE” AND “HEART”)

Abstract

Purpose of the study: The study aims to describe the notion of somatic cultural code. The research pursues several objectives, such as: to describe the concepts of the linguistic worldview, the image of the world, the cultural code; to identify and systematize the somatic code of the Chinese language; to describe the lingua cognitive and linguacultural properties of the selected somatic concepts; to study the role of somatic components in lexical units; to investigate and describe the denotative meaning, functional-stylistic and emotional-expressive connotations. Methodology: The author employs the descriptive-representative method to isolate and describe the key Chinese cultural somas. Besides, the conceptual analysis method was used to determine the frequency of somatic metonymy and its influence on linguistic worldview. The material of the study consists of 3,000 examples of somatic concepts. Main Findings: The article offers an analysis of somatic cultural code and its role in the Chinese cultural and linguistic worldview. The research was conducted on the material of Chinese lexical and phraseological units. Despite the growing interest of modern linguistics in somatic cultural models, and in particular, in somatic metaphors, there are only a few studies on the lexico-semantic aspects of the Chinese language. Applications of this study: The concepts of face and heart are primary elements of the Chinese cultural somatic code with its system of associations, images, and symbols. As part of the traditional linguistic worldview they shape mentality, character, traditions, and stereotypes. As practical and axiological means, they are embedded in the language and consciousness of native Chinese speakers. Novelty/Originality of this study: It is one of the first studies of the Chinese somatic cultural code and its national and cultural specificity.