The macro-concept LIGHT in the novel “The Boy and the Darkness” by S. V. Lukyanenko

Abstract

The purpose of the study is to identify the content and methods of explication of the macro-concept LIGHT in the novel “The Boy and the Darkness” by S. V. Lukyanenko, interpreted as one of three macro-concepts (LIGHT :: DUSK :: DARKNESS), the opposition of which organizes the conceptual sphere of the novel, modifying the opposition of the basic concepts HOME WORLD :: ALIEN WORLD. The scientific novelty of the research consists in identifying the essence of the author’s modification of the symbolic macro-concept LIGHT recurrent in his creative heritage, the macro-concept significant for the Russian national worldview, by means of cognitive-discursive analysis. It has been determined that the macro-concept LIGHT, conceptualized as an object and subject of action, container and content, is explicated discursively at the levels of the plot, images of characters, self-reflection of the protagonist, supplemented by new cognitive features. As a result of the study, it has been established that the content of the conceptual core of the macro-concept LIGHT, formulated by the author, contradicts its perceptual-sensory and symbolic content. Such a contradiction, forming the axiological layer of the concept, serves as the driving force for the maturation of the protagonist, who proceeds from instinctive acceptance to the conscious choice of Light.