Aspect and tense forms of the Russian verb in describing the kinesic behaviour of the characters in A.P. Chekhov’s stories

Abstract

Non-verbal semiotics is one of the leading areas of modern communication research. The study is devoted to the topical interdisciplinary issue - the relationship between non-verbal semiotics and Russian grammar. The aim of the research is to characterize the representation of the temporal forms of the Russian verb in describing the kinesic behaviour of literary characters. The elements of nonverbal semiotics were analysed in the stories by A.P. Chekhov “Death of an Official”, “Chameleon”, “Thick and Thin”, “Horse Name”, “Surgery”. The following methods were used as the main ones: descriptive, semantic explication, differential, analytical. The methodological foundations of kinesics as an integrative science were considered, the correlation between the verbal realization of kinema and the temporal forms of the Russian verb was revealed. It has been proved that the most recurrent manifestations of non-verbal semiotics in Chekhov's stories are communicative emblems (in particular, etiquette and ritual), symptomatic emblems and dynamic descriptors, nominated with the help of aspect and tense forms of the Russian verb. Emblems-illustrators are quantitatively less represented in the analyzed stories. They are prospective for further research on the example of Russian literary classics.