Reflection of Family Relations in the Russian and Chinese Languages (Based on Frames husband's mother – daughter-in-law, wife’s mother – son-in-law, husband's sister – sister-in-law)

Abstract

Propositional frame-based modeling is one of the most effective methods of cognitive linguistics. This method considers the interaction between the semantic and cognitive aspects of units of two typologically different languages, e. g. Russian and Chinese, in order to study the way language structures and reflects human knowledge and experience. Propositional structures are the same for all languages, but they are implemented differently in every language. The authors used the propositional frame-based analysis to identify universal and specific aspects in the semantics of proverbs based on frames husband's mother – daughter-in-law, wife's mother – son-in-law and husband's sister – sister-in-law, which are important fragments of the Russian and Chinese linguistic world view. The cognitive potential of paroemiological units is enormous: proverbs reflect historical, cultural, linguistic, and extralinguistic cognitive experience. The propositional-frame analysis of the semantics of Chinese and Russian proverbs made it possible to distinguish the following logical-thematic classification: 1) features of the character and behavior of each relative; 2) the relationship between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, mother-in-law and son-in-law, between sisters-in-law; 3) the family status of the mother-in-law, daughter-in-law, mother-in-law, son-in-law, and sister-in-law; 4) family traditions, way of life; 5) sources of family conflicts; 6) ways of solving conflict situations.