Semantics of Adjectives in the Story «Wooden Horses» by F. A. Abramov (To the 100th Anniversary of the Birth)

Abstract

The article investigates the semantic identity and intertextual correlation of adjectives used by F. A. Abramov in his story «Wooden horses». The study focuses on the conceptual significance of adjectives in a literary text. The aim of the research was to discover the role of quality-denoting lexemes (qualitative concepts) in the formation of artistic images and expression of the author’s intention on the basis of a linguistic analysis of adjectives. The most active lexico-semantic groups of adjectives are described: time, human character, material, appearance of objects, human physical appearance, colour and light, intellectual assessment, mirative assessment; and proves the role of adjectives in the conceptualization of literaty images. On the basis of quantitative and semantic analysis and also taking into the account the syntagmatic features of adjectives, the important conceptual semantic fields – «Time» and «Man» – are defined. A detailed analysis of the semantics of adjectives helps to ascertain the correlation of conceptually relevant meanings in the text, as well as to bring the reader’s interpretation closer to understanding the author’s intention.