The Image of a Person in the Spanish Linguistic View of the World

Abstract

AbstractPurpose Each particular language is based on a special view of the world, which determines national consciousness and forms an ethnocultural stereotype of behavior. Phraseologisms and paremias describing the appearance of a person reflect the cognitive, linguistic, and cultural characteristics of ethnic communities. The main goal of our work is to help you see the cultural background behind the unit of language and which allows you to correlate the surface structures of the language with their deep essence. Design/methodology/approach When considering the semantic features of the analyzed units, the method of component analysis and analysis of dictionary definitions was used. Also at different stages of the work, the method of linguistic description and analysis was used, including techniques for interpreting, generalizing, and classifying the analyzed material; method of contextual-situational analysis of language material. Findings The dubious, ambiguous content of phraseological units, their pronounced negative semantics, inconsistency with modern ideas, the cumbersome nature of expressions, the presence of outdated and incomprehensible words gradually leads to the disappearance of such linguistic formations from the sphere of use. Modern equivalents of outdated linguistic formations, newly created phraseological units, and paremia of Spanish society are distinguished by special idiomaticity, naturalism, emotionality, some vulgarity, which allows you to vividly and sincerely express an opinion about the appearance of a person. Originality/value Based on phraseological units identified when working with informants, as well as selected from Spanish dictionaries, we came to the conclusion that the units in question, representing important components of the language picture of the world, do not always have time to respond to social changes.KeywordsSpanish languageSemantic structurePhraseologyPhraseological unitLinguistic view of the worldJEL ClassificationI200I230