THE CONCEPT OF BEAUTY IN ENGLISH AND KAZAKH LANGUAGES

КОНЦЕПТ КРАСОТА В АНГЛИЙСКОМ И КАЗАХСКОМ ЯЗЫКАХ

Жунусова Анель Айтказықызы

магистрант,  Евразийский национальный университет имени Л.Н. Гумилёва,

Казахстан, г.Нур-Султан

ABSTRACT

The article is concerned with the study of the notion of “concept” in cognitive linguistics, and with a comparative analysis of the national-cultural specifics of the concept of “beauty” in the Kazakh and English culture of the language. The conceptual, figurative, and value components of this concept are considered in two languages. The specificity of perception of the concept of “beauty” by representatives of different linguistic cultures is compared. The object of research is phraseological units that contain and reflect the concept of “beauty” in the Kazakh and English languages.

АННОТАЦИЯ

Статья посвящена исследованию понятия «концепт» в когнитивной лингвистике, а также сравнительно-сопоставительному анализу национально-культурной специфики концепта «красота» в казахской и английской лингвокультуре. Рассматриваются понятийный, образный и оценочный компоненты данного концепта в двух языках. Сравнивается специфика восприятия концепта “красота” представителями разных лингвокультур.  В качестве объекта исследования выступают фразеологизмы, содержащие и отражающие концепт красота в казахском и английском языках.

Keywords: concept, conceptual analysis, cognitive linguistics, phraseological picture of the world, national specificity.

Ключевые слова: концепт, концептуальный анализ, когнитивная лингвистика, фразеологическая картина мира, национальная специфика.

The knowledge and experience stored in our memory are interpreted using linguistic units. Thus, language can be called a means of access to the consciousness of people, their conceptual sphere, as well as the content and structure of concepts as units of thinking. As of today, the notion of a concept is intensively studied in linguistics and has a wide range of definitions. For instance, British linguist V. Evans defines concepts as “intermediaries between words and extralinguistic reality” [1, p. 18]. Therefore, concepts can only be those phenomena of reality that are relevant and valuable for a particular culture. Concepts are a kind of symbols that specifically indicate the experience, situation or knowledge that created them.

R.W. Langacker, for his part, taking into account conceptualization, explains this process widely enough: “First of all, it is an apprehension of the physical, linguistic, social, and cultural context. Secondly, it is not just `intellectual` notions, but sensory, motor, and emotive experience as well” [4, p. 30]. Thus, concepts, along with cultural phenomena, can also reflect cognitive processes. This idea can be seen in B.Nurdauletova`s scientific monograph “Cognitive Linguistics”, where she defines the concept as “the content of the world`s image in the human mind” [5, p. 51]. That is, every person lives among concepts that are formed through the individual process of world conceptualization.

Russian linguist V.I.Karasik considers concepts as “cultural creations that exist in the cultural and historical space of the ethnic group and define their mentality; concepts can be translated into various spheres of human existence, since being collective mental formations that fix the uniqueness of culture” [3, p. 38]. R.Jackendoff also believe that in various languages concepts and ideas about cultures have a distinction since they reflect the objective reality from a different angle [2, p. 96]. Thus, the concept can serve as an important source of information that reflects cultural characteristics, allowing you to compare and contrast the linguistic worldview of different ethnic groups.

The main components of the concept are conceptual, figurative and value. The listed components of the concept serve as the basis for a comparative analysis of the concept “Beauty” in English and Kazakh.

Conceptual component of the concept

The conceptual component is considered as the starting point in the analysis of the concept, it contains its description, feature structure, definition and is reflected in dictionaries and encyclopedias.

During the lexicographic analysis, the following meanings of the concept of Beauty were found: 1. Beauty is the quality that makes something especially good or attractive. 2. Beauty is pleasing to the aesthetic faculty. 3. Beauty is a very attractive or seductive looking woman.

Additional conceptual components of the concept are revealed during the analysis of its synonyms. As a result of referring to the dictionaries of synonyms, we highlight the synonymous series of the Beauty concept: attractiveness, belle, charm, elegance, grace, fascination, handsomeness, good looks, loveliness.

The key unit verbalizing the concept of Beauty in English is the noun “Сұлулық”. In the Dictionary of the Kazakh literary language, the following definitions of the concept of Сұлулық are given:

1. Сұлулық – сыртқы келбет-кескіні жағынан дұрыстылығымен, тартымдылығымен көзге түсетін (зат, нәрсе).

2. Сұлулық – адамның ішкі дүниесінің, жанының әдемілігі, үйлесімділігі.

3. Сұлулық - эстетикалық құндылықты сипаттайтын категория.

The Dictionary of Synonyms provides the following synonyms for this concept: әдемілік, әсемдік, көркемдік, көріктілік, келістілік, ажарлылық, әрлілік, арулық, шырайлылық.

As a result of comparing dictionary definitions and synonyms that clarify the concept of Beauty in English and Kazakh languages, the following conclusions can be drawn:

1. Ideas about beauty in the dictionary definitions of the Kazakh and English languages have a common feature: this is a set of qualities that give aesthetic and moral pleasure, pleasure to the eye. The common features of synonyms in the compared languages coincide in such meanings as “grace”, “charm”, “refinement”, “elegance”.

2. Distinguishing features include the distinction between external and internal beauty (in the Kazakh language); the distinction between male and female beauty (in the English language).

The figurative component of the concept

The figurative component includes visual, auditory, tactile, taste, and olfactory characteristics of objects, phenomena, and events reflected in our memory.

The beautiful appearance of a person in English is expressed by numerous metaphors and comparative phrases, including zoomorphisms: fox (meaning “physically attractive girl”), queen bee (meaning “first lady”), graceful as a swan, an elegant antelope, handsome swans, doe-eyes (meaning “eyes like a female deer”). Phytonyms also make up a significant group of categories of female beauty, namely “have roses in one’s cheeks” (literally “to have roses on the cheeks”, figuratively “to be rosy”), “as a white violet”, “beautiful as a lily”, “as the rose in June”, “wasp-waisted” (meaning “to have a thin waist”), “willowy”, “аs fair as a lily”. There are also comparisons with works of art: “as pretty as picture”, “as handsome as paint”, “like Apollo Belvedere”, “as a Greek statue”, comparisons with deities: “as handsome as a young Greek god”, “like a heathen goddess”, “like Astarte”, “handsome as Adonis”.

When analyzing the Kazakh phraseological units associated with the concept of Beauty, zoomorphisms can also be distinguished: «бота көз» (with big beautiful eyes), «құралай көз» (hazel-eyed), «аққу мойын» (swanneck), «қаз мойын» (gooseneck), «құланның құлынындай» (charming as a kulan foal), «құмырсқа бел» (slim-waisted), «бүлдіршіндей әдемі» (graceful as a bird). Phytonyms that describe beauty in the Kazakh language are represented by the following examples: «гүлдей ару», «бәйшешектей құлпырған», «жайқалған гүлдей», «қарақаттай көз» (black as currant eyes), «алмадай бет» (with a beautiful oval face). In addition, there are comparisons with natural phenomena: «айдай сұлу», «толған айдай», «күн көзіндей», «туған айдай», «судай мөлдір», «атқан таңдай».

The analysis of the figurative component revealed both similarities and differences in the conceptualization of the word “beauty”. Since the national and cultural specifics are most clearly revealed when compared, we note that zoomorphic images allowed us to identify the following differences in the beauty category: for example, «қаз мойын» (gooseneck) in the Kazakh language has a positive connotation, while in English the word “goose” is synonymous with the words “fool, simpleton” and has a negative meaning. If in the Kazakh language the beauty of the eyes is described using the image of a camel (бота көз), then in English the female deer “doe-eyes” is mentioned. Nevertheless, the similarity is found in the conceptualization of the grace and beauty of the neck, since in both languages it is associated with the image of a swan: “graceful as a swan”, «аққу мойын». It is also worth noting the similarity in the personification of beauty with flowers, however, if in English comparisons are mostly made with roses and lilies: have roses in one’s cheeks”, “as a white violet”, “beautiful as a lily”, “as the rose in June”, then in the Kazakh language the image of flowers is generalized: «гүлдей ару», «жайқалған гүлдей».

The value component of the concept

According to V. I. Karasik, the value component is the main one. This component shows the importance of the concept, both for the individual and for the group of people. Depending on the assessment, concepts are divided into positively marked and negatively marked.

The positive assessment of the concept of “Beauty” is reflected in the following examples: “lovely to be hold / good for looks” (nice to look at), “attractive”, “good-looking”, “fine-looking”, “pleasing to the eye” (pleasing to the eye), “a beautiful face is a silent commendation” (beauty is a symbol of trust).

The negative assessment of the concept of “Beauty” is presented by the following examples: “good fame is better than a good face”, “handsome is as handsome does”, “beauty is only skin deep”, “fair face may hide a foul heart”.

The positive assessment of the concept of «Сұлулық»: «Сұлулық – жүрек кілті» (beauty is the key to the heart), «Жаны сұлудың – тәні сұлу» (a beautiful soul has a beautiful appearance), «қараса көз тоймайды», «көз тоярлық» (pleasing to the eye).

The negative assessment of the concept of «Сұлулық»: «Дұшпанның сырты сұлу, іші – қара» (The enemy is beautiful on the outside, ugly on the inside), «Сұлу жар елдікі, ақылды жар сенікі» (A beautiful wife is a stranger, a smart one is yours).

Thus, a universal sign for a positive assessment of the concept of Beauty is pleasure in contemplation: “pleasing to the eye”, «қараса көз тоймайды», “good-looking”, «көз тоярлық».

If we consider a negative assessment, then both in English and in Kazakh phraseology, paremiology, we can notice the idea of deceptiveness and ephemerality of beauty: “Fair face may hide a foul heart”, «Дұшпанның сырты сұлу, іші – қара».

Thus, the concept, being a unit of processing, storage and transfer of knowledge, is able to reflect cultural, mental and national characteristics. During the analysis of the concept of Beauty in two unrelated languages, both similar and distinctive features were identified. In English and Kazakh cultures, there are similar definitions of this concept. Regardless of the country and nationality, beauty is perceived positively, which is confirmed by the analysis of the concept. Nevertheless, it should be noted that in the perception and consciousness of native speakers of the studied languages there are also specific components filled with linguistic and cultural content.

References:

1. Evans V. How words mean: Lexical concepts, cognitive models, and meaning construction. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009.
2. Jackendoff, R. Semantic Structures. 1990. MIT Press, Cambridge, MA. 283 p.
3. Karasik I.V. Yazykovoy krug: lichnost, kontsepty, diskurs [Language circle: personality, concepts, discourse]. M., 2004. – 389 p.
4. Langacker R.W. Cognitive Grammar: A Basic Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008. – 562 p.
5. Nurdauletova B.I. Kognitivti lingvistika [Cognitive linguistics]. – Almaty: Assyl kitap, 2010. – 344 p.