Evolution of the mental model of “homeland” in belarusian television programs 1956 – mid. 1990s: pragmatic componen

The cognitive construct “homeland”, which is important for self-identification and socialization of a linguistic personality, has been studied. A discourse analysis of microphone folders and video recordings of Belarusian television programs from 1956 to 1995 was conducted. To reconstruct the extralinguistic context, unstructured and in-depth interviews were conducted with the creators of the programs. The process of semantic and syntactic construction of the cognitive metaphor “The Soviet Union (goal) is the Homeland (source)” is shown. A change has been established in the terms “family” and “land” of the source area when they are projected onto the target area.

It is  concluded  that  the  concept  of  “homeland”  explicates  a  pragmatic  component  associated  with  introspection of the immanent interaction of a linguistic personality with the natural environment and critical understanding of experience. The evolution of syntactic macrostructures of discourse from the image of a global nation to a geographical place as a historical landmark is revealed. The weakening of the communicative role of recognition episodes, the presentation of Soviet specialists and public figures as world-famous Soviet songs, the increase in the frequency of using retrospective scenes, newsreels, and live interviews have been determined. The displacement of the leitmotif of the Globe in the discourse by the image of the house and the associated culture-specific images of the Tree of Eternity and the Stork Man is shown.

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