Aesthetic function of lexical-semantic groups in fiction (based on E. Zamyatin’s novel “We”)

Abstract

Introduction. This article explores the functional characteristics of lexical-semantic groups in literary texts. The study is based on the anthropological approach, which is relevant in contemporary linguistics. The source of the material is Yevgeny Zamyatin’s dystopian novel. The focus was on the lexical-semantic group “Materials”. The objectives of the study were to determine the composition and structure of this group, identify the individual authorial components of meaning in the meanings of its components, and describe their systemic connections. Methods. The study utilizes component and contextual analysis, as well as a semantic-stylistic approach. Results. The functional characteristics of this group in the novel “We”. As a result, it was concluded that the lexical-semantic group “Materials” serves as a reflection of a significant fragment of the individual author’s picture of the world. The words that make up this group develop contextual meanings that are actualized under the influence of the immediate syntagmatic environment and are conditioned by the influence of a number of extralinguistic factors: the ideological views of the writer, the genre nature of the text, its ideological and artistic originality and compositional features. The functioning of the words of the group under consideration is connected with the antithetical construction of a dystopia, where two artistic realities are contrasted: the world of the One State and the society beyond its borders. This construction led to the formation of contextual antonyms, as well as specific synonymous series that combine adjectives with qualitative meanings. Conclusion. The study showed that the aesthetic function of a lexical-semantic group in a literary text is associated with the development of individual authorial components of meaning in the meanings of its constituent components, and is determined by the author’s communicative intent and the specific organization of the artistic world of the work.