Complex sentences expressing the situation of perception in Russian

The paper examines complex sentences of Russian as a means of expressing the perception category. The main sentence represents the situation of perception; the additional clause expresses the perceived situation. The purpose of this paper is to analyze complex sentences with perception semantics in Russian and to identify the peculiarities of a combination of tenses. The study is based on the examples found in “Russian National Corpus.” The novelty of the work is to consider the representation of the perception category, depending on conjunctions and the use of different tenses. The situation of perception involves 1) a predicate of perceptual action, 2) a subject or a perceptor who is a producer/controller of physical and mental actions. The object of perception is a verbally expressed situation. An explicit expression of the perception situation suggests that the narrator and perceptor are the same. In Russian, the perception category is expressed by complex sentences with an explanatory clause. Postposition of subordinate clauses introducing the perceived situation is typical. Analysis has focused on complex sentences expressing the relationship between the perceiving and perceived parts. Analysis of the examples allows arguing that complex sentences with conjunctions realizing the perception category do not have any significant differences. Regardless of the conjunctions, complex sentences with the semantics of perception are characterized by the coincidence of predicate tenses to express the simultaneity of perceived situation and situation of perception. It is necessary to note the frequency of the Present tense to express the simultaneity with the perceived situation in the Past tense. The Present tense acts as the Past tense.

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