Metaphorical representation of money as water / liquid in the Russian linguistic world-image

The article is concerned with the metaphorical fragment of the Russian linguistic world-image which is represented by the metaphorical model ''Money is water / liquid''. The present study is a try to reveal some peculiarities of the structure of the mentioned model and to distinguish basic situations that are described by metaphors forming this metaphorical model. In the analysis an aspect of axiology is also dealt with: how evaluation of one or another situation is expressed when studied metaphors are used. Research units are the word combinations consisting of metaphors with initial semantics of water / liquid and words naming elements of monetary circulation (money, cash, finances, etc.). The methodological base of study is formed by techniques of structural semantics (componential analysis and distributive analysis) and cognitive linguistics (linguistic modeling and introspection). The majority of metaphors in the considered metaphorical model are verbs. These verbs can be conditionally divided into 2 groups: 1) metaphors that fix the idea of an active person who makes some operations with money; 2) metaphors that create an image of financial operations as processes independent of human actions. Metaphors of the first group can be used to describe following situations: making a profit, transfer of money, financial support. Metaphors of the second group can be used to say about such situations as receipt of money, money movement, spending money and disappearance of money. As a result of the research it is found out that verbs naming different kinds of water movement in their direct meanings are the majority of verbs metaphorically describing money. The metaphorical image is ambivalent: on the one hand, money is conceptualized as a mobile elemental substance that flows independently of human interference but, on the other hand, a person can control its movement and direct the money somewhere at will. The analysis from the aspect of axiology has shown that in the investigated metaphorical model the expression of evaluation first of all is characteristic for the metaphors describing some negative facts such as extortion, gaining money in a dishonest way, loss of money, etc.

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