Types of epithetation in M. Tsvetaeva’s “Notebooks”

Abstract

The article covers the analysis of the various types of epithetation in M. Tsvetaeva’s “Notebooks”. The research material is two volumes of the poet’s recently published “Notebooks”. On the base of cognitive-semantic, contextual and quantitative methods, the mechanism of epithetation in M. Tsvetaeva’s texts are analyzed various mechanisms of epithetation. It is established that the main directions of epithetation in M. Tsvetaeva’s prose texts should be recognized as metaphorization and metonymization of a attribute, which is a continuation of the epithetation strategies in other texts of the poet. It is noted that prose texts provide an opportunity to freely express the necessary meaning, rebuild the statement, varying the semantics of the attribute element of the epithet complex, which is an integral part of the author’s self-reflection. Attention is drawn to complex types of epithetation, the expansion of the epithet series, and occasional epithet words. The logic and strategy of epithetation in M. Tsvetaeva's prose represent a free association of elements of reality based on the identification of any objects based on their common attributes. The novelty of epithet words is based on the author's attitude to the endless search for the right word that reveals its meaning in the context. There is a tendency towards anthropomorphic metaphorization and metonymization of realities. The text of the prose makes it possible to directly express the author's thoughts and feelings, point out new attributes, cognitively updating the semantics of many concepts; analyze what was written earlier, which leads to complex intertextuality within the framework of one's own creativity. The research is carried out in line with the cognitive theory of epithetation, which considers the epithet complex as a mental-verbal construct with intersecting cognitive fields that form a blended complex attributive image.