Information on the thesis

The thesis focuses on the study of verbal means of representation of existential
phenomena in Anglo-Irish poetry of the XX century in the context of cultural linguistics.
The research investigates the nature of existential phenomena as universal categories of
human experience in linguistic and non-linguistics dimensions; identifies the forms and
models of conceptualisation of life experience that is based on neurophysiological architecture
of consciousness.
The study offers typology of existential phenomena, considers the parameters of
extralinguistic directionality, levels of ontological actualization, specific set of profiling
features. The formation and structure of linguacultural designations of experience are
determined by a set of universal and specific factors that incorporate non-linguistic, cognitive
linguistic and linguistic parameters. The study establishes that the basic models of
conceptualisation of existential phenomena are linguacultural concepts, conceptual
metaphors, conceptual metonymies, and conceptual networks.
Language means of Anglo-Irish poetry that nominate existential phenomena are
viewed as a linguacultural code which is formed as a result of phenomenal experience of a
linguistic community. Poetic sign is defined as a language unit that serves to represent a
conceptualisation of a subject, object or a process of experience. Poetic signs are formed
according to the two principles of semiosis: existential nature of signs, and relation
between the sing and the referent – a subject, object or a situation of phenomenal reality. It
is determined that the mechanism of sign formation in poetry is iconicity.
Iconic representation of phenomenal experience by the syntactic structures
demonstrates correlation between the type of a nominative unit and the type of extralinguistic
experience. According to this connection the study singles out functional and semantic
peculiarities of nominative units. The principle of semantic salience serves to determine the
component of the unit that carries the greater degree of meaningfulness.
Nominative space “existential phenomena” in Anglo-Irish poetry is comprised by
all of the language units the primary function of which is to express conceptualised life
experience in the language of poetry.
The study presents the analysis of language means that designate spatial, temporal,
anthropomorphic, ontological, social, emotional, mental and axiological phenomena. Sematic
analysis of designation units has allowed to delineate categorial framework within which the
representation of a phenomenon takes place.
For each of the categories the research defines conceptual components that form
conceptual world view of Anglo-Irish community, conceptual metaphors and metonymies
that demonstrate relationship within and between separate concepts, profiling of schemata
within conceptual networks, specific to the ethnic community of the given time frame.
Interpretation of those structures relies strongly on the pragmatic and extra-linguistic factors
exhibited in poetry.
Poetic context demonstrates the change in conceptual content and transformation of
conceptual world view of the Anglo-Irish community in the XX century. The state of the
matter is accompanied by and manifested in the process of conceptual inversion that
touches upon every aspect of perceived experience. Accordingly, the study determines the
types of inversion and analyses their functioning in poetic texts.
Key words: existential phenomenon, nominative unit, conceptual metaphor,
conceptual metonymy, Anglo-Irish poetry, sign, semiotisation, conceptual world view.