Some Features of the Use of the Word Poslednij (Last) in the Russian Language of the 18th–19th Centuries

The article focuses on the use of the word poslednij (last, latest, least) in the Russian language of the 18^th–19^th centuries in combinations that do not seem typical for the modern native speakers, i. e., such as do poslednej vozmozhnosti (to the utmost, lit.to the last opportunity), do poslednikh granits (till the last breath, lit. to the last borders) and the like. The main assumption is that the analysis of non-trivial contexts can lead us to a better description of not only the combinatorial potential of the word but also its semantics for a modern Russian native speaker. So, as exemplified in the collected material, it can be seen that the word poslednij also used to have the intensifying function without any negative connotations, as, e.g., in combinations poslednee delo (the least [worst] thing). It is suggested that the negative connotation of the word poslednij which appeared and became more and more evident over time could motivate its replacement with the quasi-synonymous word krajnij (extreme, utter): poslednie mery (last measures) → krajnie mery (extreme measures), poslednij srok (deadline, lit. the last date) → krajnij srok (deadline, lit. the extreme date). The article uses data of the Russian National Corpus as the material, and pays special attention to the texts of F. M. Dostoevsky, which is motivated by the research interests of the author. Dostoevsky often uses the word poslednij in combinations v/do krajnej stepeni X-a (to the last degree of X), which allows the author to focus the reader's attention on the characters’ feelings.

Keywords

Russian language of the 18th century, Russian language of the 19th century, lexical collocations, phraseology, semantics, Dostoevsky’s individual style

Received

28.12.2022

Publication date

28.12.2022

Number of characters

16048

Cite

GOST	Balashov E. Some Features of the Use of the Word Poslednij (Last) in the Russian Language of the 18th–19th Centuries // Russkaya Rech’ – 2022. – Issue 6 C. 71-80 [Electronic resource]. URL: http://ras.jes.su/rusrech/s013161170023738-0-1-en (circulation date: 21.05.2024). DOI: 10.31857/S013161170023738-0
MLA	Balashov, Evgenij A "Some Features of the Use of the Word Poslednij (Last) in the Russian Language of the 18th–19th Centuries." Russkaya Rech’ 6 (2022):71-80. DOI: 10.31857/S013161170023738-0
APA	Balashov E. (2022). Some Features of the Use of the Word Poslednij (Last) in the Russian Language of the 18th–19th Centuries. Russkaya Rech’ (6), pp.71-80 DOI: 10.31857/S013161170023738-0

100 rub.

When subscribing to an article or issue, the user can download PDF, evaluate the publication or contact the author. Need to register.

Number of purchasers: 0, views: 203

Readers community rating: votes 0

1. Baranov A. N., Dobrovol'skii D. O. Aspekty teorii frazeologii [Aspects of the theory of phraseology]. Moscow, Znak Publ., 2008. 656 p.

2. Dobrovol'skii D. O. [Compatibility factors: semantics, pragmatics, usus]. Russkii yazyk v nauchnom osveshchenii, 2005, no. 2 (10), pp. 43–86. (In Russ.)

3. Evgen’eva A. P. (ed.). Slovar' russkogo yazyka: v 4 t. [Dictionary of the Russian language: In 4 vols.]. Vol. 3. Moscow, Russkii Yazyk Publ., Poligrafresursy Publ., 1999. 750 p.

4. Gerd A.S. (ed.). Bol'shoi akademicheskii slovar' russkogo yazyka [Big academic dictionary of the Russian language]. Vol. 19. Porok – Press. Moscow, Nauka Publ., 2011. 710 p.

5. Gracián B. L'homme de cour, traduit & commenté par le sieur Amelot De la Houssaie. Available at:

6. https://books.google.ru/books?id=JVF4lzGFO4gC&printsec=frontcover&hl=ru&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false (accessed 05.10.2022).

7. Likhachev D. S. [Dostoevsky's neglect of words]. Dostoevskii: materialy i issledovaniya [Dostoevsky. Materials and Researches]. Vol. 2. Leningrad, Nauka Publ., 1976, pp. 30–41. (In Russ.)

8. Natsional’nyi korpus russkogo yazyka [Russian National Corpus]. Available at: https://ruscorpora.ru/new/ (accessed 05.10.2022).

9. Petrova Z. M. (ch. ed.). Slovar' russkogo yazyka XVIII veka [Dictionary of the Russian language of the 18th century]. Issue 19. St. Petersburg, Nauka Publ., 2011. 239 p.

10. Sharapova E. V. Anomal'naya sochetayemost' intensifikatorov v yazyke F. M. Dostoevskogo. Diss. kand. fil. nauk [Anomalous compatibility of intensifiers in the language of F. M. Dostoevsky. Cand. philol. sci. diss.]. Moscow, 2018. 229 p. Available at: http://ruslang.ru/doc/diss/sharapova.pdf (accessed 05.10.2022).

11. Shmelev D. N. Sovremennyi russkii yazyk. Leksika [Modern Russian language. Vocabulary]. Moscow, 1977. 335 p.