The Antonymic Paradigm of Phraseological Somatisms of the English and German Languages (Exemplified by Phraseological Units with the Semantics of Speech Activity)

This paper studies English and German phraseological units with somatic components, taking into account one of the aspects of systemic paradigmatic relations of phraseological units, namely, antonymy. Phraseological units expressing human speech activity are analysed in both languages. Somatic phraseological units are most interesting linguistic phenomena; many linguists have been studying them. This research is important and relevant due to the need for a detailed study into the paradigmatic relations of English and German phraseological units with somatic components from the perspective of the anthropocentric approach, which allows us to identify the similarities and differences between the two linguistic worldviews. Within the framework of this research, the descriptive and the comparative methods were used, as well as the method of component analysis. In addition, author’s classification (A.E. Guseva) of phraseological antonyms is presented. The main antonymic chains of German and English phraseological units containing somatisms associated with speech activity were identified; a quantitative analysis of the fullness of these chains was carried out, indicating the specific features of the linguistic worldviews under study. Having compared English and German somatic phraseological units, we revealed a number of common features, which indicates similarity of the conceptual spheres of the two nations. Further, structural similarities between English and German units under study were established. In terms of theoretical significance, this research enhances our insight into the similarities and differences between German and English phraseological units with various somatic components; the practical importance is determined by the possibility of creating a fragment of а thesaurus of German and English phraseological units with somatic components.