Linguistic representation of the concept "morality" in modern English: a corpus-based discourse analysis

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Abstract

this article presents the results of a comprehensive linguistic study aimed at identifying and conducting a multifaceted analysis of verbal markers that represent the concept of "morality" in the synchronic slice of the modern English language. The methodological paradigm of the research is based on an integration of corpus linguistics and critical discourse analysis methods. The empirical foundation comprised data from the largest representative corpora – the British National Corpus (BNC) and the Corpus of Contemporary American English (COCA), enabling a comparative analysis that accounts for national and cultural variations. Within the study, we not only identified and classified the primary and secondary linguistic markers but also conducted a detailed semantic-cognitive analysis, revealed their frequency of use, distribution across text types, and their typical collocations (frequency, distribution, collocational profiles). Furthermore, we established their pragmatic functions within various types of discourse (political, media, academic). A special focus of the research is concentrated on the semantic dilemma of "morality / ethics." Through a comparative analysis of contextual environments and discursive practices, we determined the points where the meanings of the words «morality», «moral», and «ethics» coincide and differ, highlighted their unique features, and identified the typical contexts for the use of each.

About the authors

M. V Brisker

Orenburg State University

Email: blackorchid777@rambler.ru

E. A Mokritskaya

Orenburg State University

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