ANIMAL IMAGERY AND THE STRUCTURE OF DIDACTIC AND MORAL MEANING OF HUMAN TRAITS IN PROVERBS

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.46991/FLSP.2026.26.232

Keywords:

proverb, zoonyn, human trait, conceptual metaphor, causality

Abstract

The present article aims to analyze the linguocognitive representation of human traits in French and Armenian proverbs with a zoonym component from the perspective of conceptual metaphor theory. In proverbial discourse, animals serve as a prism for observing human traits such as dignity, incompetence, gratitude, ingratitude, restraint, greed, cautiousness, and stubbornness. The analysis demonstrates that conceptual metaphors foreground the interrelationship between character traits and patterns of behavior. Using a comparative method, the study reveals both similarities and differences in the linguocultural and linguocognitive features of traits attributed to animals in the proverbial discourse of the linguocultures under consideration. In the context of causality, animal behavior functions as a means of explicating human traits. Within the metaphorical representation of positive and negative connotations the animal is viewed either as a moral benchmark or as a means of modeling vicious behavior.

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References

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Լեզվական նյութի աղբյուրներ

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Published

2026-07-01

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Articles

How to Cite

Shalunts, N. (2026). ANIMAL IMAGERY AND THE STRUCTURE OF DIDACTIC AND MORAL MEANING OF HUMAN TRAITS IN PROVERBS. Foreign Languages for Special Purposes, 26, 232-260. https://doi.org/10.46991/FLSP.2026.26.232