EUROPE in Ukrainian texts. The problem of conceptual variability

Abstract

The article deals with the representation of the concept of Europe in contemporary Ukrainian texts. The data are drawn from the media (including the “new media”) and supplemented with questionnaires administered to students (the question asked was: “What is the ‘true’ Europe?”). The concept of Europe is linked with norms and values, it is sensitive to the socio-cultural context, as can especially be seen in the time of radical social changes. In this way, the dynamics of the changes in conceptualization (intra-linguistic variability) can be observed. However, conceptualizations are subjected to correction and regulation, as is the case with the metaphorical “teacher – student” schema in portrayals of the relationship between Europe and Ukraine, the presentation of Europe as a pattern to follow, etc. A modification of the model in effect signifies a change, but the change is not arbitrary: it is concordant with a specific cognitive frame and the new socio-cultural context.