Lexical Content of the Category “Tolerance” in Contemporary Russian Press

Abstract

The article analyzes the lexical content of the concept of “tolerance” in the materials published on the pages of high-quality Russian press, presented by “Nezavisimaya Gazeta”, “Literaturnaya Gazeta” and “Kommersant” newspaper. The word “tolerance” means “patience” at the level of lexical meaning are contradictory. This is due to the fact that the scientific literature treats tolerance and patience differently – from synonymy to complete opposition. The presence of the word in the media text “encourages” it to take the ideological orientation of the General public context. Because of the arising of the topical connotations of tolerance of the phenomenon may go to tolerance is the word. As a complex interdisciplinary category “tolerance” in periodicals functions in different discourses and with different evaluation characteristics. Its presence on the pages of print media is often supplemented by certain lexical markers that do not affect the connotations: “political correctness”, “multiculturalism”, “European values”, “globalization”. The semantic content of tolerance in media texts is expressed by associative rows and oppositions, while many lexemes can simultaneously be identified with tolerance and opposed to it. These include: “respect”, “understanding”, “goodwill”, “indifference”, “alienation”, “internationalism”. In texts with a negative assessment of tolerance, the semantic content of the concept is supplemented by the following components: indifferentism, the lack of the concept of norm and pathology, the destruction of traditional norms and values, the loss of national identity. This kind of tolerance, including at the conceptual level, in media journalism is opposed to the primordial Russian ideas about the spiritual values of life. The lexical component of the category “tolerance” in the press reflects the peculiarities of its functioning in the modern linguistic picture and socio-political space of Russia. The texts of high-quality print media provide meaningful language material not only for the philological study of the category of “tolerance”, but also for its interdisciplinary development. At the same time, interdisciplinary comments are necessary as a broad (near and far) context and in the immanent study of language material relating to such an urgent problem as tolerance.

Keywords

• tolerance
• media linguistics
• media text
• lexical content
• contemporary Russian press