CATEGORICAL SITUATION OF CAUSATIVITY EXEMPLIFIED BY THE RUSSIAN VERB ТРЕВОЖИТЬ

Abstract

This paper is developed within the framework of the functional-grammatical approach and presents a detailed study of the mechanisms of inter-categorial interaction, focusing on the emotive causative verb тревожить. The main objective of the study is to construct a comprehensive model demonstrating how a combination of functional-semantic categories (FSCs) is actualized across diverse contexts of this verb's usage. Based on a comprehensive analysis of examples extracted from the National Corpus of the Russian Language (NCRL), the study demonstrates that the categorial situation represented by the verb тревожить constitutes an inter-categorial inclusion. Its core is formed by the inseparably linked categories of causativity (instigation of a state) and emotivity (conveyance of the emotion of anxiety). However, the model extends beyond this pair. The work identifies and systematically describes the phenomenon of inter-categorial crossing – the dynamic interaction of the core pair with peripheral functional-semantic categories. Analysis reveals that contexts featuring the verb тревожить regularly activate categories such as intensity (e.g., adverbs сильно, слегка), iterativity (verbs with the prefix по: потревожить, temporality (aspectual-temporal verb forms), instrumentality (тревожить звонками), locality (тревожить на работе), and taxis (тревожить, пока не ответит), which find direct expression through specific lexical and grammatical markers. The scientific novelty of the research lies, firstly, in describing the verb тревожить as a complex center of a categorial situation that organizes an entire network of semantic connections around itself. Secondly, the study contributes to linguistic theory by identifying specific zones of its interaction with a wide spectrum of FSCs. Particular attention is paid to semantically complex cases, such as contexts involving implicit causativity, where the cause of anxiety is not explicitly named but inferred from the situation, and the phenomenon of auto-causation, where the subject and object of the action coincide in one person (тревожиться). These aspects significantly expand the traditional understanding of the semantics and functional potential of this verb, demonstrating its role not merely as a label for an action, but as a node within a complex semantic network.

Extended Abstract

This article, developed within the framework of the functional-grammatical approach, presents a detailed study of the mechanisms of inter-categorial interaction, with the emotive causative verb тревожить as its object. The primary aim is to construct a comprehensive model demonstrating how a combination of functional-semantic categories is actualized across diverse contexts of this verb's usage. Based on a continuous sampling of examples from the National Corpus of the Russian Language, the study proves that the categorial situation represented by the verb тревожить is an inter-categorial inclusion. Its core is formed by the inseparably linked categories of causativity, understood as the instigation of a state, and emotivity, as the conveyance of the emotion of anxiety.

However, the model extends beyond this core pair. The work identifies and systematically describes the phenomenon of inter-categorial crossing – the dynamic interaction of the nuclear pair with peripheral functional-semantic categories. The analysis shows that contexts with the verb тревожить regularly activate categories such as intensity, expressed by adverbs like сильно or слегка; iterativity, marked by verbs with the prefix по- (e.g., потревожить); temporality, realized through aspectual-temporal verb forms; instrumentality (e.g., тревожить звонками); locality (e.g., тревожить на работе); and taxis (e.g., тревожить, пока не ответит). These categories find direct expression in specific lexical and grammatical markers.

The scientific novelty of the research lies, firstly, in describing the verb тревожить as a complex centre of a categorial situation that organizes an entire network of semantic connections around itself. Secondly, the study contributes to linguistic theory by identifying specific zones of its interaction with a wide spectrum of functional-semantic categories. Particular attention is paid to semantically complex cases. These include contexts with implicit causativity, where the cause of anxiety is not explicitly named but inferred from the situation, often involving non-alienable anthroponomic entities like ум or воображение. Also examined is the phenomenon of auto-causation, where the subject and object of the action coincide in one person, grammatically marked by reflexive pronouns or the particle -ся (тревожиться).

The analysis of corpus material confirms that the verb тревожить functions as a multidimensional semantic node. It integrates the core causal-emotive complex with peripheral categories, demonstrating its capacity for semantic diffusion across various speech registers and its role in marking different types of speech acts. These aspects significantly expand the traditional understanding of the semantics and functional potential of this verb, demonstrating its role not merely as a label for an action, but as an active node within a complex semantic network that adequately represents intricate causative-emotive relations, reflecting the multifaceted nature of human perception and experience. Thus, the emotive causative тревожить is presented as an effective means of verbalizing complex mental processes where cause-effect relationships are closely intertwined with emotional states.