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ILMIY AXBOROTNOMA FILOLOGIYA 2019-yil, 6-son
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illustrate general features of human nature, than ethnocentric-oriented in particular ethnos, they come
forward as the key to the cognition of ethno-cultural and language mentality of the nation.
Mentality is understood as the patterns of thought, set of intellectual skills and spiritual set inherent
to a particular individual or social group.
The phraseological fund of the English language is extraordinarily rich. Without touching upon this
sphere, one cannot learn the language of this nation and converse with the representative of the British
culture not having little stock of frequently used idioms.
The British character is embodied by the Anglo-Saxon practicality, with dreaminess of Celtic
people, piratical courage of Vikings and with the discipline of North men.
There are stereotypes that the British are very vain. They are sure that in the life of their country
everything is much better than that of others. This feature of the British developed due to the lack of
sociability and the increased awareness of their superiority over others.
The first and the most evident feature of this nation is the stability and permanency of the character
of people that form it. Curiosity of British people let them be introduced with the best of what the other
nations own, yet being the true follower of their traditions:
Every bird likes its own nest; every bullet has its
billet.
Being admired by French cuisine, the English man would never copy it. They are very moderate in
emotions, both in public and within the narrow family circle [1; 38].
Arrogance is the attitude of the individual to herself, expressed in some British idioms.
Punch above your weight
– participate in an event or competition that you think is beyond your
capabilities or abilities.
This metaphor went from such a sport as boxing. Competitions in this sport are held between
opponents of almost equal weight.
Little tin god
is a self-sufficient person.
The following stable expressions reflect such a character trait as English selfishness:
have an ax to
grind
- to have personal reasons or interest to do something.The expression originated in the story of
Benjamin Franklin and was used first in the United States, especially with reference to politics, but now it
is used everywhere. For example:
“I don’t have a political ax to grind "="
I do not have a personal
political interest to do this.
However, not all character traits that reflect English idioms have a negative connotation. There is a
fairly large group of set expressions that personify courage and bravery.
Bell the cat
- take it. Take the risk of joint initiative / enterprise.
Bell the cat
hints at a fable in which mice or rats have an idea to hang a bell on the cat's neck, in
order to be aware of its approximation in a timely manner, the only difficulty is to find one brave person
among them who are ready to perform the task.
heart of oak
- manly character
Literally, the heart (heart) - solid central part of the oak, traditionally used for covering ships. The
phrase was popularized by the words of an 18th century song: “The heart of the oak is our ships, the heart
of the oak is our people.”
The main features of the British character are considered to be independence, education, dignity,
honesty and selflessness.
For example, Mr Clean means an honest and incorruptible politician. And the expression
above
board
, which also means “fair,” came from the terminology of gambling, which meant fair play (with the
players holding their hands above the table, called board).
Irresponsibility, loquacity, light-mindedness are considered to be a big offence in England within all
periods. It can be seen in such proverbs as
“Tattler is worse than a thief, Good words and no deeds, Good
words without deeds are rushes and reeds, Gossip in gandly in go hand in hand”[4].
It is believed that the British have a very developed sense of responsibility, this can be said about the
abundance of phraseological units that characterize this trait.
Let George do it
- let someone else do their job or take responsibility.
Hold the fort
- hold responsibility for the situation while someone is absent.
Carry the can
- informal to take responsibility for a mistake or misconduct.
In relation to other people, some character traits can also be distinguished. One of them is anger.
And in the British version of the English language, this feature is characterized by various idioms.
Consider some of them:
rattle someone's cage
- informally forcing someone to get angry or annoyed, usually consciously
(literally "shaking someone's cell"). This phrase describes a situation in which the viewer annoys a
dangerous animal in a cage.
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