The Czech zdravý rozum and the English common sense through the prism of the Natural Semantic Metalanguage Cover Image

Hlavně žádná věda: zdravý rozum a common sense prizmatem přirozeného sémantického metajazyka
The Czech zdravý rozum and the English common sense through the prism of the Natural Semantic Metalanguage

Author(s): Marie Pavlásková
Subject(s): Language and Literature Studies, Semantics, Sociolinguistics
Published by: AV ČR - Akademie věd České republiky - Ústav pro jazyk český
Keywords: Anna Wierzbicka;common sense;cultural linguistics;ethnolinguistics;intercultural semantics;linguistic anthropology;natural semantic metalanguage

Summary/Abstract: This paper aims to analyse the meaning of the salient Czech concept of zdravý rozum, and compare it with its English equivalent, common sense. It does so by using the natural semantic metalanguage, a universal and elementary metalanguage originated by Anna Wierzbicka. This metalanguage represents a shared conceptual core of, presumably, all natural languages, so it is independent of any particular culture and can serve as a non-ethnocentric tertium comparationis for the purposes of intercultural ethnolinguistic research. In this study, it serves to compare and contrast two unique and highly complex concepts that enable us to gain some insight into two different linguistic worldviews – and their respective cultures.

  • Issue Year: 105/2022
  • Issue No: 1
  • Page Range: 21-36
  • Page Count: 21
  • Language: Czech