Conceptualization of Caution in the Russian and English Language and Culture

The conceptual, figurative-situational, and value-based features of this concept are characterized using data from explanatory and synonym dictionaries, national corpora of the Russian and English languages, proverbs, and aphorisms. The paper deals with semiotic characteristics of caution as a behavioral regulative in the Russian and English language and culture. To a significant extent, the features of caution in the cultures being compared coincide, with the subject’s desire to avoid unfavorable circumstances being specified as foresight, thoughtfulness, and care. Caution is understood as a positively evaluated behavior, contrasting with recklessness and excessive caution. The figurative-situational characteristics of caution clarify the dangerous situations in which the subjects find themselves, as well as the unfavorable consequences of imprecise movements and thoughtless speech. Appeals to caution often arise in the speech genres of “call” and “advice.” The main difference in understanding caution in Russian and English linguistic consciousness lies in the fact that in Russian, fear and care are syncretically expressed within this concept, while in English, they are represented by two main nominators, whose primary meanings can be defined as positions of rational or emotionally empathetic attitudes toward reality. The value-based features of the concept of “caution” in paremiology primarily serve as reminders to be vigilant and act prudently. There is a certain difference in the understanding of caution in proverbs and aphorisms: practical admonitions emphasize the benefits of caution and highlight the harms of recklessness, while reflections on human nature critically evaluate excessive caution.