Dontsova Maria Alexandrovna,

а student of State Educational Institution of Higher Professional Education of Moscow "Moscow City Teachers Training University",

Russia, Moscow

THE SEMANTICS OF BLACK, WHITE AND RED COLORS IN THE EXAMPLES OF ENGLISH FOLK ART

The terms denoting white and black colors were the first in the English language and in other languages of the world. Red was used extensively in English in the course of formation of traditional culture. Triad black / white / red spreads in samples of folklore later. It should be noted that each color is initially endowed with special properties and associated in people with certain human qualities and natural phenomena.

The black color traditionally symbolizes something dark, evil, forbidden: black as hell, black as night, black as pitsh. British (аs well as in other cultures) traditionally allocate with black color powers of darkness: devils and a Devil, often meeting in many works of the oral national creativity, urged to awaken religiousness in listeners.

It is no coincidence that all the evil sorcerers use just black magic (black art). The clash of white and black colors happens in the fairy tale "the White Lady": a beautiful innocent girl, bewitched by an evil witch and turned into a gray hare, is presented as a white lady [1, p. 60].

Black beast with red eyes is a symbol of devilry in English folk tales: in the tales of "The Magic ointment" ("black as coal high horse with fiery eyes"), «Black Bull of Norroway" (round black with red eyes that killed dozens of innocent people was enchanted prince).

The standard examples of the use of black in the negative aspect are the following phrases: black sheep of the family, black soul, black look.

Black color is associated with mourning and loss. Grief is reflected in clothing in life. The traditional expression of bitterness is wearing mourning signs: black dress, black armbands.

Black color also symbolizes bad temper and health problems. The English say if a person is unhappy with something then person is black as sin (thunder, thundercloud). Joyless person can be characterized as a man who is as black as ink. At the same time, many of the phrases in the Russian language, also related to the color values are similar.

Fundamental differences in the use of black and white were highlighted in language as a result of a borrowing between classic English and its U.S. equivalent.

Such phrases as black hand, black market, blackmail, black bag firmly established in modern English. And black in different contexts may have different values. The expression to put up a black means committing a major, fatal error, and the expression to be in the black means getting some kind of revenue, profits.

In some cases, there is a reverse process of changing the language. In today's world of political correctness phrases like black men and white men are disappeared in language. It is assumed that the division of people by color determines them into two groups "good" and "bad”. This point has a historical basis: black means the Devil and white means the God in traditional religions. This error is moved from the religion in the classical literature. For example, once a sub-Saharan Africa has been characterized as the white man's grave because of the unfavorable climate.

Phrases that contain references to white, in contrast, represent good and peace. For example, white dove is traditionally considered a symbol of peace. White can mean negative emotions. People usually say it’s a white elephant about useless gift that can’t be used. Man knocked out of the society is white craw.

In some cases, the word «white» softens context. For example, word «lie», bearing the sharply negative meaning in combination with the white color begins to sound like a white lie from the point of view of morality.

There is another history example: people, who evade military service, were handed white feathers. Getting a white feather meant showing cowardice, so the expression to show the white feather has become synonymous with cowardice. We say white hot about an object or a subject that can cause rage. If we are talking about a person that stands out from the crowd of his peers we say: white-haired / white-headed boy, so the word gets a positive meaning.

Penitential garments are painted white, from which this idiom originates: to stand in a white sheet. An honest man has a lily-white reputation (it means untarnished reputation). An innocent man never hides clean hands, and people usually talk about this person: he / she has white hands. The objective coverage of events to any judgment has been called: white light.

Opposition of white & black in value light & darkness, the good & the evil, truth & lie is presented at such examples of national creativity, as proverbs and sayings: Each stain comes to sight on a horse that is white; No wool is so white that a dyer can’t blacken; two blacks do not make a white.

Many English proverbs are similar in semantic value to Russian proverbs: A black hen lays a white egg; you can't wash charcoal white. Also the connection of the two colors is used to emphasize the contrast with the written situations, for example: The Black Hand gang bleeds the people white.

The ability to analyze the information is reflected in the expression: to know black from white. Intentional deception, misrepresentation of someone is reflected in the expression to swear black is white.

Black can express the value of the conditional darkness, obscurity: Every bean has its black. Black color can be used in different ways: in the literal sense in the proverb the pot calls the kettle black.

White symbolizes joy. The expression to mark with a white stone means to note a calendar date as happy one. A man with bright prospects, who serves as an example for other successful people, is called white hope. White is the color of nobility and chivalry. In London, the street on which government offices are located, is called White Street and the residence of the British government called Whitehall Palace. Public officials and employees not engaged in manual labor are called white-collars in spoken English. Government reports were designated as white papers. At state receptions accepted only appear in white tie, such receptions are called white-tie so in spoken English.

The colors were also used in the signs. White color can mean the natural phenomena, such as white night or white squall. Adverse weather conditions were described using black: strong frost called black frost. People believed that various charms saved them from bad weather on the way. For example, in 1930-1940 the mascot of African-Americans – black cat bone was very popular.

Questioning of 144 students learning English in Moscow College of Architecture and Construction №7 showed the following frequency of use of black and white colors in the conversation. 68.4% of the students named examples of using colors in the English oral folklore (fairy tales, legends, riddles), 31% - comparative idioms, etc.

The red color is also found in oral folk art everywhere. For example, we usually say about embarrassed or ashamed man: he / she has a red face. At the present stage, red is strongly associated with paper cases. Thus, the processes described as a red tape.

Accordingly, a person caught in the act, is described as red-handed. In past centuries, during the hunt strong-smelling smoked herringare often used to knock down with a trace of hunting dogs. Therefore, the expression: red herring is a symbol of diversionary maneuver.

A festive day marked in the Church calendar is denoted as red - letter day. In turn, if the red carpets spread out on these holidays, such techniques are called red-carpet welcome. A special day of the year allotted for charity, is called Red Nose Day in the UK.

As well as black, red color is closely associated with the money. A person who has debts or exceeding credit is the man in the red. In turn, the process of making a profit is described as out of the red. Copper coin worth one cent was red, so the expression It is not worth a red cent has historically occurred in the language.

Natural red color is present in folk superstitions: Red sky at night shepherds delight; Red sky in the morning shepherds warning.

Shades of red are used to describe the influential masters of royal blood or magical creatures with great magical potential (demigods, nymphs, etc.) in the folk tales. Blood-red and purple colors became a symbol of power, prosperity and wealth, for example, in the fairy tale "The Magic Horn" [2, p. 82]. Red men play the role of wizards in the fairy tale "Jack and the gold snuff-box".

Red is associated with danger. Red flag in the old days meant a challenge to a fight. Order of the red light is a signal to stop the actions. State of readiness to take risks is indicated by the expression to go on red alert to. Night flights are traditionally called red-eye flight because of physical fatigue of passengers and pilots.

Variety of color words depends on the level of development of language in accordance with the statement of research B. Berlin and P. Key [4]. Now the most important colors for the British are blue, red and white – the colors of the flag of Great Britain, which is a combination of flags of the three countries: England (a red cross on a white background), Scotland (a white cross on a blue background), Ireland (red diagonal cross on a white background).

Literature:

1. Английские сказки, собранные и обработанные Чистяковой-Вэр Е.М. – М.: МПНПО «МАДА», 1994. – 215 с.

2. Домовой из Хилтона: английские народные сказки. / Перевод с английского Н. Шерешевской. – М.: Главная редакция издательско-полиграфического концерна «Шарк», 1993. – 112 с.

3. Невмержицкая Е.В., Донцова М.А. Этноколористический словарь. В 3-х частях. Словарь основных цветов. Ч. 1. – М.: Граница, 2011. – 96 с.

4. Berlin, Br., Kay, P. Basic colour terms: their universality and evolution. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1969. – 178 p.