WOMAN'S IMAGE AS A REFLECTION OF FEMININITY IN KALMYK LINGUACULTURE

The article is devoted to the images of Kalmyk women in the social roles of mother, wife, daughterin-law, grandmother, mother-in-law and daughter. Kalmyk proverbs and sayings are used as reference material, since, being chunks of language developed in ancient times, they have reflected the ethnic vision of femininity. The article shows that paroemia reflects patriarchal insight into a lower status of a woman as contrary to that of a man, outlining her role within the family framework, although society recognizes the merits of a woman as a continuer of the human kind. In proverbs and sayings, a woman in the role of mother and grandmother has a positive assessment, whereas a woman in the role of stepmother and mother-in-law is negatively evaluated. Daughter is considered as a temporary member of the family, who after getting married becomes a member of her husband's family; she is regarded as a free labor source in her new family. In Kalmyk linguistic culture a woman is endowed with communicative qualities (politeness, reverence, modesty), while her mental and organizational skills are not highly appreciated. Politeness and modesty are considered the greatest advantage of a Kalmyk woman. Paroemia most often gives a woman a negative characteristic. The exception is mother and grandmother who are given a uniquely positive assessment. They are endowed with the best human and feminine traits including kindness, patience, ability to work hard and wisdom. The androcentrism of Kalmyk environment manifests itself in the images of women and the assessments of their roles. (C) 2019 Published by Future Academy