A LINGUOCOGNITIVE ANALYSIS OF THE CONCEPT OF TIME IN ENGLISH AND RUSSIAN PROVERBS (BASED ON CONCEPTUAL METAPHOR THEORY AND PROTOTYPE THEORY)

This paper explores the concept of time as represented in English and Russian proverbs within the theoretical framework of cognitive linguistics. The analysis is grounded in conceptual metaphor theory and prototype theory, which allow for a systematic interpretation of how abstract temporal experience is structured and categorized in language. Proverbs are examined as conventionalized linguistic realizations of culturally shared cognitive models. The study reveals that while both languages rely on comparable conceptual metaphors for time, they differ in prototype structures and evaluative focus. These differences reflect distinct cultural attitudes toward action, patience, and human agency, contributing to the understanding of cognitive and cultural variation in temporal conceptualization.