Pragmatics of verbalizing the phenomenon of tricksterism in Russian-language artistic discourse (based on N. V. Gogol's "Dead Souls")

The aim of the research is to identify the linguistic representation of the communicative strategies and tactics of the trickster in the speech of Chichikov, the main character of N. V. Gogol's "Dead Souls." The article examines 166 remarks of Chichikov collected from the text of the work, which are analyzed from the point of view of the use of figurative language, emotionally evaluative vocabulary, types of sentences, and pragmatic strategies and tactics. The scientific novelty lies in the systematic study of the linguistic means and speech strategies of the trickster on the example of N. V. Gogol's "Dead Souls." The complex methodology for studying the linguistic phenomenon of tricksterism using the analysis of lexical, syntactic, stylistic means, as well as identifying the pragmatic characteristics of speech behavior that objectify the image of the trickster in speech based on statistical data, is innovative. As a result of the study, it is shown that N. V. Gogol, through carefully developed linguistic characteristics, created the image of Chichikov as a classic trickster. The most common figurative means in Chichikov's remarks (irony, metaphor, hyperbole), which enhance the trickster image, are established; the frequency of use of emotionally evaluative vocabulary is analyzed; the distribution of emotional shades is clarified in accordance with a specific communicative situation; and the pragmatic strategies and tactics implemented in the speech of the main character of the story are identified and described: the speech strategy of pragmatic uncertainty, the tactic of hinting, the tactic of formalization in speech, the tactic of reducing certainty, the use of hedges, the tactic of "false modesty" and maintaining confidentiality.