Levko O. Language Phenomenon of Greek Patristics of the Golden Age: Cognitive and Discourse Dimensions.

The thesis is devoted to research of cognitive and pragmatic characteristics of the language personality of Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian and John Chrysostom on the basis of their epideictic sermons. The work vindicates expediency of applying linguo-cognitive, linguo-cultural and discourse approaches to research of the language phenomenon of the Greek Patristics. Verbal-semantic, linguo-cognitive and motivational levels of the authors' language personalities are described, usage of lexical and stylistic means in epideictic sermons is analysed. Verbalization of the key concepts for individual outlooks of the Three Holy Hierarchs, particularly "virtue", "competition", "light", "deification" and "illumination by the Divine Light" is studied. Communicative strategies, language tactics and the authors' intentions, according to which the communication between the Christian preacher and the audience of believers took place, are determined. The precedent texts of the Holy Scripture and Ancient Greek literature, which are of prior importance for the authors' language personalities, are analysed. The phenomenon of biblical and ancient intertextuality in epideictic rhetoric is studied. The tendencies of linguo-cultural dialogue of antiquity and Christianity in the patristic discourse of the Golden Age are determined.