Can the Soul be Expressed in Words? Interrogative Forms in the Language of M. Yu. Lermontov

Aim. To identify a paradigm of interrogative constructions (rhetorical statements) among the linguistic means of expressiveness in the works of M. Yu. Lermontov and to establish their role in conveying the sacred meanings, spiritual turmoil and inner contradictions within the world of characters created by the poet. To present the functioning of rhetorical statements in revealing sacred meanings associated with the constants “soul” and “love”; in creating the confessional nature of the texts he created; and in their dialogization.Methodology. The research was conducted based on a selection of rhetorical statements with lexical constants “soul” and “love” from M. Yu. Lermontov’s poetic and prose texts. Observations were made regarding their semantic expansion within the context. A structural-semantic analysis of the collected material was carried out, allowing conclusions to be drawn about their participation in the confessional and dialogized nature of the poet’s creative legacy, highlighting its subjectivity and emotionality.Results. It was established that various structural-semantic models of rhetorical statements are one of the most important linguistic means for revealing sacred meanings in the author’s creative legacy, giving it a confessional character.Research implications. The approach proposed in the article for evaluating the use of syntactic means of expressiveness in the text of an individual author can be applied in analyzing such means within the system of expressiveness in the literary texts of other authors.