THE WAR OF THE NARRATIVES: THE AGRESSOR’S RHETORIC AT THE BEGINNING OF THE RUSSIAN-UKRAINIAN WAR (BASED ON THE RUSSIAN NEWS AGENCIES’ MATERIALS IN 2014)

This research is devoted to the Russian media use of the narrative as a type of weapon in their hybrid war against Ukraine. The article aims to analyze linguistic and stylistic rhetoric specifics of the enemy narratives that followed the beginning of modern Russian-Ukrainian war in 2014, based on the materials published by Russian news agencies TASS and RIA-News. Such linguistic analysis makes it possible to understand how language and stylistic means are used by the narrator in order to deliver a certain ideological message, and how they shape perception and understanding of the world, value system and beliefs in the minds of the recipients. While studying media discourse in the context of the beginning of modern Russian-Ukrainian war, we have been pursuing two main approaches to the narrative analysis: the paradigmatic approach (based on ideas of K. Levi-Strauss), and syntagmatic approach (based on Russian folklorist V. Propp). Revisiting the works of the Russian explorer is not accidental, whereas while analyzing propagandist narratives in Russian media that actively followed events during the annexation of Crimea and partial occupation of Donetsk and Luhansk regions in 2014, we can trace analogies with “Proppian” narrative structure. It has been proven that the rhetoric of the narratives’ war during indicated period considered all possible linguistic and stylistic specifics in order to persuade and affect different audiences. It is mainly focused regarding the past, symbolism, images and myths. The interpretation of events, framing, mythologization, distortion of the historical past, creation of fakes and simulacrums, dehumanization, labeling, the binary contrast “positive-negative” (“friend-or-foe”), negative evaluative semantics and value-meaning assessment have become the main techniques. Analyzing all linguistic and cognitive technologies, techniques and methods that Russian Federation has been exploiting in the context of modern Russian-Ukrainian war via state controlled media not only will help to resist enemy’s aggression, but it will also help to avert the further Russian expansion into other European countries.