TYPICAL CHARACTERS OF RUSSIAN AND CHINESE FAIRY TALES

In the paper, fairy tales are considered as repositories of cultural and universal human values that reflect people's views on the nature of good and evil. Thus, the study of fairy tales has important theoretical and practical implications for linguoculturology and linguoaxiology. Traditional values revealed through the behaviour of fairy tale characters are reflected in the present-day actions and motives of people. The paper considers and compares traditional characters of Chinese and Russian fairy tales from the perspective of moral and cultural values they represent. The purpose of the research is to reveal the cultural differences in Chinese and Russian mentalities through the analysis of Russian and Chinese fairy tale characters. The author analyzes the main characteristics of the Russian and Chinese fairy tale characters, such as their appearance, origin, background and deeds they accomplish. The main research method is the comparative analysis of folklore texts which includes the analysis of the text structure as well as linguistic means of describing folklore characters in Chinese and Russian fairy tales. The study shows that kindness, generosity, honesty, openness and sincerity can be considered the main values of the Russian culture, while the main values the Chinese fairy tale characters represent are kindness, bravery, self-sacrifice, integrity, justice. Thus, some common features of the Chinese and Russian fairy tale characters were revealed, which testifies to some shared value orientations in Chinese and Russian cultures. Though both China and Russian have a unique, rich, diverse, and, at times, controversial history, the presence of shared cultural values reflected in their folklore can provide common grounds for mutual understanding and strengthening the relations between the two peoples.