PROTOTYPICAL INTERPRETATION OF CONCEPT AND CONCEPTUAL SYSTEM IN COGNITIVE LINGUISTICS (A CASE STUDY OF THE “INTERNET” CONCEPT)

Abstract

The article examines the concept, one of the central categories of cognitive linguistics, and analyzes the structure of the conceptual system as a form of knowledge organization in the human mind. Drawing on the definition proposed by E. S. Kubryakova and her colleagues, the concept is interpreted as a complex mental unit that embodies an individual's cognitive, emotional, and cultural experience. The study demonstrates the methodological potential of the prototypical categorization approach for describing the internal organization of concepts and conceptual systems and explains their core-periphery structure. Theoretical considerations are illustrated through the example of the Internet concept by identifying its central and peripheral elements within the lexical-semantic field. The findings show that the central and peripheral elements of the Internet concept can be described according to degrees of typicality, and their features of representation within the lexical-semantic field can be identified.