CONCEPTUAL SPACE OF ISLAMIC THREAT IMAGE IN MODERN ENGLISH MEDIA DISCOURSE

Abstract

The article is devoted to the problem of modelling the conceptual space of the Islamic threat image in modern English media discourse. The term «media image» is analysed. The lexemes «threat» and «Islam» are considered, the term «Islamic threat image» is defined. It is observed that the lexeme «threat» has a negative axiology, as it denotes an individual’s subjective assessment of a situation that poses a physical or mental danger. It is revealed that the religion of Islam itself is only a basis for the emergence of a threat, because the ideology of Islamism is based on it, and Islamism is the basis for almost all terrorists and terrorist groups that pose a direct threat to world society. The concept of a frame and its structure (subframes, slots, subslots) are defined in the article. The method of frame analysis is used in order to model the conceptual space of the Islamic threat image. The Islamic threat image is analysed in detail. The Islamic threat image is presented in the form of an integrative frame, which includes a subject-centric frame and an action frame. We propose frame model of the conceptual space of the Islamic threat image. The model of the analysed image is a set of subframes, six of which are singled out during the research: Islamic threat agent (with slots who and what); Islamic threat object agent (with slots who and what); Islamic threat aim; tools of Islamic threat; those who oppose to Islamic threat; the result of Islamic threat. Each subframe is analyzed in detail, examples are given from researched articles in the most famous and prestigious British online publications, such as Reuters, The Guardian, International Business Times. It is found that the Islamic threat image is multi-component. It is necessary to consider all its possible components to understand its essence.