EMIC APPROACH TO THE BIOGRAPHY OF PROFESSOR BELYAEVA (01.08.1920 – 11.04.2012)

Abstract

The emic approach (standpoint), stated in the title of the article, implies a look through the eyes of an insider, in our case, a kindred view of a family member as a cultural phenomenon. Moreover, the emic approach was chosen by the authors of the article, as integrated persons in the cultural and historical context of the biography of Tatyana Mikhailovna Belyaeva, Doctor of Philology (1976), Professor (1979), Head of the Department of English Philology at St. Petersburg State University (1974–1991), the World War II participant, specialist in non-standard English vocabulary [6].  Belyaeva is the author of about 30 scientific works, including five monographs. She lectured in Iraq, Egypt, the United Arab Republic, Sudan, India and England [7, 14]. The article provides detailed information about this bright, generous, complex and unique personality from the point of view of the representatives of her relatives: niece Olga Beller and great-nephew Evgenii Negrov. The reason for the study of a separate biography from the circle of numerous relatives, namely Tatyana Mikhailovna Belyaeva, a person of varied attainments, was her 100th anniversary. The purpose of this biographical research, along with the expression of tribute to the memory of Belyaeva, is to introduce the information about her circle of communication, parents, teachers and students, who formed the worldview of a particular person, into the public field. This biographical portraiture is an attempt to present the life strategies of an accomplished scientist of the Soviet era, bypassing the “ideological and paradigmatic requirements” characteristic of the “labor biographies” adopted in Soviet times. Noted the versatility of the potential of biographical research in their application to the interests of preserving humanistic orientation of culture, aimed at inculcating ideals and patterns of behavior that can influence those who are acquainted with the biography of a person who has the potential to form a model of behavior for future generations.