Communicative Multi-functionality of the Russian Congratulating Card
The postcard represents a text that contains a variety of semiotic codes opening sociocultural contents. A postcard or a greeting card is not only a symbol of a holiday, but also from the point of view of linguistic culture (and linguosemiotics, intercultural communication theory, etc.), it has very rich information about cultural identity of a society, about an impact of cultural transformations that occur in society. In the Russian culture congratulating card is considered as a necessary attribute of a holiday. For the Russian person giving a card is not simple formal ritual but it’s firstly the warm expression of his feelings. The Russian cards destined for concrete holiday event are characterized by especial style of decoration, symbols, colour palette, specific etiquette formulas, used figurative expressive language means. This set of specific elements presents the special code which is known by the representative of the Russian culture but it’s necessary to be able to decode it by the representative of the other culture. It’s possible to suppose that in the Russian culture the card will always be the meaningful holiday element thanks to its multifunctionality. The Russian card carries out the following functions: communicative, regulative, fatic, suggestivemagic, emotionally expressive, esthetic, axiological. The realization of all these functions allows the congratulating card not to lose its position but to develop filling with variety of the new symbols (not to exclude the old ones), different stylistics of decoration, borrowing elements from oriental and western cultures and etc.