The professional image of the firefighter in E. N. Uspensky’s works: social connotations and linguocultural axiological dominants

<jats:p>The article examines the specific features of the professional image of firefighters in E. N. Uspensky’s works “Icy Roads”, “The Hunter”, “The Absent-Minded Nanny”, “Olya and the Firefighters”, “The Clowns’ School”, “About Vera and Anfisa the Monkey”, “Masha Filipenko’s 25 Professions”, and “The Stone-Eater from Klyazma Station” within the context of social connotations and linguocultural axiological dominants. The purpose of the study is to identify the social connotations expressing evaluations of firefighters’ activities, as well as the linguocultural axiological dominants of the firefighters’ professional community represented in literary texts. The scientific novelty of the work lies in the fact that, for the first time, representations of the professional image of firefighters in E. N. Uspensky’s works are examined in the context of their social significance and the motivational level of the realization of the linguistic personality, which determines its axiological orientation. Thus, the study is the first to reveal the ambiguity of social connotations – ranging from socially approved to socially condemned – in descriptions of firefighters’ professional roles in E. N. Uspensky’s works and to identify their linguocultural axiological dominants. The findings show that the image of the “guardian of fire” is revealed through associative signs conveying the idea of a protector who comes to the rescue in an emergency. This image is reinforced by the social connotations of “providing assistance”, “courage”, “valor”, “heroism”, “overcoming”, “swiftness”, and “discipline”. At the same time, despite the transformation of the image in accordance with the historical period and cultural realities, the axiological dominants in the firefighter’s value worldview remain unchanged: a commitment to creating and maintaining a fire-safe environment; overcoming difficulties; prioritizing time and speed; social solidarity; dedication to the profession; following one’s calling; and seriousness, which gives rise to hierarchical and ceremonial patterns of communication within the professional environment. The anti-value orientation of the firefighter’s personality is represented by a commitment to the category of “an easy life”, understood as idleness, willingness to commit crimes, and the bureaucratization of fire safety work.</jats:p>