NONVERBAL COMMUNICATION IN FRENCH AND RUSSIAN CULTURES: A BRIEF COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS

The article deals with the similarities and differences of the most characteristic and frequently used gestures of the representatives of French and Russian cultures which are important in the pro- cess of teaching a foreign language. Body language in the course of a communicative act is most fully perceived by the interlocutors and, according to research, accounts for 55 % of the total amount of assimilated information, and, therefore, deserves a separate study. The article defines the gesture as an element of culture, and gives a brief account of the psychology of the gesture. There is also a fairly wide selection – in the amount of 15 – of the most common gestures of native speakers of French culture, with a description and illustrations. A number of gestures peculiar to representa- tives of Russian culture are also described and supported by illustrations. In conclusion, a compara- tive analysis of all gestures is made. Taking into account that gesture learning along with pronuncia- tion make the most difficult part of the language to acquire, the article emphasises the variety of gestures characterising their differences, as well as similarities. The results of the research presented in the article rely on numerous sources of information in the form of video and photographic mate- rials, as well as scientific and journalistic articles.