LTReikšminiai žodžiai: Charakteris; Metafora; Personažas; Plaukai; Portretas; Semantinė universalija; Spalva; Ženklas; Character; Colour; Hair; Metaphor; Portrait; Semantic universal; Sign.
ENIn the novel by Daina Opolskaitė "Ir vienąkart, Riči" (And One Time, Ričis) the hair of 8 separate characters and 4 members of a rock band is described, it is mentioned 66 times. The main character, 15-year-old Balys Belekas considers hair as the element of appearance determining human attractiveness. In the teenager's opinion, dark hair (black as coal or resin) and lush or curly hair is beautiful. Strong black hair indicates masculinity and strength, meanwhile fluffy and curly hair indicates feminine beauty and secret. Balys himself is red-haired. The hue of his bright hair is named directly - by adjectives raudonas "red", ryžas "ginger" and associatively relating to fire, rooster, gold - prototypical representatives of the red colour in the Lithuanian world-view. The colour of the hair, the name given after his great-grandfather that rhymes with such words as kvailys "fool", žioplys "gaper", gaidys "rooster", and the surname that means nothing (bele kas "anyone"), makes the boy feel destitute, unhappy, simply not living. The colour, strength, and shape of hair are the main means of the creation of the image of the characters. Static characters have light or dark hair. The bright colour indicates exceptional character - the main character looking for his identity. At first, the teenager is overly sensitive and not satisfied with himself. Later, having found his friend Richie, he has changed fundamentally: he has learned to make decisions, has become determined and responsible for his actions. In the novel hair is personified (it is fought with and reconciled with), it is the expression of flight, freedom, and love. [From the publication]