Axiological and pragmatic view of conscience in contemporary Polish. Conscience
is an element of the linguistic portrayal of the human person. The manner
in which conscience is conceptualized in a language certifies that it is an intellectual
judgment, moral imperative, moral reflection, a force to do good and a force
restraining from evil. Specific linguistic connections certify what is meant by conscience
in contemporary Polish. The contexts of occurrence of conscience allow
for distinguishing two orientations, which are not only characteristic of Christian
thought. They are: axiological orientation and pragmatic orientation. The first can
be found in texts of a legislative nature, the second – points to the sociological and
psychological motivations for using the concept in a specific context. This allows for
a reconstruction of the image of conscience on the basis of specific mental operations
that affect the formation of specific language constructs.