Figurative language
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Francisco José Ruiz de Mendoza Ibáñez
Abstract
The present paper discusses two aspects of the production of figures of speech. The first one is their relatedness, which is established on the basis of an analysis of their cognitive configuration in terms of combinations of cognitive operations. Such operations are applied to the creation of basic figures of speech such as metaphor, metonymy, understatement, overstatement, irony, paradox, and oxymoron. Other traditional figurative uses of language are then accounted for with reference to these more basic ones. The second aspect that this paper addresses is the question of constraints on figurative thinking. In this respect, it reviews previous proposals on the topic and extends their application to other cases of figurative language use. The resulting account links figurative language up with the notion of embodied cognition.
Abstract
The present paper discusses two aspects of the production of figures of speech. The first one is their relatedness, which is established on the basis of an analysis of their cognitive configuration in terms of combinations of cognitive operations. Such operations are applied to the creation of basic figures of speech such as metaphor, metonymy, understatement, overstatement, irony, paradox, and oxymoron. Other traditional figurative uses of language are then accounted for with reference to these more basic ones. The second aspect that this paper addresses is the question of constraints on figurative thinking. In this respect, it reviews previous proposals on the topic and extends their application to other cases of figurative language use. The resulting account links figurative language up with the notion of embodied cognition.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Preface vii
- Introduction 1
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Section 1. General empirical studies, with main focus on metaphor
- Producing metaphor (and other forms of non-literal language) in the laboratory 37
- Metaphor and one-off pictures 55
- Metaphor production and metaphor interpretation 85
- On the role of perceptual similarity in producing visual metaphors 105
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Section 2. General empirical studies – other
- On why people don’t say what they mean 129
- How nice does it sound? 175
- How defaultness shapes our language production 211
- Producing figurative meanings 237
- The production of verbal irony 263
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Section 3. Empirical and analytical studies aimed at specific applications
- Generating metaphors in product design 299
- Rock bottoms, juggling balls and coalprints 331
- Figurative production in a computer-mediated discussion forum 363
- The production of time-related metaphors by people who have experienced pregnancy loss 389
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Section 4. Other theoretical analysis and cognitive or computational modelling
- Metaphor generation through context sensitive distributional semantics 421
- Mind the gap 449
- Figurative language 469
- Metaphor as sign and as symbol 511
- Topic Index 533
- Author Index 543
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Preface vii
- Introduction 1
-
Section 1. General empirical studies, with main focus on metaphor
- Producing metaphor (and other forms of non-literal language) in the laboratory 37
- Metaphor and one-off pictures 55
- Metaphor production and metaphor interpretation 85
- On the role of perceptual similarity in producing visual metaphors 105
-
Section 2. General empirical studies – other
- On why people don’t say what they mean 129
- How nice does it sound? 175
- How defaultness shapes our language production 211
- Producing figurative meanings 237
- The production of verbal irony 263
-
Section 3. Empirical and analytical studies aimed at specific applications
- Generating metaphors in product design 299
- Rock bottoms, juggling balls and coalprints 331
- Figurative production in a computer-mediated discussion forum 363
- The production of time-related metaphors by people who have experienced pregnancy loss 389
-
Section 4. Other theoretical analysis and cognitive or computational modelling
- Metaphor generation through context sensitive distributional semantics 421
- Mind the gap 449
- Figurative language 469
- Metaphor as sign and as symbol 511
- Topic Index 533
- Author Index 543
