Desiderata for metaphor theory, the Motivation & Sedimentation Model and motion-emotion metaphoremes
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Jordan Zlatev
Abstract
Metaphor research has increasingly diversified, leading to extensive disagreements. A set of desiderata for any contemporary theory of metaphor are (i) to account for both communication and cognition, (ii) to explain both universal and culture-specific aspects, (iii) to achieve a balance between stable structures and contextual processes, (iv) to apply not only to different languages, but to other semiotic systems such as gesture, (v) to provide clear theoretical and operational definitions. We argue that a recent cognitive-semiotic theory, the Motivation & Sedimentation Model (MSM) is capable of fulfilling these desiderata. To evaluate predictions from the theoretical model we compare motion-emotion metaphoremes, such as my heart jumped, in six differentially related European languages – English, Swedish, Spanish, Bulgarian, Finnish and Estonian.
Abstract
Metaphor research has increasingly diversified, leading to extensive disagreements. A set of desiderata for any contemporary theory of metaphor are (i) to account for both communication and cognition, (ii) to explain both universal and culture-specific aspects, (iii) to achieve a balance between stable structures and contextual processes, (iv) to apply not only to different languages, but to other semiotic systems such as gesture, (v) to provide clear theoretical and operational definitions. We argue that a recent cognitive-semiotic theory, the Motivation & Sedimentation Model (MSM) is capable of fulfilling these desiderata. To evaluate predictions from the theoretical model we compare motion-emotion metaphoremes, such as my heart jumped, in six differentially related European languages – English, Swedish, Spanish, Bulgarian, Finnish and Estonian.
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgements vii
- List of contributors ix
- Introduction. Figurative language 1
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Part I. Intersubjectivity and interaction
- Second-order empathy, pragmatic ambiguity, and irony 19
- Desiderata for metaphor theory, the Motivation & Sedimentation Model and motion-emotion metaphoremes 41
- Evaluating metaphor accounts via their pragmatic effects 75
- The multimodal negotiation of irony and humor in interaction 109
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Part II. Mechanisms and processes
- Metaphor and irony 139
- Metonymic indeterminacy and metalepsis 175
- On verbal and situational irony 213
- On figurative ambiguity, marking, and low-salience meanings 241
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Part III. Usage and variation
- Metaphor, metonymy and polysemy 287
- Psycholinguistic approaches to figuration 307
- The fabric of metaphor in discourse 339
- Sources of verbal humor in the lexicon 357
- Measuring the impact of (non)figurativity in the cultural conceptualization of emotions in the two main national varieties of Portuguese 387
- Index 439
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgements vii
- List of contributors ix
- Introduction. Figurative language 1
-
Part I. Intersubjectivity and interaction
- Second-order empathy, pragmatic ambiguity, and irony 19
- Desiderata for metaphor theory, the Motivation & Sedimentation Model and motion-emotion metaphoremes 41
- Evaluating metaphor accounts via their pragmatic effects 75
- The multimodal negotiation of irony and humor in interaction 109
-
Part II. Mechanisms and processes
- Metaphor and irony 139
- Metonymic indeterminacy and metalepsis 175
- On verbal and situational irony 213
- On figurative ambiguity, marking, and low-salience meanings 241
-
Part III. Usage and variation
- Metaphor, metonymy and polysemy 287
- Psycholinguistic approaches to figuration 307
- The fabric of metaphor in discourse 339
- Sources of verbal humor in the lexicon 357
- Measuring the impact of (non)figurativity in the cultural conceptualization of emotions in the two main national varieties of Portuguese 387
- Index 439
