Western Conception of Time in Signed Languages: a Cognitive Linguistic Perspective
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Krzysztof Kosecki
Abstract
The chapter builds on previous research into the concept of time in signed languages (Brennan 1983; Wilcox 2000; Taub 2001; Sutton-Spence and Woll 2010). Relying on the framework of the second generation cognitive linguistics (Lakoff and Johnson 1999), it discusses the key elements of the Western view of time as expressed in American, British, Polish, and other signed languages. Signs based on metaphors, metonymies, and interactions of these two conceptual mechanisms represent the conception of time rooted in classical physics (Newton 1729), the paradigm of life sciences (McGrath and Kelly 1986), and the efficiency-oriented concept of work (Lakoff and Johnson 1980). They reflect time’s linearity and cyclicity, its division into homogenous units, and its use as an economic resource.
Abstract
The chapter builds on previous research into the concept of time in signed languages (Brennan 1983; Wilcox 2000; Taub 2001; Sutton-Spence and Woll 2010). Relying on the framework of the second generation cognitive linguistics (Lakoff and Johnson 1999), it discusses the key elements of the Western view of time as expressed in American, British, Polish, and other signed languages. Signs based on metaphors, metonymies, and interactions of these two conceptual mechanisms represent the conception of time rooted in classical physics (Newton 1729), the paradigm of life sciences (McGrath and Kelly 1986), and the efficiency-oriented concept of work (Lakoff and Johnson 1980). They reflect time’s linearity and cyclicity, its division into homogenous units, and its use as an economic resource.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Preface vii
- Introduction ix
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Timeless concept of Temporality
- Temporal Reference Without the Concept of Time? 3
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Spatial construal of time extended
- Situating Events in Language 27
- Speaking, Gesturing, Reasoning 43
- Temporal Language and Temporal Thinking May Not Go Hand in Hand 67
- Western Conception of Time in Signed Languages: a Cognitive Linguistic Perspective 85
- The Mental Timeline During the Processing of Linguistic Information 103
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Time conceptualizations beyond space
- The cultural cognition of time 125
- When time is not space 151
- Metaphor and thought 187
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Conceptualizations of temporal categories
- Temporal scenery 207
- Marking anteriority, perfect and perfectivity in languages of mainland Southeast Asia – concepts, linguistic area 243
-
Distributional sources of time conceptualization
- Reflection of temporal horizon in linguistic performance 273
- Time-discretising adverbials 295
- Author index 317
- Subject index 323
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Preface vii
- Introduction ix
-
Timeless concept of Temporality
- Temporal Reference Without the Concept of Time? 3
-
Spatial construal of time extended
- Situating Events in Language 27
- Speaking, Gesturing, Reasoning 43
- Temporal Language and Temporal Thinking May Not Go Hand in Hand 67
- Western Conception of Time in Signed Languages: a Cognitive Linguistic Perspective 85
- The Mental Timeline During the Processing of Linguistic Information 103
-
Time conceptualizations beyond space
- The cultural cognition of time 125
- When time is not space 151
- Metaphor and thought 187
-
Conceptualizations of temporal categories
- Temporal scenery 207
- Marking anteriority, perfect and perfectivity in languages of mainland Southeast Asia – concepts, linguistic area 243
-
Distributional sources of time conceptualization
- Reflection of temporal horizon in linguistic performance 273
- Time-discretising adverbials 295
- Author index 317
- Subject index 323
