Metaphor in Context

Metaphor in Context
Author: Josef Stern
Publisher: MIT Press
Total Pages: 405
Release: 2000-11-08
Genre: Psychology
ISBN: 0262264617

Josef Stern addresses the question: Given the received conception of the form and goals of semantic theory, does metaphorical interpretation, in whole or part, fall within its scope? The many philosophers, linguists, and cognitive scientists writing on metaphor over the past two decades have generally taken for granted that metaphor lies outside, if not in opposition to, received conceptions of semantics and grammar. Assuming that metaphor cannot be explained by or within semantics, they claim that metaphor has little, if anything, to teach us about semantic theory. In this book Josef Stern challenges these assumptions. He is concerned primarily with the question: Given the received conception of the form and goals of semantic theory, does metaphorical interpretation, in whole or part, fall within its scope? Specifically, he asks, what (if anything) does a speaker-hearer know as part of her semantic competence when she knows the interpretation of a metaphor? According to Stern, the answer to these questions lies in the systematic context-dependence of metaphorical interpretation. Drawing on a deep analogy between demonstratives, indexicals, and metaphors, Stern develops a formal theory of metaphorical meaning that underlies a speaker's ability to interpret a metaphor. With his semantics, he also addresses a variety of philosophical and linguistic issues raised by metaphor. These include the interpretive structure of complex extended metaphors, the cognitive significance of metaphors and their literal paraphrasability, the pictorial character of metaphors, the role of similarity and exemplification in metaphorical interpretation, metaphor-networks, dead metaphors, the relation of metaphors to other figures, and the dependence of metaphors on literal meanings. Unlike most metaphor theorists, however, who take these problems to be sui generis to metaphor, Stern subsumes them under the same rubric as other semantic facts that hold for nonmetaphorical language.

Contexts of Metaphor

Contexts of Metaphor
Author: Michiel Leezenberg
Publisher: BRILL
Total Pages: 331
Release: 2021-10-01
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 0585473935

This study presents an approach to metaphor that takes contextual factors into account. It analyses how metaphors depend on and change the context in which they are uttered, and how metaphorical interpretation involves the articulation of asserted, implied and presupposed materials.

Metaphor in Use

Metaphor in Use
Author: Fiona MacArthur
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing
Total Pages: 390
Release: 2012
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 9027223920

Metaphor is a fascinating phenomenon, but it is also complex and multi-faceted, varying in how it is manifested in different modes of expression, languages, cultures, or time-scales. How then can we reliably identify metaphors in different contexts? How does the language or culture of speakers and hearers affect the way metaphors are produced or interpreted? Are the methods employed to explore metaphors in one context applicable in others? The sixteen chapters that make up this volume offer not only detailed studies of the situated use of metaphor in language, gesture, and visuals around the world – providing important insights into the different factors that produce variation – but also careful explication and discussion of the methodological issues that arise when researchers approach metaphor in diverse 'real world' contexts. The book constitutes an important contribution to applied metaphor studies, and will prove an invaluable resource for the novice and experienced metaphor researcher alike.

Context and Connection in Metaphor

Context and Connection in Metaphor
Author: L. David Ritchie
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 263
Release: 2006-10-30
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 0230286828

How do people understand metaphorical language? Can a commonplace metaphor affect the way people think even if they don't interpret it? Why does it matter how people interpret metaphors? The author proposes an original communication-based theory of metaphor that answers these and other questions about metaphors and metaphorical language.

Metaphor from the Ground Up

Metaphor from the Ground Up
Author: Daniel C. Strack
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Total Pages: 197
Release: 2019-02-20
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1498547915

Metaphor from the Ground Up introduces Conceptual Filtering Theory, a theory of mental processing that describes figurative language communication in terms of conceptual domain projection and contextual disambiguation. In an attempt to match theoretical observations from cognitive semantics and pragmatics with related knowledge about mental processes from cognitive neuroscience, CFT first examines the distributed nature of conceptualization and then uses this background information to explain metonymic “binding” and metaphoric “mapping.” Once the perceptual origins of metonymy and metaphor have been demonstrated, CFT offers a detailed account of how salient aspects of conceptualization differentially combine to achieve predictable inferencing results in linguistic communication. In addition, CFT characterizes the role of contextual effects in pruning salient inferencing options and demonstrates how situational frames can be manipulated to guide semantic outcomes. The book as a whole will assert that figurative language processing cannot be characterized in terms of a generically constituted base system that receives inputs and spits out predictable results according to logical probability in a situational vacuum. Rather, it is a dynamic, context-sensitive process that continually reweights the underlying system so as to rapidly select situation-relevant lines of inferencing from among a variety of salient inferencing options.

Extended Conceptual Metaphor Theory

Extended Conceptual Metaphor Theory
Author: Zoltán Kövecses
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 211
Release: 2020-04-23
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1108490875

Offers an extended, improved version of Conceptual Metaphor Theory (CMT), updating it in the context of current linguistic theory.

Metaphor in Practice

Metaphor in Practice
Author: Niklas Törneke
Publisher: New Harbinger Publications
Total Pages: 307
Release: 2017-08-01
Genre: Psychology
ISBN: 1626259038

"Approachable and user-friendly." —The Professional Counselor The use of metaphor is central to the implementation of acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) and dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), and is a powerful tool for all practicing psychotherapists. In Metaphor in Practice, psychotherapist Niklas Törneke presents the first practical book to combine the behavioral and linguistic sciences of metaphor, and illustrates how and when to apply metaphors in practice for better treatment outcomes. The use of metaphors and experiential exercises can help clients gain a deeper understanding of the problems that cause their disorders. Metaphors help clients connect with their values, and often spark the inspiration and motivation needed to make a commitment to change. And while metaphor is central to relational frame theory (RFT), acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), and dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), research now shows its usefulness has an even broader reach. In this book, you’ll find a scientific analysis of metaphor based on over thirty years of research, as well as trends in research over the last ten years. The book includes an overview of RFT, how metaphor has influenced the community of behavior analysis, as well as available clinical research on metaphor use. You’ll also discover how to create metaphors for functional analysis, distance of observation, and things that matter to your client. Most importantly, you’ll find practical examples of metaphors and clinical exercises you can use in-session. There are many books on metaphor and psychotherapy, but this is the first book to make the connection between the science of metaphor and the detailed clinical process of using that knowledge. If you are a mental health professional—or simply interested in the science of metaphor—this book will provide everything you need to understand and apply this approach.

Where Metaphors Come from

Where Metaphors Come from
Author: Zoltán Kövecses
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Total Pages: 233
Release: 2015
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 019022486X

Kövecses recasts CMT as a contextual theory of metaphor, expanding and refining it to account for the ways in which many verbal metaphors are tied to context.

The Routledge Handbook of Metaphor and Language

The Routledge Handbook of Metaphor and Language
Author: Elena Semino
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 765
Release: 2016-11-03
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1317374703

The Routledge Handbook of Metaphor and Language provides a comprehensive overview of state-of-the-art interdisciplinary research on metaphor and language. Featuring 35 chapters written by leading scholars from around the world, the volume takes a broad view of the field of metaphor and language, and brings together diverse and distinct theoretical and applied perspectives to cover six key areas: Theoretical approaches to metaphor and language, covering Conceptual Metaphor Theory, Relevance Theory, Blending Theory and Dynamical Systems Theory; Methodological approaches to metaphor and language, discussing ways of identifying metaphors in verbal texts, images and gestures, as well as the use of corpus linguistics; Formal variation in patterns of metaphor use across text types, historical periods and languages; Functional variation of metaphor, in contexts including educational, commercial, scientific and political discourse, as well as online trolling; The applications of metaphor for problem solving, in business, education, healthcare and conflict situations; Language, metaphor, and cognitive development, examining the processing and comprehension of metaphors. The Routledge Handbook of Language and Metaphor is a must-have survey of this key field, and is essential reading for those interested in language and metaphor.

Metaphor Wars

Metaphor Wars
Author: Raymond W. Gibbs
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 333
Release: 2017-05-04
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1107071143

The study of metaphor is now firmly established as a central topic within cognitive science and the humanities. This book explores the critical role that conceptual metaphors play in language, thought, cultural and expressive actions. It evaluates the arguments and evidence for and against conceptual metaphors across academic disciplines.