Metaphor Analysis in Cognitive Linguistics
Summary
Metaphor analysis in cognitive linguistics explores how metaphors structure thought, language and experience. It examines metaphor as a cognitive tool that shapes the perception of abstract concepts by mapping them onto more concrete domains. From foundational theories that cast conceptual metaphors as organising principles of thought to integrative frameworks that combine corpus analysis, experimental methods and discourse studies, research has shown that metaphors permeate reasoning, memory, emotion and social interaction. Key developments include systematic procedures for identifying metaphoric expressions in large corpora, usage-based adaptations for diverse languages, and investigations into image-schematic patterns grounded in embodied experience. Framing analysis has further highlighted how metaphors in public discourse influence attitudes and policymaking on issues such as health, technology and politics. Together, these advances underscore the global significance of metaphor analysis for fields ranging from education and human–computer interaction to critical discourse studies.
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Metaphor Analysis in Cognitive Linguistics publication trend
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Technical terms
Conceptual metaphor: A cognitive mapping that relates an abstract target domain to a more concrete source domain, shaping understanding and inference.
Image-schematic metaphor: A subtype of conceptual metaphor grounded in recurring bodily patterns or “image schemas” that structure abstract thought.
Corpora: Structured collections of spoken or written language samples used as data sets for systematic metaphor identification and analysis.
Framing: The process by which metaphors and other linguistic devices highlight certain aspects of an issue, thereby influencing perception and judgement.
Usage-based approach: A methodological framework that derives linguistic patterns from naturalistic exposure, emphasising frequency, context and cognitive plausibility.
References
- A Polish adaptation of the usage-based approach to metaphor identification and analysis in caregiver interactions with children. Research Methods in Applied Linguistics (2024).
- Guiding the Design of Inclusive Interactive Systems: Do Younger and Older Adults Use the Same Image-schematic Metaphors?. ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction (2024).
- “We are at war”: The military rhetoric of COVID-19 in cross-cultural perspective of discourses. Frontiers in Artificial Intelligence (2023).
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