Showing papers in "Metaphor and Symbol in 1999"
TL;DR: The authors showed that less familiar targets embedded in ironically biasing contexts facilitate only the salient literal meaning initially: 150 msec after their offset, while the less salient ironic meaning becomes available and the literal meaning remains as active.
Abstract: Two experiments test a graded salience account of irony processing (Giora, Fein, & Schwartz, 1998). Experiment 1 shows that, as predicted, less familiar targets embedded in ironically biasing contexts facilitate only the salient literal meaning initially: 150 msec after their offset. However, 1,000 msec after their offset, the less salient ironic meaning becomes available and the literal meaning is still as active. In contrast, familiar ironies facilitate both their salient literal and ironic meanings initially: 150 msec after their offset. Results do not change significantly after a 1,000-msec delay. In the literally biasing contexts, less familiar ironies facilitate only the salient literal meaning. In contrast, familiar ironies facilitate both their salient literal and ironic meanings under both interstimulus interval conditions, as predicted. Experiment 2 confirms that these findings were affected by the target sentences rather than by the contexts themselves. In Experiment 2, the contexts were presen...
137 citations
TL;DR: This paper evaluated relations between the spontaneous use of figurative language and nonverbal gestures, and found that figurative gestures frequently occurred in bursts; these bursts were defined by the centered moving average procedure often used in operations research to detect significant variations in the rate of an output process.
Abstract: To evaluate relations between the spontaneous use of figurative language and nonverbal gestures, 3 college lectures by the same professor were videotaped and scored for the occurrence of both classes of events. Results indicated that figurative language and gestures frequently occurred in bursts; these bursts were defined by the centered moving average procedure often used in operations research to detect significant variations in the rate of an output process. Bursts of both novel figures and pictorial gestures were found to concern the central topic(s) of the lecture. Both types of bursts also were likely to occur when the lecture dealt with topics beyond the students' ordinary experience (e.g., what it is to be old) or presented a different understanding of a known topic (alcoholism is a game, not a disease). In some situations, both types of burst were found to overlap. When this occurred, the gesture served to augment the metaphor rather than to provide an alternative representation; in all cases, th...
60 citations
TL;DR: This paper argued that conventional conceptual metaphors are propositional in nature-namely, as propositions expressing identity-and reinforced the connection between conceptual metaphor and linguistic metaphor by proposing a revision of the theory of metaphor.
Abstract: It is argued that Lakoff and Johnson's (1980) contemporary theory of metaphor conflates the structure of the target-concept before the metaphoric process has taken place with the structure of the target-concept after the process. A revision of the theory is suggested. A consequence of this revision is that conventional conceptual metaphors are propositional in nature-namely, as propositions expressing identity. The revision hereby reinforces the connection between conceptual metaphor and linguistic metaphor.
59 citations
TL;DR: This paper found that similes are the preferred linguistic representation for mapping attributive predicates, whereas metaphors are favored for mapping relational predicates in a study based on two preference tasks in which participants were asked to select the linguistic form that conveys the comparison most adequately and naturally.
Abstract: This article aims to provide cognitively motivated evidence for the nonequivalence view of simile and metaphor. This evidence was derived from a study based on two preference tasks in which participants were asked to select the linguistic form that conveys the comparison most adequately and naturally. Adopting Gentner's (1983) "Structure-Mapping" analysis, I was able to establish a correlation between the type of comparison (attributive, relational, or double) and the means speakers select to best represent each such comparison. The results of this study strongly suggest that similes are the preferred linguistic representation for mapping attributive predicates, whereas metaphors are favored for mapping relational predicates. The study further considered the results of the double comparisons.
52 citations
TL;DR: The authors report the findings from three studies examining the role of mental imagery in interpreting poetic metaphor, specifically image metaphors that express mappings of concrete perceptual images from source domains to dissimilar target domains.
Abstract: We report the findings from three studies examining the role of mental imagery in interpreting poetic metaphor, specifically image metaphors that express mappings of concrete perceptual images from source domains to dissimilar target domains. The first study showed that ordinary readers interpret image metaphors by mapping concrete mental images across domains, but not by mapping more general knowledge across domains. The second and third studies demonstrated more precisely how people's detailed imagistic knowledge about different concepts underlies their understanding of image metaphors. These studies most generally illustrate the importance of concrete mental images in the interpretation of poetic metaphor and suggest how metaphor theories must be amended to account for the prominence of imagery in metaphor use.
50 citations
TL;DR: In the studies described in this article, a computerized corpus has been used to determine the extent to which clusters of words from particular source domains are used in the same target domain.
Abstract: The description of linguistic metaphors has often been restricted to intuitively generated examples or the analysis of short texts. The development of large corpora of computer-searchable nonliterary texts enables researchers to make more accurate statements about the use of linguistic metaphors. In the studies described in this article, a computerized corpus has been used to determine the extent to which clusters of words from particular source domains are used in the same target domain. It seems that there may be several ways in which clusters of words are metaphorically mapped. The studies further showed that some constraints on target domain language use are not predictable from models of metaphorical mapping but can be explained by pragmatic factors.
32 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a structural metaphor from Ian McEwan's novel The Comfort of Strangers is analyzed and compared to its counterpart in the film that Paul Schrader based on the book.
Abstract: In the cognitivist paradigm, metaphor's conceptual nature is investigated almost exclusively in its verbal manifestations. Research on nonverbal expressions of conceptual metaphors is still surprisingly scarce. Although some pioneering work has been done in the area of pictorial metaphor, the work has hitherto focused on specific instances of isolated metaphors. For better insight into the nature of conceptual metaphors, it is necessary to examine if they can be rendered pictorially and mixed-medially, and if so, what forms they could take. In this case study, a structural metaphor from Ian McEwan's novel The Comfort of Strangers is analyzed and compared to its counterpart in the film that Paul Schrader based on the book. The article ends with suggestions for generalizations across different media, including a distinction between explicitly and implicitly signaled metaphors.
30 citations
TL;DR: This paper argued that metaphors are class-inclusion claims and that similes may equal metaphors in strength when the metaphor and simile are uttered on their own, and not in situations involving corrections.
Abstract: The categorization theory offered by Glucksberg and Keysar (1993) contends that metaphors are class-inclusion claims and that metaphors are stronger than similes. Indeed, when a metaphor corrects a simile-as in "Jack isn't just like a rock, he is a rock!"-it is stronger in several respects. But when the metaphor and simile are uttered on their own, and not in situations involving corrections, similes may equal metaphors in strength. The reason may be that the correction situation reminds us of corrections of literal language, for "that is a banana" involves more common features than "that is like a banana." The categorization theory offers measures of relative strength but no rationale for metaphors being stronger than similes outside of a correction situation. Also, categorization per se is not comprehension, which needs at a minimum categorization plus specification of some common features. Finding the relevant features is not achieved by categorization, though categorization can ensue once the features...
27 citations
TL;DR: The development and current pattern of polysemy are described through the elaboration of a Lakoffian cognitive model structured by image schemas and various types of action on those schemas--more specifically combination, dissolution, and metaphoric projection.
Abstract: In this article, I provide an account of the development of the "translate" concept from the verbs used in Old English through the Middle English period, including the establishment of the Latin-based translate. The development and current pattern of polysemy are described through the elaboration of a Lakoffian cognitive model structured by image schemas and various types of action on those schemas--more specifically combination, dissolution, and metaphoric projection. Concordance and corpus data illustrate the development at various stages.
22 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, four experiments tested cued-recall memory for simple sentential metaphors ("Playful monkeys are clowns") and similes in Spanish and English, and found that similes were remembered much better than abstract ones.
Abstract: Four experiments tested cued-recall memory for simple sentential metaphors ("Playful monkeys are clowns") and similes ("Playfulmonkeys are like clowns") in Spanish and English. Overall, concrete metaphors and similes were remembered much better than abstract ones. In the all-English Experiment 1, both metaphors and similes were usually recalled as metaphors, whereas in the all-Spanish Experiment 2, both metaphors and similes were usually recalled as similes. Experiments 3 and 4 used mixed-language lists (Spanish and English) and bilingual participants fluent in both languages. In these studies, the trend of recalling both English figurative types as metaphors essentially went away, although there was still some tendency to recall Spanish metaphors as similes. Results were interpreted in terms of possible language-specific production biases in the context of Glucksberg's class-inclusion model and Grosjean's bilingual-monolingual mode distinction.
20 citations
TL;DR: This article investigated the effect of variation in the irony in rebuttal analogies and found that this variation in irony provides speakers with control over the degree to which these pragmatic functions are performed.
Abstract: Rebuttal analogy takes the form, "Doing X is like doing Y" (e.g., "Choosing to burn fossil fuels instead of developing solar power is like volunteering to urinate in your drinking water"). It has two pragmatic functions: an argument and social attack against X and its advocates (Whaley & Holloway, 1996). The analogy's base level of irony can be controlled by a speaker. This study investigates whether this variation in irony provides speakers with control over the degree to which these pragmatic functions are performed. Three experiments are reported that support this proposal about the effect of variation in the irony in rebuttal analogies.
TL;DR: The metaphor is pervasively vague and can even lead to contradictory claims, but, interestingly, it can be rescued from false uses of the homunculus problem.
Abstract: The "COMPUTATIONAL METAPHOR OF MIND" has gained currency in cognitive science, computer science, philosophy, and, not least, in the popular imagination. In "Mind and Metaphor" (1995) and "Language, Thought, and Computation" (1997), Mario Radovan canvassed the strengths and weaknesses of the metaphor as a tool of inquiry. This article uses recent developments in the application of theory to metaphor, including the topics of vagueness (vs. explanation), emergent features, the indefiniteness of a grouping, and shifts in the order of terms in the metaphor to test the general and implicit weaknesses of this particular use of metaphor. The metaphor is pervasively vague and can even lead to contradictory claims, but, interestingly, it can be rescued from false uses of the homunculus problem.
TL;DR: This article reported the results of two experiments on the judgment and interpretation of isolated signs in American Sign Language (ASL) and found that metaphorical signs were more sensible, more natural, and more obvious than arbitrary signs.
Abstract: This article reports the results of two experiments on the judgment and interpretation of isolated signs in American Sign Language (ASL). Experiment 1 investigated the classification of ASL signs into three categories: arbitrary signs, iconic signs, and metaphorical signs. The results of this study were that although iconic signs made the most sense, were the most natural, and were the most obvious to participants, metaphorical signs were more sensible, more natural, and more obvious than arbitrary signs. Thus, the classification of some ASL signs into these three categories was validated. Experiment 2 investigated people's ability to accurately guess the meanings of metaphorical and arbitrary signs. The results of this study were that people make far more accurate guesses of the meanings of metaphorical signs. Thus, the conceptual metaphors that motivate metaphorical signs provide a basis for interpreting the signs' meanings. The experiments together suggest that the judgment and interpretation of ASL si...
TL;DR: The question of whether metaphor properly applies to pictures (e.g., paintings or photographs) was examined in this article through an examination of the views of Sonia Sedivy, who advanced the following 4 claims: (a) pictures possess propositional content, (b) there are metaphoric pictures, (c) pictures do not possess metaphoric content, and (d) there can be no theory of pictorial metaphor.
Abstract: This article is concerned with the question of whether, and to what extent, the concept of metaphor properly applies to pictures (e.g., paintings or photographs). The question is approached dialectically through an examination of the views of Sonia Sedivy, who advances the following 4 claims: (a) that pictures possess propositional content, (b) that there are metaphoric pictures, (c) that metaphoric pictures do not possess metaphoric content, and (d) that there can be no theory of pictorial metaphor. Although the first of Sedivy's claims is rejected in this article, the existence of pictorial metaphors is not denied. Thus, the fact that pictures do not possess propositional content does not preclude the possibility of pictorial metaphors. What are required, though, are changes to the conception of pictorial metaphor that Sedivy advances.
TL;DR: This paper examined college students' comprehension and interpretation of 117 haiku written by poets with different levels of expertise and found that high-skilled comprehenders had significantly better quality interpretations and reacted distinctively to the symbolism dimension.
Abstract: Haiku is a form of traditional Japanese poetry that is popular worldwide. We examined college students' comprehension and interpretation of 117 haiku written by poets with different levels of expertise. Participants also completed a creative experience questionnaire and a multimedia comprehension battery. Each haiku was rated on 5 dimensions: ease of comprehension, familiarity, goodness, imagery, and symbolism. Results paralleled work on figurative language in that imagery, familiarity, and ease of comprehension predicted haiku goodness. High- and low-skilled cornprehenders did not differ in their ratings of the poems. However, high-skilled comprehenders had significantly better quality interpretations and reacted distinctively to the symbolism dimension.
TL;DR: Werner and Kaplan's (1963) theory of language development is compared to Lakoff's theory of embodiment as discussed by the authors, and the embodiment theory's use of image schemata and developed the...
Abstract: Werner and Kaplan's (1963) theory of language development is compared to Lakoff's theory of embodiment. Werner and Kaplan anticipated the embodiment theory's use of image schemata and developed the...
TL;DR: Some verbal irony can be reconceived as subcategories of the basic metaphor "VERBAL IRONY IS STRATEGY in HANDLING AN OPPONENT" as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: Some verbal irony can be conceived as strategy to handle an antagonist. The decision to attack or to appease, as in the case of ironic euphemism, depends on the social context of the power relationship between the speaker and the intended target or potential antagonist. Thus, some verbal irony can be reconceived as subcategories of the basic metaphor "VERBAL IRONY IS STRATEGY IN HANDLING AN OPPONENT."
TL;DR: The Proverb in Mind: The Cognitive Science of Proverbial Wit and Wisdom (Book Review) Metaphor and Symbol: Vol. 14, No. 1, pp. 71-75 as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: (1999). Proverb in Mind: The Cognitive Science of Proverbial Wit and Wisdom (Book Review) Metaphor and Symbol: Vol. 14, No. 1, pp. 71-75.
TL;DR: The authors argue that Davidson's argument relies on the notion of conventional language and argue that his argument, nevertheless, relies on a notion of "conventional meaning of words at work in language, especially metaphor".
Abstract: Davidson denies there is conventional meaning of words at work in language, especially metaphor. I argue that his argument, nevertheless, relies on the notion of conventional language.