VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES NGUYỄN THỊ THANH BÌNH METAPHOR IN THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE OF THE UNITED STATES. Minor Thesis Field: English Linguistics Code: 60.15 Supervisor: Nguyễn Hương Giang M.A HANOI, 2012 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com TABLE OF CONTENTS Table of contents. Aims of the study. Scope of the study.
Methods of the study. Design of the study. 3 DEVELOPMENT Chapter 1: An overview on Metaphor. Definitions of Metaphor.
Components of Metaphor .3 Classification of conceptual metaphor .4 Functions of Metaphor .1 Metaphor is used to create image. 15 iv LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.2 Stylistic hypothesis: Metaphor has the functions of decorating. Cognitive hypothesis: Metaphor has the function of enabling cognition. 17 CHAPTER 2: THE STUDY 2.
Data analysis and discussion. Suggestions for further studies. ix v LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com ABBREVIATIONS USED IN THE THESIS 1.Met: Substance metaphor 2.Met: Entity metaphor 3.Met: Container metaphor 4.Met: As person metaphor 5.Met: As object metaphor 6.Met: Orientational metaphor 7.Met: Structural metaphor 1 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com LIST OF TABLES AND CHARTS Table 1: Conceptual metaphors in the Declaration of Independence Table 2: Ontological metaphors in the Declaration of Independence Chart 1: The percentage of conceptual metaphor in the Declaration of Independence 2 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail. Rationale Metaphor is one of the most complex and powerful tools of language and hence gets a section all to itself.
It is widely used in different types of text like literature, science, journals, advertisement, religion, politics or everyday language. The use of metaphor as a part of figurative language aims to help the listeners to visualize what is meant by a phrase or expression. It is seen everyday and every time by almost everybody. In fact, politicians use language to persuade people that their thoughts, aims and ideas are equitable and to make their point clear and vivid to the people.
It is proved that the use of metaphor is one of the most prominent tools for persuasion and an effective instrument for propaganda in political language. Commenting on the important role of metaphor, George Lakoff and Mark Johnson (1980:3) state that ―metaphor is pervasive in everyday life, not just in language but in thought and action‖ The Declaration of Independence is delivered to announce independence and sovereignty of any countries to not only their citizens but also other countries in all over the world. Therefore, its author has to use rhetorical strategies to convince people and metaphor is one of the rhetorical strategies which are found to be commonly used. Thus, I would like to conduct a study on the use of metaphor in the Declaration of Independence of the United States to find out what types of metaphor are commonly used and how effective they are.
Aims of the study This study was conducted to fulfil the following aims: 3 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com To provide knowledge about conceptual metaphor from Lakoff and Johnson‘s perspective To investigate the use of conceptual metaphor in the Declaration of Independence of the United States To give suggestion on some teaching and learning activities to gain more understanding about metaphor. These aims of the study were achieved via the following research questions: What is conceptual metaphor? How many types of conceptual metaphor are there? What types of conceptual metaphor are used in The Declaration of Independence of the United States? 3. Scope of the study This study attempts to look at theories of metaphor. Cognitive theory about metaphor developed by Lakoff and Johnson will be presented in details in terms of definition, components, classification and functions.
Then, the Declaration of Independence of the USA is analysed using Lakoff and Johnson‘s theory to figure out typical conceptual metaphors in this writing. Methods of the study The study is carried out mainly based on the combination of both descriptive and explanatory methods. These two methods were used to collect data different books and other sources available, describe the collected information and analyze the Declaration of Independence of the USA. The study was conducted as follows: 4 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com Firstly, data was collected from different books, websites about metaphor in English.
Secondly, the collected information was synthesized and categorized Finally, the Declaration of Independence was analyzed in terms of metaphor. Design of the study The study consists of 3 main parts: Introduction, Development and Conclusion. The Introduction presents the rationale, aims, scope, methods and design of the study. The Development is divided into 2 chapters.
Chapter 1 deals with theoretical background of the study including different theories of metaphor. Chapter 2 accounts for the study of conceptual metaphors used in Declaration of Independence of America. The Conclusion focuses on major findings, implications and suggestions for further studies. 5 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER 1: AN OVERVIEW OF METAPHOR 1.
Definitions Metaphor, one of the most important and widespread figures of speech, has been given a lot of definitions. Historically, the word ―metaphor‖ is originated from the Greek word ―metapherin‖ which means ―to carry something across‖ or ―to transfer‖, is normally used to refer to the method of comparing two different items based on resemblance or similarity. Form Aristotle‘s point of view, metaphor is based on ―seeing resemblances‖ in things. According to Aristotle, metaphor is defined as a ―transfer of a name belonging elsewhere‖ (cited in Lessengberg, 2001:33).
However, his definition of metaphor is merely at the level of words and later authors make more extensive study about the nature of metaphor. In ―A handbook to Literature‖ by Harmon and Homan (ed, 1996:315), metaphor is defined as ―an analogy identifying one object with another and ascribing to the first object one or more of the qualities of the second‖. In this definition, metaphor is seen as the process of expressing one thing through another thing due to the similarities of two objects. Sharing the same view, a definition offered by Cambridge Advanced Learner‘s Dictionary considers metaphor as ―an expression which describes a person or object in a literary way by referring to something that is considered to possess similar characteristics to the person or object you are trying to describe‖.
Two authors who are largely well-known for their study of metaphor are Lakoff and Johnson with their book ―Metaphor We live by‖. In this book, metaphor is defined as a process by which we conceive ―one thing in terms of another, and its primary function is understanding‖ (Lakoff and Johnson, 1980:36). These authors consider metaphor as the interaction between a source domain and a target domain in the conceptual process rather 6 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com than the interaction between two words only. Thus, metaphor from the perspective of Lakoff and Johnson also called conceptual metaphor.
Obviously, these definitions meet one another at a point that they all regard metaphor as the description or conception of one object in terms of another due to some of their similar qualities. Besides, metaphor is not only a common device used in language but also an important process concerning human‘s cognition about the world. Components of metaphor According to I. Tenor is the thing that the metaphoric word or phrase refers to whereas vehicle is the metaphoric word or phrase.
In ―A Handbook to Literature‖ by Harmon and Homan (eds, 1996: 315), it is said that ―the tenor and vehicle taken together constitute the figure, trope, or ―turn‖ in meaning that the metaphor conveys. At one extreme, the vehicle may be merely a means of decorating the tenor, at the other extreme, the tenor may be merely an excuse for having the vehicle.‖ Thus, between them always exists a close relation and similarity that may be very obvious or only in the mind of the metaphor maker. For example: “Mary is a blooming rose” Mary is a blooming rose In this metaphor, ―Mary‖ is the tenor and ―a blooming rose‖ is the vehicle. It can be seen in this example that there must be certain similar features between ―Mary‖ and ―a blooming rose‖.
The maker of the metaphor implies that the beauty and vitality of Mary can be described as a blooming rose in the spring. 7 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com In order to show the relationship between tenor and vehicle, the most popular way is to use a linking verb between them. However, sometimes there is no existence of the linking verb and even the tenor but the metaphor still can be implied through the vehicle. For example, in this sentence ―Bee! I‘m expecting you‖ from a poem Dickinson (1924:23), we can see that there is no attendance of the tenor here but the tenor ―somebody dearest‖ of the poet can be implied through the vehicle ―bee‖.
Besides tenor and vehicle, another important part of metaphor is also mentioned in a lot of researches. The term is called ―dimension‖ or ―‖ground Richards (1936) which is defined as the quality that one refers to when using a particular vehicle in relation to the tenor. The vehicle has a number of dimensions which may be mapped or transferred back onto the tenor and hence create new meaning. For example, the poem ―Fame is a bee‖ ( Dickinson, 1924:23) suggests a number of dimensions between the tenor ―fame‖ and the vehicle ―bee‖ such as the happiness and the pain that both fame and a bee can bring to human.
For example: Fame is a bee - 1763 Fame is a bee. It has a song— It has a sting— Ah, too, it has a wing. (Emily Dickinson) According to Lakoff and Johnson, metaphor is seen as a cognitive mechanism whereby one conceptual domain is partially mapped onto a different conceptual domain. The second domain is partially understood in term of the first one with the linguistic metaphor deriving from those domains.
8 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com The domain that is mapped is called the source domain/ donor domain. The domain onto which it is mapped is target domain/ recipient domain. Argument is war Argument: target domain War: source domain (Lakoff & Johnson, 1980) In short, it can be inferred that through vehicle and dimension or ground, tenor can be expressed implicit and this complete process is able to create a metaphor. Classifications of Conceptual metaphor There are a number of ways to classify metaphor depending on different criteria and hypothesis.
The classification of it can be conducted in terms of functions, grammatical features, linguistics characteristics, popularity, etc. Leezengberg (2001:3) distinguishes linguistic metaphors from nonlinguistic ones. He states that: ―linguistic metaphors typically involve a much more elaborate ‗code‘ that nonlinguistic ones‖. According to his theory, linguistic metaphors are simply reflections of more general cognitive process.
According to Wikipedia, there is a detailed and clear classification of metaphor collected and synthesized. Metaphors are classified into Absolute metaphor, Active metaphor, Complex metaphor, Compound metaphor, Concrete metaphor, Dead metaphor, Dormant metaphor, Dying metaphor, Extended metaphor, Implicit metaphor, Mixed metaphor, Pataphor, Root metaphor, Simple metaphor, Submerged metaphor and Synechdochic metaphor. Lakoff and Johnson classify metaphor into three main types including ontological, orientational and structural metaphor. 9 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.1 Ontological metaphor Lakoff and Johnson reasoned that ontological metaphors occurred when our experience of physical object and substances provided a further basis for understanding.
This means that we understand many abstract experiences (such as events, activities, emotions and ideas) in terms of concrete substance, object and processes. Therefore, ontological metaphors involve ways of viewing intangible concepts as entities. Identifying these abstract and indefinable non-entities as substances or entities make it possible, too ―refer them, categorize them, group them, and quantify then – and by this means reason about them‖ (Lakoff and Johnson, 1980:25).