(2) have a finger in something(take part in something) (3) get one's finger burnt(suffer after a foolish act or mistake) (4) work one' s finger to the bone(work very hard) (5) cross one's finger(wish for good luck or success)
(6) twist somebody around one's finger(persuade somebody without difficulty; dominant somebody completely)
(7) get one's fingers out(begin work in earnest; hurry up)
Ontological metaphor deals with the physical experience in the objective world. We have mentioned above that ontological metaphors allow us to “ view events, activities, emotions, etc as entities and substances. In (1), we can view get one’s finger into something as an activity, what can be figured out is more than that. Just as the idiom conveys “if one is doing something or participates in something, one's fingers must be \matter”.
4.2 Orientational metaphors and idioms
According to Lakoff and Johnson, orientational metaphors give the concept of a spatial orientation by \ Most of
them
have
to
do
with
spatial
orientation:up-down,in-out,front-back,on-off,deep-shallow,central-peripherical.These spatial directions arise from the fact that we have bodies of the sort we have and that they function as they do in our physical environment. Metaphorical orientation is not arbitrary. They have a basis in our physical and cultural experiences. This section will focus on the directions of up-down and front-back.
4.2.1 The analysis of metaphoric meanings about UP-DOWN
In English we usually use up, above, over, and the verb rise, climb to denote the
concept of UP. The adjectives are upper, high, superior, etc. On the other hand, the prepositions denoting the concept DOWN are down, under or below; the verbs are drop, sink, fall, etc.
1) More is up; Less is down .
中国最大的论文知识平台www.lwxiezuo.com
If you add more of a substance or of physical objects to a container or pile, the level goes up―Lakoff [16]
(1) If you are too hot, turn the heat down.
(2) Now he has realized that he's already up to his ears in debt. 2) Good is up; Bad is down .
Happiness, health, life, and control―the things that principally characterize what is good for a person―are all up―Lakoff[16]
(1) We hit a peak last year, but it's been downhill ever since. (2) Things are looking up.
(3) High status is up;Low status is down.
Status correlated with social power and physical power is up. ―Lakoff[16] (1) He's climbing the ladder. (2) He has a lofty position. (3) They work under a kind leader.
(4) Having control or force is up; Being subject to control or force down Physical size typically correlates with physical strength, and the victor in a fight is typically on top. ―Lakoff [16] (1)I am on top of the situation. (2)He is low man on the totem pole. (3)The director presides over the meeting.
5)The metaphors about time in English are expressed by up and down.
Normally our eyes look in the direction in which we typically move(ahead, forward).As an object approaches a person(or the person approaches the object),the object appears larger. Since the ground is perceived as being fixed, the top of the object appears to be moving upward in the person's field of vision.―Lakoff [16] (1) What's up?
(2) I'm afraid of what's up ahead of us.
But there are exceptions in English. TOWARD A LATER or TIME IS DOWN is also seen in English. For example, this story was handed down to him by his father.
4.2.2 The analysis of metaphoric meaning about FRONT-BACK The words and expressions denoting the concept of \front
中国最大的论文知识平台www.lwxiezuo.com
and back, before and after, in front of and behind, forward and backward, etc… 1) THE OPEN IS FRONT and THE HIDDEN IS BACK
According to the normal condition, the front persons in a line are easier to be seen and the back persons are blocked and not easier to be seen.-----Lakoff (1) He is behind the plan.
(2) The case is now before the judge.
2) THE IMPORTANT IS FRONT and THE LESS IMPORTANT IS BACK
The important person is always in the front of a line and the important thing is firstly dealt with.----Lakoff
(1)I think quality must come before quality.
(2)The prince is before his brother in the line of succession.
3)THE DEVELOPED IS FRONT and THE LESS DEVELOPED IS BACK The fast runners will be in the front and the slow runners will be in the back.----Lakoff
(1) The child was backward in learning to walk.
(2) You company is ahead in developing the new technology.
4) The concept of FRONT-BACK is complex in denoting time. When the observer is standing at the road of time, the conceptual metaphor is:
a. THE FUTURE IS BACK and THE PAST IS FRONT
while the observer is marching facing the future, the conceptual metaphor is:
b. THE FUTURE IS FRONT and THE PAST IS BACK As for (a) let's look at the examples: (1) The plane was behind schedule.
(2) Let's move the appointment forward from Friday to Thursday.
The above metaphor views time as a road with different points and judges from the perspective of the road, thus the past is in front and the future is at the back.
As for (b) Let's look at the examples: (1)I am looking forward to seeing you again. (2)He looked backwards forty years.
4.2.3 A case study: idioms denoting the concept of love (1) LOVE IS A JOURNEY
中国最大的论文知识平台www.lwxiezuo.com
The expressions, such as, we can turn back now and we are spinning our wheels, were considered to reflect entirely different and mostly dead metaphors before. Yet these expressions do reflect different aspects of our ordinary metaphorical concept of love as a kind of physical journey . Each expression listed above reflects a particular entailment of the mapping of journeys onto love, a metaphorical mapping in which our knowledge of a concrete domain of experience( journey) help us better structure our understanding of a more abstract concept(love).
Let’s look at the example: spinning one’s wheel.
We can see this idiom in this way: the wheels of a car stuck in some substance either in mud, sand, snow or on ice, so the car can not move. Our knowledge tells us that the situation will not change even we use a lot of energy. THE LOVE IS A JOURNEY metaphor applies knowledge about the image to that about love: a lot of energy is being spent without any progress towards fulfilling common goals, similarly, the situation will not change of its own accord before lovers take a lot of efforts to make more progress.
Metaphor is understood via the mapping progress. These mappings are presumed to be part of the human conceptual system. Whenever a metaphor is used, people automatically access the relevant conceptual metaphor that assimilates the abstract concept of love to more concrete concept such as fire, war and act.
2. LOVE IS MAGIC She cast her spell over me. 3.LOVE IS WAR
He won her hand in marriage. 4. LOVE IS FIRE
He carried torch for the girl he met in library
4.3 Structural metaphor and idioms
Structural metaphor, according to Lakoff ＆Johnson, is the case \where one concept is metaphorically structured in terms of another.\ [16] The cognitive function of these structural metaphors is to enable speakers to understand target A by means of the structure of source B. Like orientational and ontological metaphors, structural metaphors are grounded in systematic correlations within our experiences. The
中国最大的论文知识平台www.lwxiezuo.com
biggest characteristic, that is , systematicity, is reflected in two ways.
4.3.1 The internal systematicity
The structural metaphors focus on the mapping from the structure of the source domain to the structure of the target domain. Because the source domain is systematic, the target domain is systematic. Let's first look at the example: IDEAS ARE PLANTS. The growing process of a plant includes: plowing the soil, sowing seeds, germination, blossoming and bearing fruits.
A.PREPARE THE DEVELOPMENT OF AN IDEA IS PREPARING THE GROWTH OF A PLANT; THE BASIS OF AN IDEA IS THE GROUND OF A PLANT.
His argument is ill grounded in facts.
B.TO START OR CREATE AN IDEA IS TO SOW A PLANT. A seed of doubt may have been planted in your minds.
C.THE INITIAL STAGES OF DEVELOPMENT ARE THE BEGINNING OF GROWTH.
An idea began to germinate in his mind.
D.TO DELETE AN UNNECESSARY PART OF AN IDEA IS TO WEED OUT THE GRASS.
During the second revision, we weeded out some dated ideas.
E.THE UNSUCCESSFUL DEVELOPMENT OF AN IDEA IS THE UNHEALTH OF A PLANT.
The old theory is withering away, while the new one has not come into being.
F.THE BEST STAGE IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF AN IDEA IS THE FLOWERING OF A PLANT.
This was in the seventeenth century when modern science was in its first blossom.
G.THE BENEFFICIAL CONSEQUENCES OF AN IDEA ARE THE FRUITS OR THE CROP OF A PLANT.
His ideas finally come to fruition.
What can we learn from the above examples is that the different stages of the plant can be correspondently mapped onto the different stages of the development of an idea. Because people are familiar with the stages of plants, they are used to
中国最大的论文知识平台www.lwxiezuo.com
百度搜索“77cn”或“免费范文网”即可找到本站免费阅读全部范文。收藏本站方便下次阅读，免费范文网，提供经典小说综合文库英语习语中的隐喻现象(4)在线全文阅读。
相关推荐：