This lively introduction to figurative language explains a broad range of concepts, including metaphor, metonymy, simile, and blending, and develops new tools for analyzing them. It coherently grounds the linguistic understanding of these concepts in basic cognitive mechanisms such as categorization, frames, mental spaces, and viewpoint; and it fits them into a consistent framework which is applied to cross-linguistic data and also to figurative structures in gesture and the visual arts. Comprehensive and practical, the book includes analyses of figurative uses of both word meanings and linguistic constructions. • Provides definitions of major concepts • Offers in-depth analyses of examples, exploring multiple levels of complexity • Surveys figurative structures in different discourse genres • Helps students to connect figurative usage with the conceptual underpinnings of language • Goes beyond English to explore cross-linguistic and cross-modal data
There are great differences between the oral use of figurative language and its written use. Nevertheless, the only separately published textbook for figurative language is almost entirely concerned with oral figurative language, offering such examples as "you have a heart of stone" or "you make my blood boil." Much, if not most, oral language consists of long, repetitious portions of cliche and platitude, and not surprisingly, the figurative language used follows the same pattern. Writing teachers generally ask their students not to use cliches and platitudes, even though they may (mistakenly, I think) advise students to "write like you speak."
Our ability to speak, write, understand speech and read is critical to our ability to function in today's society. As such, psycholinguistics, or the study of how humans learn and use language, is a central topic in cognitive science. This comprehensive handbook is a collection of chapters written not by practitioners in the field, who can summarize the work going on around them, but by trailblazers from a wide array of subfields, who have been shaping the field of psycholinguistics over the last decade. Some topics discussed include how children learn language, how average adults understand and produce language, how language is represented in the brain, how brain-damaged individuals perform in terms of their language abilities and computer-based models of language and meaning. This is required reading for advanced researchers, graduate students and upper-level undergraduates who are interested in the recent developments and the future of psycholinguistics.
This book examines how people understand utterances that are intended figuratively. Traditionally, figurative language such as metaphors and idioms has been considered derivative from more complex than ostensibly straightforward literal language. Glucksberg argues that figurative language involves the same kinds of linguistic and pragmatic operations that are used for ordinary, literal language. Glucksberg's research in this book is concerned with ordinary language: expressions that are used in daily life, including conversations about everyday matters, newspaper and magazine articles, and the media. Metaphor is the major focus of the book. Idioms, however, are also treated comprehensively, as is the theory of conceptual metaphor in the context of how people understand both conventional and novel figurative expressions. A new theory of metaphor comprehension is put forward, and evaluated with respect to competing theories in linguistics and in psychology. The central tenet of the theory is that ordinary conversational metaphors are used to create new concepts and categories. This process is spontaneous and automatic. Metaphor is special only in the sense that these categories get their names from the best examples of the things they represent, and that these categories get their names from the best examples of those categories. Thus, the literal "shark" can be a metaphor for any vicious and predatory being, from unscrupulous salespeople to a murderous character in The Threepenny Opera. Because the same term, e.g.,"shark," is used both for its literal referent and for the metaphorical category, as in "My lawyer is a shark," we call it the dual-reference theory. The theory is then extended to two other domains: idioms and conceptual metaphors. The book presents the first comprehensive account of how people use and understand metaphors in everyday life.
With Psycholinguistics in its fifth decade of existence, the second edition of the Handbook of Psycholinguistics represents a comprehensive survey of psycholinguistic theory, research and methodology, with special emphasis on the very best empirical research conducted in the past decade. Thirty leading experts have been brought together to present the reader with both broad and detailed current issues in Language Production, Comprehension and Development. The handbook is an indispensible single-source guide for professional researchers, graduate students, advanced undergraduates, university and college teachers, and other professionals in the fields of psycholinguistics, language comprehension, reading, neuropsychology of language, linguistics, language development, and computational modeling of language. It will also be a general reference for those in neighboring fields such as cognitive and developmental psychology and education. - Provides a complete account of psycholinguistic theory, research, and methodology - 30 of the field's foremost experts have contributed to this edition - An invaluable single-source reference
Interpreting Figurative Meaning critically evaluates the recent empirical work from psycholinguistics and neuroscience examining the successes and difficulties associated with interpreting figurative language. There is now a huge, often contradictory literature on how people understand figures of speech. Gibbs and Colston argue that there may not be a single theory or model that adequately explains both the processes and products of figurative meaning experience. Experimental research may ultimately be unable to simply adjudicate between current models in psychology, linguistics and philosophy of how figurative meaning is interpreted. Alternatively, the authors advance a broad theoretical framework, motivated by ideas from 'dynamical systems theory', that describes the multiple, interacting influences which shape people's experiences of figurative meaning in discourse. This book details past research and theory, offers a critical assessment of this work and sets the stage for a new vision of figurative experience in human life.
During L2 vocabulary instruction, figurative language frustrates even highly proficient users who find it difficult to cope with non-literal expressions, such as metaphors, metonymies, and idioms. Given that figurative language is closely associated with enhanced L2 communicative competence, this volume brings together theory and teaching applications, shedding light on the comprehension and production of figurative language in a foreign language context.
FROM HAN KANG, WINNER OF THE 2024 NOBEL PRIZE IN LITERATURE “[Han Kang writes in] intense poetic prose that . . . exposes the fragility of human life.”—from the Nobel Prize citation SHORTLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE • A “formally daring, emotionally devastating, and deeply political” (The New York Times Book Review) exploration of personal grief through the prism of the color white, from the internationally bestselling author of The Vegetarian “Stunningly beautiful writing . . . delicate and gorgeous . . . one of the smartest reflections on what it means to remember those we’ve lost.”—NPR While on a writer’s residency, a nameless narrator focuses on the color white to creatively channel her inner pain. Through lyrical, interconnected stories, she grapples with the tragedy that has haunted her family, attempting to make sense of her older sister’s death using the color white. From trying to imagine her mother’s first time producing breast milk to watching the snow fall and meditating on the impermanence of life, she weaves a poignant, heartfelt story of the omnipresence of grief and the ways we perceive the world around us. In captivating, starkly beautiful language, The White Book offers a multilayered exploration of color and its absence, of the tenacity and fragility of the human spirit, and of our attempts to graft new life from the ashes of destruction.
Language Disorders from Infancy Through Adolescence, 4th Edition is the go-to text for all the information you need to properly assess childhood language disorders and provide appropriate treatment. This core resource spans the entire developmental period through adolescence, and uses a descriptive-developmental approach to present basic concepts and vocabulary, an overview of key issues and controversies, the scope of communicative difficulties that make up child language disorders, and information on how language pathologists approach the assessment and intervention processes. This new edition also features significant updates in research, trends, instruction best practices, and social skills assessment. Comprehensive text covers the entire developmental period through adolescence. Clinical application focus featuring case studies, clinical vignettes, and suggested projects helps you apply concepts to professional practice. Straightforward, conversational writing style makes this book easy to read and understand. More than 230 tables and boxes summarize important information such as dialogue examples, sample assessment plans, assessment and intervention principles, activities, and sample transcripts. UNIQUE! Practice exercises with sample transcripts allow you to apply different methods of analysis. UNIQUE! Helpful study guides at the end of each chapter help you review and apply what you have learned. Versatile text is perfect for a variety of language disorder courses, and serves as a great reference tool for professional practitioners. Highly regarded lead author Rhea Paul lends her expertise in diagnosing and managing pediatric language disorders. Communication development milestones are printed on the inside front cover for quick access. Chapter objectives summarize what you can expect to learn in each chapter. Updated content features the latest research, theories, trends and techniques in the field. Information on autism incorporated throughout the text Best practices in preliteracy and literacy instruction The role of the speech-language pathologist on school literacy teams and in response to intervention New reference sources Student/Professional Resources on Evolve include an image bank, video clips, and references linked to PubMed.
The aim of this study is to discover basic principles underlying linguistic figurativeness and to develop a theory that is capable of capturing conventional figurative language (referred to as CFLT - Conventional Figurative Language Theory). This study analyses idioms, proverbs, lexicalised metaphors, and figurative compounds, drawn from ten standard languages.
