Metaphor And Affect

Metaphor is traditionally viewed as one of the figures of speech, that is, a linguistic phenomenon. It is primarily decorative and ornamental in nature, thus unnecessary in language. However, in the past few decades, the cognitive study about metaphor shows that metaphor is not just a matter of language or of mere words. More importantly, metaphor is pervasive in everyday life, not just in language but also in thought and action. Our conceptual system, in terms of which we both think and act, is fundamentally metaphorical in nature. It is cognitive study that brings metaphor to the centre of attention and makes the in-depth study of metaphor possible.This paper first, makes a general review of metaphor research by Aristotle, Richard, Black as well as contemporary scholars Lakoff, Sperber & Wilson, Glucksberg & Keysar and Nogales. While recognizing the huge progress made by the cognitive study, the author argues that a discussion of affect, which has been absent from recent theories of metaphor comprehension, should be included. Metaphors are both cognitive and affective in their meaning. Thus this paper looks at how affect, broadly conceptualized as positive and negative valence, may interact with cognition during the metaphor comprehension process to provide the full import of metaphorical meaning within the metaphor comprehension mechanism proposed by Lakoff et al. Metaphors of displacement, which are characterized by their negative valence, are employed to give more illustrations. Metaphors such as weeds, diseases and bodily secretions are analyzed to reveal the role played by cognition and affect in metaphor comprehension. The author also points out that those metaphors shape the public opinion through the negative valence mapped to the target. This study is of theoretical and practical significance, which is discussed at the end of the paper.