A Cognitive Analysis Of Oxymoron

Oxymoron is a special language phenomenon, and frequently used in English as a figure of speech. As a flexible practice of antonymous polymerization, oxymoron surpasses the conventional logic, and the harmonious connotation is achieved by integrating two contrastive forms. As a vivid and lively rhetoric, oxymoron has been widely applied in literary works and daily communication to create unusual and startling effect or to realize the aim of strong exaggeration, humor, etc.In recent years, this interesting and amazing language phenomenon is getting more and more concern from scholars. But the study about cognitive operations to oxymoron is not so much and limited on the surface. Taking the conceptual integration as the theoretical framework, and from the view of association, this thesis aims at analyzing and illustrating the process of understanding oxymoron.Conceptual Integration Theory (CIT) takes the mental space as the basic unit. Based on mental activities such as analogy, a recursive, stereotypes, concepts, intellectual framework, four abstract spaces are established (Fauconnier,1985:15):Generic Space, Input Spaceâ… , Input spaceâ…¡, and Blending Space. As the name suggests Input spacesâ… andâ…¡provide inputs for the coming blending apace. Generic space also provides input for the Blending Space, which is constructed from two input spaces and through the analogy to reflect the common and abstract structure shared by the two input spaces. In the blending space, all backgrounds, structure and mental model, are compared and joined to achieve a new cognition. This is the meaning integration.Meaning integration is accompanied by the integration of the structure in three processes:1) composition 2) completion 3) elaboration. One project that the thesis wants to accomplish is to make a new classification for oxymoron from a new perspective------concept domain. Based on this idea, this thesis proposes that oxymoron is classified into:Inter-Domain oxymoron, Intra-Domain oxymoron and Polarization oxymoron. The first type in which counterparts are of different domains is oxymoron of Inter-domain. The second one whose counterparts are of the same domains is oxymoron of Inter-domain. The second one whose counterparts are of the same domain is oxymoron of Intra-domain. When counterparts in the same domain are juxtaposed and the sharp contrast reaches the summit, oxymoron develops into the third type------Polarization.The other project of the thesis is to interpret oxymoron based on a new model which is modified on the basis of Conceptual Integration Theory by Fauconnier. This new model involves four or more input spaces which are distinguished from Fauconnier's CIT involving two input spaces. Based on the new model, in which meaning and structural integrations can be shown at the same time, three types of oxymoron will be interpreted including "Inter-domain oxymoron", "Intra-domain oxymoron" and "Polarization oxymoron".It needs to be supplemented that in the process of oxymoron integration, the common element called counterparts connectivity is the presupposition of integration. In addition, it is association that activates the knowledge long stored in people's mind, making the integration to be realized.