The Application Of CIN (Conceptual Integration Network) Model To The Analysis Of The Novel Metaphors In The Joy Luck Club

Every day, human beings are creating and interpreting numerous literary works, but the question of how we construct and construe them from the perspective of cognition remains to be a mystery to us. The CIN (Conceptual Integration Network) model or the "blending" theory proposed by Fauconnier and Turner provides us with a new cognitive perspective and has recently contributed greatly to the interpretation of the dynamic on-line meaning construction process of language. As a mainstream in cognitive linguistics, the CIN framework has extended its earlier analysis into many cognitive domains, such as the poems, dramas, films and narrative prose, etc. This paper applies the CIN model to the analysis of the cognitive mechanisms by which novel metaphors are constructed and construed in the ABC writer, Amy Tan's novel, The Joy Luck Club. Applying the four-space model and its specific operating principles as the main research methodology, the primary goal of the article is to show how the analysis of blending strategies used in Amy's novel may help in the recognition of the specific features she constructed in her stories and help the readers gain deep insight into the Chinese culture. Thus it offers us a more accurate and broader understanding of human imagination and creative thought and helps us to have a better understanding of the theme and the aesthetic value of the novel. Through the analysis, we can obtain the result that the CIN model or blending theory can facilitate the maintaining of the uniform narrative perspective of the writer. Additionally, through the analysis of some typical blending examples in this novel, we can answer some challenges about the adequacy and descriptive power of the blending framework.