Textual Function Analysis

Metaphor has traditionally been viewed as a rhetorical device and the study of metaphor is mainly limited to lexical, phrasal and syntactical level. With the publication of Lakoff and Johnson's Metaphor We Live By in 1980, the study of metaphor is brought into a cognitive field. Lakoff and Johnson claim that the process of human thought is largely metaphorical, and metaphor plays an important role in conceptualizing human experience. With the development of conceptual metaphor study, some scholars, abroad and at home, have dealt with the textual role of metaphor. But there is a lack of analysis of specific cohesion devices and the textual function of metaphor in text.In light of Halliday and Hasan's theory of cohesion, and especially Lakoff's theory of conceptual metaphor, this thesis explores the textual function of metaphor. The analysis of samples is carried out at two levels:the linguistic level and the conceptual level. First, by dealing with metaphorical expressions, this thesis studies the textual cohesive function of metaphor. Then, by dealing with metaphorical concepts, this thesis explores the textual coherent function of conceptual metaphor. From the sample analysis, it has been found out that on one hand, metaphors can create cohesion by lexical and grammatical devices, especially the mapping patterns and extension of metaphor; on the other hand, the systematicity of conceptual metaphor and overlapping entailments between different source domains can contribute to text coherence.