Conceptual Metaphors In Chinese And American Economic Reports From Cross-cultural Perspective

Traditionally,metaphor is viewed as a kind of figure of speech which can beautify language.However,cognitive linguistics believes that metaphor is not only a linguistic phenomenon,but also a cognitive tool for people to talk and think.Conceptual metaphor theory proposed by Lakoff & Johnson as an important concept in cognitive linguistics provides us a new method of studying metaphor in actual language.Following the conceptual metaphor theory,this thesis makes a cross-cultural study on conceptual metaphors in English and Chinese economic discourse.The data come from the authoritative business reports.Chinese examples are taken from “21st Century Business Herald,The Economic Observer,China Daily,China Business Journal”.English examples are taken from “New York Times,Economist,The Wall Street Journal,USA Today”.Firstly,after collection and classification of the data,this thesis presents four types of typical conceptual metaphors: FRIEND Metaphor,CROP Metaphor,WAR Metaphor,GAME/SPORTS Metaphor.Then this thesis explores the cultural roots of four cultural-specific metaphors from three aspects: philosophical factor,value factor,traditional cultural factor.One contribution of the study is doing the cross-cultural study by illustrating the working mechanism of each conceptual metaphor.According to Lakoff & Johnson,conceptual metaphor is a way for us to perceive the world.However,one's way of thought is inseparable from his living and cultural experiences.Therefore,in this way,this thesis explores the cultural factors that influence the use of conceptual metaphors in American and Chinese economic reports.