On The Function Of Metaphor Of Riichi Yokomitsu’s Literature

Yokomitu Riichi(1898-1947)was the standard bearer of Japanese New Sensation literature from the 1920 s to the 1930 s,advocating "Literary Revolution".He is famous for his unique expression techniques,and is good at infiltrating the subjective feeling into the object expression and constructing the symbolic literary world.Shanghai,as the first full-length novel written by Yokomitu Riichi,not only brings the skills of Japanese New Sensational literature to the extreme,but also brings the grand international historical theme into the novel narrative for the first time,enriching the ideological connotation of the novel.From the perspective of the Japanese,Yokomitu Riichi focused on a great mass anti-imperialist and patriotic movement in Chinese history.He described the colorful "magic city" Shanghai in his eyes and his unique thinking of the times.The research on Yokomitu Riichi in Chinese academic circles began in the 1980 s,which started later than that in Japanese academic circles.In the Chinese and Japanese literature research circles,there are many researches on Yokomitu Riichi,and researches on his novel Shanghai mainly focus on its stylistic expression,character image,work world,novel theme,creative techniques and so on.However,the conceptual metaphors in Shanghai are also unique and cannot be ignored.According to the relevant research data collected by CNKI and Ci Nii,there is no research on Shanghai from the perspective of conceptual metaphor theory.Therefore,based on the valuable results of previous studies,the author attempts to use the conceptual metaphor theory,text analysis,induction and other research methods to analyze and explain the metaphor phenomenon and its function in Shanghai.This paper consists of four chapters.The first chapter gives an overview of the conceptual metaphor theory,focusing on the specific connotations of orientational metaphors,ontological metaphors,and structural metaphors.Then the author explains the feasibility of using the theory to analyze the novel Shanghai.In the other three chapters,the author analyzes the function and significance of metaphor in novel Shanghai from three aspects: urban space,character image and inner deep structure.Firstly,the use of "place name erasure" in Shanghai not only enhances the overall sense of spatial movement,but also makes the spatial image of the novel more symbolic and endowed with rich and colorful metaphorical representation.From the perspective of orientational metaphors,the second chapter focuses on the unique urban space setting in Shanghai,focusing on the metaphorical functions and effects of spatial images such as bank,bathhouse,Huangpu River and Suzhou River.It can be seen that they are metaphors of "exterior Shanghai" as a city full of desire and "interior Shanghai" as Oriental garbage dump,from which the dual structure of "modernity" and "pre-modernity" of Shanghai in the 1920 s can be interpreted.Secondly,Yokomitu Riichi,with Japanese characters as the center,created many characters of different nationalities who drifted in the concession Shanghai at that time for various reasons.They all more or less reflect the creative intention and tendency of Yokomitu Riichi,and metaphorize the Shanghai World of various ideological trends at that time.The third chapter analyzes the main characters in the novel based on ontological metaphors.The female images Kyouko,Osugi and Fang Qiulan are metaphors of nihilism,Japanese Nationalism and revolutionaries respectively,while the male images Yamaguchi and Kouya are metaphors of Asianism and capitalism respectively.With their own metaphorical symbols,they wandered in Shanghai,the concession city constructed by the above spatial metaphors.Finally,in the fourth chapter the author explores the deeper internal structural problems in Shanghai from the perspective of structural metaphors.Firstly,focusing on the relationship between the protagonist Sannki,Osugi and Fang Qiulan,the author analyzes the identity crisis of Yokomitu Riichi.On the one hand,he wanted to return to Japan.On the other hand,he showed hesitation and confusion about revolution and Marxism.Secondly,focusing on the whole city of Shanghai,the author explores its special significance as a metaphor of modern civilization.Shanghai,for the Japanese represented by Yokomitu Riichi,is not only the modern image they want to pursue,but also the existence they want to surpass and dominate.This not only reflects the ideological entanglement of some Japanese intellectuals at that time,but also conveys the signs of Japanese Militarism on the eve of the war.Therefore,based on the conceptual metaphor theory,this paper focuses on the urban space,character image and internal structure in Shanghai,analyzes and explains their metaphorical functions and meanings.This can not only clarify the expressive effect of this metaphorical phenomenon in Shanghai,understand the specific meaning and profound connotation of urban space,character image and internal structure in Shanghai,but also enable us to have a deeper understanding of Yokomitu Riichi’s creative characteristics,and artistic expression techniques.Meanwhile,it reveals the Yokomitu Riichi ’s profound understanding of the times.This is also the significance of this paper.