A Study On The Polysemy And Semantic Evolution Path Of "Chu" From The Perspective Of Embodied-Cognition

This paper is devoted to studying the polysemy and semantic evolution path of“Chu”.Previous studies have deepened our understanding of “Chu” and laid a solid foundation for our research.The predecessors? research on “Chu” is mainly reflected in three aspects: The first is descriptive semantic research on “Chu” at the synchronic level.The second is the semantic evolution of “Chu” at the diachronic level.The third is the semantic explanation of “Chu” from the cognitive perspective.But there are some questions that need further clarification,such as: Where does the polysemy of “Chu”come from? What is the semantic evolution path of “Chu”? What is the Embodied-Cognitive mechanism of “Chu”? These questions are not concretely reflected in previous studies.Based on this,this paper attempts to construct an Embodied-Cognitive Path of Semantic Evolution model from the perspective of Embodied-Cognitive Linguistics.Under the framework of this model,we try to answer the following two questions:(1)What is the semantic evolution path and the Embodied-Cognitive mechanism of“Chu”?(2)Where does the polysemy of “Chu” come from? In the structure of “Chu +N”,what are the specific manifestations of the polysemy of “Chu”?Embodied-Cognitive Linguistics holds that the generation of meaning is inseparable from “Embodied-Cognitive”.According to the Embodied-Cognitive Path of Semantic Evolution model,humans acquire basic concepts,which we call Embodied-Cognitive concepts,through an interactive experience with reality.Because of the repetition of an interactive experience,an abstract schematic structure forms,that is,the schematic meaning of a certain concept.Once the schematic meaning is formed,on the one hand,the basic syntactic and semantic features of the schema are regulated by its stability,and on the other hand,it constantly expands its inherent boundary and forms a new semantic meaning,that is,the extended meaning through metaphor and metonymy.With the increasing number of extended meanings,a semantic category based on the schematic meaning formed gradually.Under the framework of the “Embodied-Cognitive Path of Semantic Evolution model”,we find that the Embodied-Cognitive concept of “Chu” comes from our interactive experience with reality.Specifically,the human physical experience “stepping out”,through cognitive processing formed the Embodied-Cognitive concept of “Chu”.The repetition of this experience has formed an abstract conceptual structure about“Chu”,and its semantics are also abstracted as “from inside to outside”,that is,the schematic meaning of “Chu”.While maintaining its stability,the schematic meaning continues to expand outward through metaphor and metonymy to meet the conceptualization of complex abstract concepts by human beings,so the meaning of“Chu” continues to expand outward and obtain its extended meaning.This process is also used to explain the semantic evolution path of “Chu”,which provides a possible solution for us to understand the Embodied-Cognitive mechanism of the semantic evolution of “Chu”.It is found that the polysemy of “Chu” is the result of the operation of the“Embodied-Cognitive Path of Semantic Evolution model”.For the convenience of research,this paper takes the structure of “Chu +N” as an example and focuses on “Chu+N” from five aspects: “Chu+ agent” “Chu+ patient” “Chu+ range” “Chu+ cause”and “Chu+ result.” When “Chu” is collocated with different types of “N”,its semantics will be influenced by “N”,which makes the semantics of “Chu” expand by metaphor and metonymy on the basis of schematic meaning,and forming several extended meanings.From the Embodied-Cognitive concept of “Chu” to schematic meaning,then to extended meaning by metaphor and metonymy,and finally form the semantic category of “Chu”.This model can also better explain the polysemy of “Chu” and its semantic origin.The study shows that:(1)the semantic evolution of “Chu” can be better explained under the framework of the “Embodied-Cognitive Path of Semantic Evolution model”,which provides a possible for the semantic evolution of “Chu” and its Embodied-Cognitive mechanism.(2)The polysemy of “Chu” is the result of the operation of the “Embodied-Cognitive Path of Semantic Evolution model”.In the structure of “Chu +N”,“Chu” as a fixed element in the structure,its schematic meaning provides a reference for understanding the semantics of the structure of “Chu +N”.When “Chu” is paired with different types of “N,” its semantics will be influenced by“N”,and resulting in the interaction and crossing between adjacent categories.That is to say,based on the schematic meaning of “Chu”,the extended meaning of “Chu” is formed through the cognitive processing of metaphor or metonymy.