scholarly journals Analysis of Political Metaphors in Donald J. Trump’s State of the Union Address in 2020

Author(s):  
Tang Bingyu

On the basis of Conceptual Metaphor Theory proposed by George Lakoff and Mark Johnson, this paper conducts a cognitive analysis of conceptual metaphors in Donald J. Trump’s State of the Union Address in 2020, aiming to explain the metaphors in the State of the Union Address, reveal the political intentions hidden behind the metaphors, and construe the relationship between politics and metaphor. It is found that the metaphors in this State of the Union Address are: CONFLICT metaphors, BUILDING metaphor, JOURNEY metaphors, ORIENTATIONAL metaphors, and PLANT metaphors. Through the analysis, this paper concludes that conceptual metaphor has the function of persuading the masses and shaping the image of politicians. At the same time, this paper also finds that politics restricts the choice and application of metaphor.

2018 ◽  
Vol 41 (2) ◽  
pp. 260-279 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Burgers ◽  
Kathleen Ahrens

AbstractThe literature provides diverging perspectives on the universality and stability of economic metaphors over time. This article contains a diachronic analysis of economic metaphors describing trade in a corpus of 225 years of US State of the Union addresses (1790–2014). We focused on two types of change: (i) replacement of a source domain by another domain and (ii) change in mapping within a source domain. In our corpus, five source domains of trade were predominant: (i) PhysicalObject, (ii) Building, (iii) Container, (iv) Journey, and (v) LivingBeing. Only the relative frequency of the Container source domain was related to time. Additionally, mappings between source and target domains were mostly stable. Nevertheless, our analyses suggest that the Trade metaphors in our corpus are related to concreteness in a more nuanced way as typically assumed in conceptual metaphor theory: metaphors high in the concreteness dimension of physicality and low in the concreteness dimension of specificity are likeliest to be used over longer time periods, by providing communicators with freedom to adjust the metaphor to changing societal circumstances.


2019 ◽  
Vol 61 (1) ◽  
pp. 26-39
Author(s):  
Gregory E. Sterling

AbstractThis essay considers Philo of Alexandria’s metaphor in which he used the dual nature of embodied existence (body and soul) to argue that both literal and allegorical readings are legitimate. It examines the metaphor in the framework of Conceptual Metaphor Theory (CTM) developed by George Lakoff and Mark Johnson that argues that experience is the key to meaning. A metaphor occurs when we apply a pattern that we have observed in one setting (gestalt) to another. In this case, Philo has drawn on a Platonic/Stoic understanding of being human and applied it to contested hermeneutics within the Alexandrian Jewish community in an effort to maintain a sense of unity among two groups. The metaphorical experience is the recognition that Scripture is polyvalent in the same way that being human is.


2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Peer F. Bundgaard

Abstract George Lakoff and Mark Johnson’s Conceptual Metaphor Theory is by and large a theory of what (abstract) concepts are, how they are structured, and how this structure is acquired — i.e., by mapping of structure from one more concrete or sensory-motor specific domain to another more abstract domain. Conceptual metaphors therefore rest on “cross-domain mappings.” The claims to the effect that our abstract concepts are metaphorically structured and that cross-domain mappings constitute one of the fundamental cognitive meaning-making processes are empirical and can therefore be put to the test. In this paper, I will critically assess Conceptual Metaphor Theory as a theory of concepts in light of recent experimental findings. Many such findings provide evidence for the psychological reality of cross-domain mappings, i.e., that structure activated in one domain actually can perform cognitive tasks carried out in another domain. They do not, however, support the claim that the structure of our (abstract) concepts is still metaphorical, as Lakoff and Johnson claim — that is to say, that our mind actually does perform cross-domain mappings when we process conventional conceptual metaphors such as “Death is Rest” or “Love is a Journey.” Two conclusions can be drawn from this: (1) it is necessary to distinguish between cross-domain mappings (which are psychologically real) and the metaphoric structure of our concepts (which is not, in the sense that such concepts do not any longer activate cross-domain mappings when processed); (2) Conceptual Metaphor Theory is not an adequate theory of concepts. I will therefore sketch another more viable theory of concepts where the structure of our concepts is defined as the full ecology of their situations of use, which includes the kind of situations (objects, agents, interactions) they apply to and the kind of emotional, cognitive, bodily, and behavioral responses they elicit. On this view, the contents of our concepts are to be considered as vague predicates, with vague extensions, which take on a specific form in their situation of use.


2014 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 234-254 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pascal Fischer

Conservatism is notoriously difficult to define. In the present study, conceptual metaphor theory is used to elucidate the nature of this ideology in its early phase when it emerged in England as a force struggling with the ideas of the French Revolution. It can be shown that conservative authors frequently do not conform to the pattern of orientational metaphors described by George Lakoff and Mark Johnson (1980), according to which “up” is usually regarded as positive and “down” as negative. Conservatives often associate their own ideas with depth or a downward movement, whereas the loathed ideas of the political opponents are related to height or an upward movement. This dichotomy is closely connected to the polarity between solidity, stability and weight on the one hand and gaseity, volatility and lightness on the other. The study bases its analysis on numerous political tracts, pamphlets, and novels from the 1790s and early 1800s.


Author(s):  
Nirwanto Maruf ◽  
Rita Tanduk

Despite of many previous studies related to conceptual metaphor have been conducted since George Lakoff and Mark Johnson have introduced their work known as Metaphor We Live By in 1980, but none of them have analysed oral discourse as their corpus. This study aims to reveal the concept of death belonging to one of the Indonesian indigenous tribes located in Sulawesi Island called Kajang tribe. The Kajang tribe has an ancient oral discourse which delivers orally from generation to generation known as Pasang ri Kajang, and it is full of metaphorical expressions. This present study employs the conceptual metaphor theory (CMT) introduced by Lakoff and Johnson (1980, 2003), and the approach of conceptual metaphor analysis (CMA) by Charteris Black (2004) to reveal the concept of death found in Pasang ri Kajang. This qualitative research obtained the data through semi-structured interviews, field observation, recording, and note-taking. The conceptual metaphor techniques comprising three CMA stages, namely identification, interpretation, and explanation, were used for data analysis. The results of the study indicate that the concept of death as found in Pasang ri Kajang is DEATH IS A JOURNEY. This conceptual metaphor gives a detailed description of death as a journey of the soul to the hereafter. This research concludes that people of Kajang believes only good souls are rewarded with eternal life (Karakkang) and extraordinary wealth (Kalumannyang kaluppepeang) in the hereafter (ahera). 


Author(s):  
Daban Q. Jaff ◽  
Yasir A. Al-Jumaili

This paper explores the mapping process which is used to conceptualize trauma in one of the post-9/11 novels, namely DeLillo’s Falling Man. The paper focuses on how the traumatic experiences are represented through metaphors. Although many previous studies have attempted stylistic investigations to DeLillo’s novel, very little research approached its metaphorical language. As far as trauma experience is concerned, most of the previous studies discussed these experiences thematically (Kensiton and Quinn, 2008; Gray, 2012; Pozorski, 2014; Keeble, 2014). This study, therefore, offers a stylistic examination of the metaphors of trauma which are used to communicate the negative mental experiences in this novel. It examines the conceptualization of traumatic experiences encountered by the main characters as they are exposed to disturbing events. The study applies insights from Conceptual Metaphor Theory (CMT) by George Lakoff and Mark Johnson (1980; 2003) to selected metaphors from the novel. The application of conceptual metaphor theory allows better understanding of how the abstract state of trauma is conceptualized and communicated through the course of the novel. The experience of trauma is represented variously in this novel, sometimes it is communicated through idiosyncratic metaphors (Moncef, 2016) and sometimes it is represented through using conventional metaphors. The study also examines the mapping process to see how conceptual structures are selected from different source domains and mapped onto the domain of the abstract state of trauma to convey the effects of these distressing experiences.


2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 406-415
Author(s):  
Thu Quynh Trinh Ho

Love – an abstract concept becomes more concrete and easier to understand in temporal language including chronological and kairotic terms. In the light of the conceptual metaphor theory launched by Lakoff and Johnson (1980), eight source domains for love are found underlying 204 temporal expressions (80 English and 124 Vietnamese). All the conceptual metaphors and many of the metaphorical expressions are the same in the two languages. These resemblances may be shed light on by the universality of metaphor and the objectiveness of time. However, language is a cultural factor; it develops in the relationship with the culture. Hence, coming from two different cultures, the temporal terms employed to relate love are not completely similar between English and Vietnamese.


2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 331-342
Author(s):  
Saraswati Eka Ramadhani ◽  
Johannes Ananto Prayogo ◽  
Nabhan Fuad Choiron

Abstract: This research investigates metaphors depicting sex used in the lyrics of Robert Sylvester Kelly’s selected songs, which most of the songs are known for their outrageously sexual lyrics. In this case, the aims of this research are: (1) to find out metaphors depicting sex, (2) to convey the meaning of the metaphors used by Robert Sylvester Kelly. Using qualitative research design, this research employed Conceptual Metaphor Theory by George Lakoff and Metaphor Identification Procedures (MIP) by Pragglejaz Group in analyzing the data. The findings reveal that there are six kinds of conceptual metaphors depicting sex found in the data. They are (1) sex is violence, (2) sex is eating, (3) sex is journey/adventure, (4) sex is game, (5) sex is a lesson, and (6) sex is insanity. Based on the analysis, sex is violence is the conceptual metaphor used most frequently by Robert Sylvester Kelly in both albums. Through Lakoff and Johnson theory, the meaning can be easier to understand. It shows that each conceptual metaphor has its own meaning or interpretation of sex. Keywords: metaphor, conceptual metaphor, sex Abstrak: Penelitian ini menganalisis tentang metafora yang menggambarkan seks dalam lirik lagu pilihan Robert Sylvester Kelly, yang sebagian besar lagunya dikenal dengan lirik yang sangat seksual. Dalam hal ini, penelitian ini bertujuan untuk: (1) mengetahui metafora yang menggambarkan seks, (2) menyampaikan makna metafora yang digunakan oleh Robert Sylvester Kelly. Dengan menggunakan desain penelitian kualitatif, penelitian ini menggunakan Teori Metafora Konseptual oleh George Lakoff dan Metaphor Identification Procedures (MIP) oleh Pragglejaz Group dalam menganalisis data. Hasil temuan mengungkapkan bahwa ada enam jenis metafora konseptual yang menggambarkan seks ditemukan dalam data tersebut. Yaitu (1) seks adalah kekerasan, (2) seks adalah makan, (3) seks adalah perjalanan / petualangan, (4) seks adalah permainan, (5) seks adalah pelajaran, dan (6) seks adalah kegilaan. Berdasarkan analisis, seks adalah kekerasan adalah metafora konseptual yang paling sering digunakan oleh Robert Sylvester Kelly di kedua album tersebut. Melalui teori Lakoff dan Johnson, maknanya bisa lebih mudah dipahami. Ini menunjukkan bahwa setiap metafora konseptual memiliki makna atau interpretasi tersendiri tentang seks. Kata kunci: metafora, metafora konseptual, seks


Author(s):  
Christine Petersen ◽  
Volkmar Engerer

<p>This article investigates the implicit metaphorical meanings and motifs in a short campaign film and analyses the ways in which the narrative and sequential structure of the film unfolds itself in order to generate these underlying layers of meanings. The short film ‘Tænk. Hvis det er dig’ (‘Think. If It Were You’), which serves as the specific case of this study, was part of Aarhus University’s 2012 branding and student recruitment campaign, which also consisted of a dedicated website and study guidance materials. Using the theoretical insights of the Conceptual Metaphor Theory, as proposed by George Lakoff and Mark Johnson in their 1980 book <em>Metaphors We Live By</em>, as a framework for our analysis, we examine the nature of the metaphor(s) used in the film and establish that an implicit metaphorical understanding of ‘education as a journey’ is present throughout the film. In the article, we argue for an interpretation of the underlying narrative metaphor as ‘education as a modern Grand Tour’ – a metaphor that connotes (often culturally-anchored) concepts and notions such as ‘general education’ (<em>Bildung</em>, which includes academic knowledge and skills as well as the notion of the university as a social context), ‘personal development’ and ‘citizenship’. Through this analysis and the explication of underlying structurally- and visually-established metaphorical meanings, we wish to demonstrate how an originally linguistic and textual concept of metaphor as developed in the Conceptual Metaphor Theory can contribute to an in-depth understanding of visually-based cinematic and narrative techniques.   </p>


Author(s):  
Gillian Knoll

The introduction presents the main argument of Conceiving Desire in Lyly and Shakespeare: that metaphors dramatize inward erotic experience on the early modern stage. The opening pages chart the book’s methodology, situate it among other studies of desire, and introduce conceptual metaphor theory via George Lakoff, Mark Johnson, and Mark Turner’s foundational work in cognitive linguistics. To illustrate the importance of cognition to erotic experience, the introduction analyses Troilus’s soliloquy in which he anticipates his tryst with Cressida. Troilus’s imagination makes him “giddy” but it also betrays his cognitive performance anxiety—a fear of being unable to conceive of the “subtle” pleasures that await him, dooming them to be lost to him forever. Troilus confirms that our ability to process erotic experience mentally is what grants us access to it; both action and contemplation are vital ingredients in erotic experience. These pages conclude by discussing the value of pairing John Lyly’s and William Shakespeare’s plays to study erotic language. Both playwrights, but especially Lyly, reveal the power of contemplative speech to constitute vibrant, frenzied action on a stage.


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