Metaphor: Its Cognitive Force and Linguistic Structure (Clarendon Library of Logic & Philosophy) - Hardcover

Kittay, Eva Feder

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0198249357 ISBN 13: 9780198249351

Publisher: Clarendon Press, 1987

Synopsis

This book provides a comprehensive philosophical theory explaining the cognitive contribution of metaphor. Metaphor effects a transference of meaning, not between two terms, but between two structured domains of content, or 'semantic fields'. Semantic fields, construed as necessary to a theory of word-meaning, provide the contrastive and affinitive relations that govern a term's literal use. In a metaphoric use, these relations are projected into a second domain which is thereby reordered with significant cognitive effects. The book is a detailed revision and refinement of 'the semantic theory of metaphor'. Taking into account pragmatic considerations and recent linguistic and psychological studies, the author forges a new understanding of the relation between metaphoric and literal meaning. She illustrates her thesis with analyses of metaphors found in literature, philosophy, science, and everyday language. The book is aimed primarily at linguists, literary theorists, philosophers, psychologists concerned with the nature of cognition and philosophers of science interested in metaphor and models in science.

About this title

Product Description

Good condition. Book has been read it remains in clean condition pages are intact. Some minor shelfware. The spine may show some wear.

Review

'it offers a sustained polemic for a conception of meaning, in terms of Semantic Field theory...one might think of its capacity to deal with the vexed question of metaphor as one reason why this sort of theory deserves more popularity than perhaps it presently enjoys' British Journal of Aesthetics `Detailed and sophisticated ... I regard Kittay's work on metaphor as state-of-the-art ... Philosophically oriented students of metaphor will welcome this book.' Canadian Philosophical Reviews

'Kittay's book is scholarly and enlightening.' Times Literary Supplement

Edition details

• Publisher: Clarendon Press
• Publication date: 1987
• ISBN 10: 0198249357
• ISBN 13: 9780198249351
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 368