COGNITIVE THEORIES OF METAPHOR

Abstract

Metaphor is currently thought of as a cognitive mechanism, a style of thinking and cognition, rather than just a stylistic element. This paradigm was first put forth by G. Lakoff and M. Johnson in their ground-breaking book "Metaphors We Live By" and it has since been expanded upon and refined in several other studies. This theory's central thesis is that metaphor functions at the level of thought because "our conceptual system is largely metaphorical and our ordinary conceptual systems, in terms of which we both think and act, are fundamentally metaphorical in nature".