Mental Representations and the Psychological Dimensions of Spatial Orientational Metaphors: An Analytical Study of the Book “Metaphors We Live By”
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Abstract
Orientational metaphors belong to a modern branch of linguistics known as cognitive linguistics, which is concerned with the study of the metaphorical mental dimensions of language. This field encourages the listener to reflect on the semantic multiplicity and figurative potential of a text, and to elicit new meanings that each individual receives based on a set of psychological connotations of cultural, social, and religious contexts. This study aims to explore the concept and nature of mental representations, to anticipate emerging linguistic meanings, and to examine the psychological dimensions resulting from the association of these representations with orientational metaphors. The study is conducted in light of the book "Metaphors We Live By" (1980) by George Lakoff and Mark Johnson, which laid the foundation for cognitive linguistics and its various theoretical frameworks. The research concludes that orientational metaphorical spaces play a significant role in determining the speaker's intentions and in describing the thoughts and emotions expressed. These spatial metaphors enhance deep understanding of complex topics by linking them to mental representations and cognitive networks that assist in constructing new meanings and offering multiple perspectives on human experiences, thereby facilitating communication and interaction.
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