DR PARASKEVI THOMOU

UNIVERSITY OF CRETE

Metonymy within metaphor: evidence from the Modern

Greek Language

Metaphor

B is A target domain source domain (Lakoff 1993, Croft and Cruse 2004, Grady 2007, Kӧvecses 2010)

THEORIES ARE BUILDINGS (Lakoff & Johnson 1980)

Your theory needs supportFoundation of the theory

Metonymy (1/2)

B FOR A (in the same domain)(Croft 1993, Ruiz de Mendoza 2000, Panther & Thornburg 2007, Barcelona 2010, Kӧvecses 2010)

I noticed several new faces tonight

face (source) for person (target)“part for the whole” type of metonymy (Croft & Cruse 2004)

Metonymy (2/2)

Usual metonymic mappings

part for whole, whole for part, part for part?

1. source in target metonymyThe ham sandwich is waiting for his check

2. the target is in the source I broke the window

(Ruiz de Mendoza 2000 in Panther & Thornburg 2007, Ruiz de Mendoza & Galera-Masegosa 2011)

similarity

source domain target domain

‘distant’ from each other

within the same domain

source target

Metaphor and metonymy in comparison

Metaphorical relationship

(Kӧvecses 2010: 175)

Metonymic relationship

I’m reading Shakespeare(Kӧvecses 2010: 175)

Metaphor and metonymy in interaction

Metaphtonymy (Goossens 1995)

Metaphor and metonymy can be intertwined 4 types of metaphtonymy

Metonymy within metaphor: bite one’s tongue off

types of metaphor-metonymy interaction metonymy is subsidiary to metaphor

(Ruiz de Mendoza & Galera-Masegosa 2011)

Metaphor and metonymy interaction in Modern Greek

actual language data: ‘regular’ linguistic metaphors, not idioms, fixed expressions realizations of a metaphorical schema + metonymic schema lexical co-occurrences

Metaphor

ABSTRACT IS HUMAN (personification: Kӧvecses 2010)

Metonymy

ACTION FOR AGENT source in target PROPERTY FOR POSSESSOR (Ruiz de Mendoza 2000)

Analysis of the data (1/3)

Piretoδis prospaθies γia na perioristi i katastrofi tu perivalondosFever(adj) efforts/tries so that restricted the destroy of environment (noun gen.)

Fevered efforts so that the destroy of environment is restricted

Metaphorical schema/patternABSTRACT IS HUMAN

Efforts/tries are on feverPersons are on fever

Metonymy within metaphorical patternACTION FOR AGENT

Efforts is the agent (person who makes the effort)

Analysis of the data (2/3)

I aretes efiγan apo tin kinonia masThe virtues gone from the society ours (pronoun)

Moral virtues are gone from our society. Metaphorical schema/pattern

ABSTRACT IS HUMAN

Virtues are gonePersons are gone

Metonymy within metaphorical patternPROPERTY FOR POSSESSOR

Virtues are the possessor (person who owns them)

Analysis of the data (3/3)

Γemise ta efivika tis xronia me to orama kapju γaliniu ke triferu politizmuFilled the teenage(adj) her years with the vision a quiet and tender civilization (gen.)

(A world) filled her teenage years with the vision of a quiet and tender civilization

Metaphorical schema/patternABSTRACT IS HUMANCivilization is quiet and tenderPersons are quiet and tender

Metonymy within metaphorical patternPROPERTY FOR POSSESSORCivilization is the possessor (persons who have/own the

civilization)

Discussion (1/3)

Two interaction schemata: ABSTRACT IS HUMAN + ACTION FOR AGENT ABSTRACT IS HUMAN + PROPERTY FOR

POSSESSOR

Resemble the ‘metonymy within metaphor’ type (Goossens 1995):

Metaphors with a built-in metonymy

Two main differences:The metonymy involved is not a built-in metonymyThe MG language data do not form fixed expressions

Discussion (2/3)

A. Metaphoricityco-occurrences of words: piretoδis (on fever) prospaθies

(efforts), aretes (virtues) efiγan (gone), triferos (tender) politizmos (civilization)

two

is domains ABSTRACT: ACTION, PROPERTY HUMANB. Metonymy

two domains blended in one

HUMAN

ABSTRACT

Discussion (3/3)

Fusion or blending of two cognitive processes: Metaphor and metonymy interact simultaneously Same domains interact in a metaphorical

schema and a metonymic schema Metonymic schema: two domains blended in one:

the human being

Interaction: fusion of processes + fusion of domains

The borderline between metaphor and metonymy is blurred (in Panther & Thornburg 2007)

The end

Thank you!