The relation between metaphor and context in cognitive linguistic literature

Abstract

The main purpose of this paper is to investigate the relation between metaphor and context in cognitive linguistic literature, as well as to show the diversity of positions towards this complex relation. Firstly, it provides a summary of the development of conceptual metaphor theory (CMT), one of the main topics in cognitive semantics and cognitive linguistics in general. Secondly, using the method of comparison and exploring the corpus which comprises the relevant books and papers on this topic, the paper reviews the manner in which the views on the relation between metaphor and context emerged and evolved during the development of the theory. The papers and books found in the corpus include authors such as George Lakoff, Mark Turner, Mark Johnson, Raymond W. Gibbs, Zoltán Kövecses and Vyvyan Evans. Finally, the paper provides the accounts of two authors (Stern and Leezenberg) who oppose the mainstream views on the relation of metaphor and context. The conclusion that follows ought to help us get a clearer picture of the mentioned relation.