Chinese And Western Cognitive Differences, From The Metaphor

This thesis aims at exploring the differences between Chinese and Western cognition through a metaphorical approach. First, it makes a brief introduction to the basic theories on metaphors. It gives the definition of metaphor on the basis of the summary of the previous rhetoric and interactive theories on metaphors. And it categorizes metaphors through different approaches such as their presentational forms, grammatical forms, semantic structures, stylistic effects and cognitive functions. It also points out the cognitive value of metaphors. Metaphors are the bases of the human conceptual system and the tools for people to learn the world. Second, the thesis introduces the cognitive studies on language in recent years. It provides the analyses on what is cognition, the relationships between cognition and language, the physiological bases of cognition, and the basic models of cognition. Last, the thesis focuses on the differences between Chinese and Western cognition reflected by metaphors, especially when they are used to show different life styles and cultural traditions between Chinese and Western society.