The Dynamic Meaning Construction From The Perspective Of Multimodal Metaphor And Metonymy

Metaphor is a ubiquitous linguistic phenomenon in our daily life. It has been studied by numerous scholars both at home and abroad. Since the publication of Metaphors We Live By by Lakoff and Johnson in 1980, metaphor study has been arousing many linguists’ interests, especially, many cognitive linguists. As time goes on, the studies of metaphor are constantly updated and perfected. Throughout the history, it has been viewed as an original rhetorical device by traditional linguists and as an important thinking and cognitive mode by modern cognitive linguists. However, as a typical representative, Charles Forceville combines cognitive "linguistics with media studies which has promoted the generation and development of multimodal metaphor. He argues that metaphor shouldn’t be confined in verbal mode because it can be achieved through non-verbal modes, such as sound, picture, gesture and so on. With the publication of Metaphor in Advertisement (1996) and Multimodal Metaphor (2009), Forceville comes up with the theory of pictorial metaphor and multimodal metaphor, which enlarges the sphere of metaphor study and lays a solid foundation for further study. Later, the study of multimodal metaphor unfolds a new orientation of metaphor study. Compared with metaphor, metonymy attracts less attention and is still seen as secondary. But in the understanding of metaphor, they are intertwined and interactive.This thesis is an applied one. It conducts an analysis of the classic picture Sun Salutation through the theory of multimodal metaphor and metonymy, in the process of which, the former takes a main part, however the latter takes a helpful part. Moreover, the thesis aims to explore the essence of yoga behind the picture and help people practice yoga better. By approaching Case Study and Theoretical Research, we articulate the following research questions in the procedure of "Description-Identification-Interpretation-Explanation":How to identify the multimodal metaphor, multimodal metonymy, source domain and target domain? How to reveal their working mechanism? Through the interaction of metaphor and metonymy as well as different modes, how to explore the connotation of the Sun Salutation?This study procedures many findings through the investigation of picture SunSalutation. Multimodal metaphors in Sun Salutation can be categorized into hybrid metaphor and contextual metaphor from macro and micro level. From macro angle, multimodal metaphor SUN SALUTATION IS THE SUN answers the essence of Sun Salutation that is the integration of body and spirit. While from micro horizon, multimodal metaphor PRACTICING SUN SALUTATION IS A LIFE PRACTICE further testifies that Sun Salutation is the integration of body and spirit. And the typical multimodal metonymy (combination of sources for one target) is analyzed. We have found that metaphor and metonymy can interact in three forms:metonymy motivates metaphoric target, metaphor reduces metonymic mappings, and metonymy provides context for metaphor. In addition, the interactions between verbal mode and pictorial mode are achieved in label and title form in order to highlight the source or target domain. At last, through the analysis of multimodal metaphor and metonymy in the picture Sun Salutation, it can be inferred that yoga is beyond the simple and superficial physical movement. On a deeper level, it is the integration of body and spirit. In addition, the findings can correct most people’s illusion, disseminate the core of yoga, and guide people to a healthier life.