| Traditional linguistics holds that metaphor is a kind of rhetorical device.Metaphor is merely regarded as a tool that can strengthen the expressive effect of language.The publication of Metaphors We Live By(Lakoff & Johnson 1980)leads the study of metaphor to the cognitive stage.According to modern cognitive linguistics,metaphor is not only a pure language phenomenon,but a basic cognitive mode and thinking tool of human beings.As one of the traditional classics of Zhuang culture,The Epic of Baeuqloxdoh reflects ancient people's primitive belief,philosophy,morality,psychology,emotion etc.It boasts rich expressions of metaphors.However,very few studies have been conducted on the conceptual metaphors in the creation myths so far.Therefore,this study focuses on the conceptual metaphors in The Epic of Baeuqloxdoh and attempts to uncover its hidden culture,tradition and value outlook of the Zhuang Nationality.On the basis of the Conceptual Metaphor Theory,this thesis attempts to explore the animal and plant etc.metaphors in the epic by choosing The Epic of Baeuqloxdoh as the closed corpus.The systematic study in this thesis eventually leads to the following findings:(1)In The Epic of Baeuqloxgdoh,there is a conceptual metaphor system hidden behind the lines: THE HUMAN WORLD IS THE NATURAL WORLD system.The mappings are a set of correspondences between the target domain and source domains shown below:a.HUMAN BEINGS ARE ANIMALSb.HUMAN BEINGS ARE PLANTS(2)Under the conceptual metaphor system of THE HUMAN WORLD IS THE NATURAL WORLD,altogether 8 sub-metaphors are generalized.They are(1)HUMAN BEINGS ARE BEASTS(2)HUMAN BEINGS ARE LIVESTOCK(3)HUMAN BEINGS ARE POULTRY(4)HUMAN BEINGS ARE BIRDS(5)HUMAN BEINGS ARE INSECTS(6)HUMAN BEINGS ARE TREES(7)HUMAN BEING IS GARDEN STUFF(8)HUMAN BEING ARE UNDERSHRUBS.(3)By means of constructing the conceptual metaphor system,the epic expresses the theme and the special culture of the epic—Baeuqloxdoh is almighty and he is the creator of the world.Exploring metaphors in The Epic of Baeuqloxdoh helps us further comprehend its cultural connotations.Furthermore,this thesis enriches metaphor studies and provides a new way for us to appreciate the epic by analyzing the Zhuang epic in terms of cognitive linguistics. |
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