The Conceptual Metaphors In The Cognitive Domain Of Law

With the deepening of rule of law and judicial reform,the value of forensic language in respect of legislation,judiciary,law enforcement and dissemination becomes higher and higher.The study of legal metaphors is one branch of forensic language studies that deserves attention.Among the metaphor theories,George Lakoff and Johnson’s Conceptual Metaphor Theory(CMT)is a revolutionary and widely acknowledged one.They pointed out that conceptual metaphor exists ubiquitously in our daily communication and even in thoughts and actions,and it can reflect the construction of speaker’s concept system,which is the key to human cognition studies(Lakoff&Johnson,1980).Based on the Conceptual Metaphor Theory,this thesis aims to investigate the conceptual metaphor in the cognitive domain of law.The author conducted a text analysis on the company law of PRC,and extracts five categories of conceptual metaphor centering on A COMPANY IS A LEGAL PERSON.What is more,the author interviewed eight people from different professions to investigate the influence of conceptual metaphor on the cognition of the company law.With a discussion of the results from the text analysis and the interview,the major findings are summarized as follows:1)the conceptual metaphor A COMPANY IS A LEGAL PERSON appears in the articles of company law in various forms including its identity,rights,obligations,liabilities and interaction with other companies,and the obligations of a company appears in the majority;2)people who lack experiences about law and company are more positive towards the cognitive function of the conceptual metaphor;3)conceptual metaphor is a kind of metaphor that exists unconsciously in our everyday life and most people are not aware of it;4)the conceptual metaphors in law show features of systematicity,appropriateness and pertinence.Based on the major findings,it is discussed that the conceptual metaphors in law can develop rhetorical function,cognitive function and social and political function.The grounding of conceptual metaphor in law is personal experience,and the emergence of legal conceptual metaphor is determined by the nature of human cognition and the demand of forensic language.In accordance with the above findings,the author tries to provide some suggestions for the application of conceptual metaphors in law,and points out the limitation in the thesis and the recommendations for future studies.