Figure-Ground Applroach To Female Images In Song Lyrics

Song lyrics are not only a treasure of Chinese traditional culture,but also a bright pearl in the world literature.Based on their embodied experience,the poets have made vivid and abundant description of females in real life in Song lyrics,which constructs a unique discourse system for the depiction of female images.As a basic principle of language organization,Figure-Ground theory holds that language organization is inextricably related to human perception.When people perceive objects or events,they tend to regard the prominent part in the perception field as Figure,and the indistinct part as Ground which serves as cognitive reference for Figure.Being one of the hotspots in cognitive linguistics,Figure-Ground theory has strong explanatory power for the syntactic representation of language.However,current research on Figure-Ground theory is chiefly conducted in the fields of literature,translation and language teaching.Seldom does it focus on its way of realization in Song lyrics.From the perspective of Figure-Ground theory proposed by Talmy(2000),this thesis aims to investigate the female images in Song lyrics based on the lyrics related to female image description excerpted from Quan Song Ci(?????)in the Center for Chinese Linguistics(CCL).Specifically,it explores the realization,organization as well as the functions of Figure-Ground in female image construction from three dimensions,namely single clause,complex sentence and text.The research findings are as follows:(?)At the single clause level,the realization of Figure-Ground in female image construction in Song lyrics is mainly achieved by spatial relation,which is represented by spatial clause,existential clause and SVO structure.(2)At the complex sentence level,the realization of Figure-Ground in female image construction in Song lyrics is primarily fulfilled by temporal event relation,which is represented by temporal sequential sentence and causal sentence.(3)At the textual level,there are three patterns of Figure-Ground organization,namely,ground-chaining model,center-linking model and multiple-anchoring model.In the ground-chaining model,Figure and Ground are organized in linear order.The exchange of Figure and Ground ensures the coherence in female image construction.In the center-linking model,Figures are presented around the center Ground,highlighting an overall image of female.Comparatively,multi-anchoring model,a combination of the ground-chaining model and center-linking model,is flexible in Figure-Ground organization,focusing on multi-angle depiction of female images.(4)As for the functions of Figure-Ground in female images in Song lyrics,Figure-Ground realized at the single clause level lays a foundation for female image construction.Figure-Ground presented by temporal events conveys the emotion of poets,and the exchange of Figure-Ground relation in the text creates a dynamic artistic conception for lyrics,thus strengthening the expressive power of female images.In conclusion,by exploring Figure-Ground in female images in Song lyrics,this research not only enlarges the research scope of Figure-Ground theory,but also provides a novel approach to the studies of female images in Song lyrics.It also unveils the deep cognitive mechanism behind the construction of female images.In addition,this study provides a new perspective for the appreciation of poetry and is conducive to poetry composition as well as teaching of poetry.