A Cognitive Study Of Fictive Motion In Chinese Classic Poems

Fictive motion,a kind of imaginary motion,is a unique but pervasive language phenomenon,referring to utilize dynamic language expressions to describe static spatial objects.Since 1990 s,fictive motion has become a hot research topic in the field of cognitive linguistics and psychological linguistics.At present,domestic academic linguistic studies of fictive motion mainly center on modern Chinese,while the study of fictive motion in classical literature is not yet perfect and systematical.As the most mature genre in ancient Chinese literature,Tang poetry and Song poetry in Chinese classic poems are of great research value.Based on linguistic data collected from Tang Poetry,Song Poetry and ancient Chinese corpus in Center for Chinese Linguistics PKU(CCL),this study first finds out corresponding examples of fictive motion in Chinese classic poems according to Tamly’s classifications of fictive motion.Then,it elaborates systematically and comprehensively the semantic features of fictive motion in Chinese classic poems under Tamly’s Motion Event Frame Theory.Last,it investigates the cognitive mechanism of fictive motion in Chinese classic poems from the perspective of conceptual blending.Major findings of this study are as follows:(1)Talmy’s classifications of fictive motion in English consist of six categories:“emanation paths”,“pattern paths”,“frame-relative motion”,“advent paths”,“access paths” and “coextension paths”.Only five categories can be found in Chinese classic poems,“access path fictive motion” excluded.In addition,advent path fictive motion is the most common type of fictive motion in Chinese classic poems.(2)Among six elements of fictive motion event in Chinese classic poems,“Figure”,“Ground”,“Motion”,“Cause”,“Path” and “Manner”,only Figure and Motion elements have to be expressed explicitly.In most cases,absence of the other four elements does not affect the expressions of fictive motion or the comprehension of poems.(3)Conceptual blending is one of the cognitive mechanisms of fictive motion in Chinese classic poems.In Chinese classic poems,the combined mobility and immobility of fictive motion or its misaligned directions of motion is the result of conceptual blending.The current study is significant in both theoretical and practical terms.One the one hand,study of fictive motion in Chinese classic poems could expand the scope of fictive motion theory’s application to some extent.On the other hand,it is conducive to boosting the understanding of poetic language and providing some inspirations in the study of linguistic typology,poetry translation and foreign language teaching.