Different Levels of Figurativity on Metonymic Expressions

Abstract

In the cognitive linguistics literature, metonymy has been understood by functional approach based on the functions of referentiality and contiguity, however, recent developments in the study of figurative expressions have found that metonymic expressions have more complicated status than metaphorical ones since the metonymy is somehow located in the literal and metaphorical expressions. These studies encourage us to highlight not only prototypical metonymic expressions but also different types of figurative expressions. Nonetheless, existing studies have still focused on only prototypical metonymic expressions, disregard of other types of metonymic expressions. In this paper, I consider what kinds of metonymies exist and how they treat in existing framework and challenge to treat all kinds of metonymic expressions as a unified account, focusing in particular on different levels of figurativity. I employ Evans’s theory (2010), the Theory of Lexical Concepts and Cognitive Models (LCCM theory) in which a lexical concept (vehicle) provides access to non-linguistic knowledge (target). Using this process, this paper investigates if and how the access site differs by the degree of figurativity. I characterise all types of metonymies as unified phenomena, and this reveals that metonymy is on a continuum with other expressions, such as metaphors. My research serves as a reminder that the access route length (conceptual distance) and the levels of figurativity are correlated to each other. Without examining each function of a figurative expression like existing theories, the measurement of conceptual processing is the one indicator for demonstrating the gradation, as a result, metonymy and other expressions can be understood base on the different levels of figurativity.