Cognitive Linguistic Theory Research Articles

Constructicon in progress

Abstract Over the last forty years, Construction Grammar has emerged as the leading syntactic theory in cognitive linguistics. Usage-based versions of Construction Grammar have successfully been used to explain language acquisition, change, and variation. How the theory can be applied in foreign language teaching, however, has only recently attracted scholarly attention (De Knop and Gilquin 2016; Boas 2022). As part of this enterprise, the Constructionist Approach to Syntactic Analysis (CASA; Herbst and Hoffmann 2018, 2024) offers a new model that enables language teachers and students to analyse the most complex naturally occurring sentences. In the present paper, I will provide a short introduction to the CASA model. In addition to this, I will illustrate how this approach not only allows for a descriptive analysis of sentences, but how it offers teachers and students important theoretic insights into the cognitive nature of language.

USING COGNITIVE LINGUISTICS TO TEACH SYNONYMS FOR IRAQI COLLEGE STUDENTS

It's challenging to help EFL students in Iraq learn and use synonyms. This study investigates the challenges faced by Iraqi English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students in understanding and employing synonyms. By employing Langacker's cognitive linguistic theory of domains, the research aims to enhance EFL Iraqi students' synonym knowledge and vocabulary acquisition. The study utilizes a descriptive analysis technique, with a pre-test and post-test design, involving fifty first-year students at the University of Baghdad's College of Languages, Department of English. The findings reveal that the domain theory significantly improved students' comprehension and application of English word semantics. Prior to the intervention, students had limited knowledge of the domain approach and struggled with recognizing and producing lexical features. After five weeks of treatment, students demonstrated increased abilities to define different types of domains and their properties, as well as understanding the literal and conceptual meanings of words. The study concludes that implementing the theory of domains can effectively enhance vocabulary acquisition among Iraqi EFL students and emphasizes the importance of teaching synonyms with a focus on sense relations.

ON SOME ASPECTS OF GRAPHIC NOVELS OR «VISUAL NARRATIVES». FROM TEXT TRANSLATION TO INTERSEMIOTIC TRANSMUTATION

Background. Graphic novels as well as graphic novel translation process is reaching more interest of scientists from both proper linguistic and multidisciplinary point of view. Graphic novels provide the possibility to work with the abundant investigation corpus and also it provokes great interest for investigating its translation characteristics. It should be mentioned that the term translation here is used from a semiotic and intersemiotic perspectives as well as its cognitive and multimodal implementation.
 The purpose of the study is to demonstrate the methods for the translator to apply to be able to translate, to offer its proper transcreation.
 Methods. Procedures of the research are qualitative methods that involve observation over the corpus the investigation which is corpus of English versions of historical graphic novels, among which Persepolis by M. Satrapi, and its translations, selection of the examples of illustrative material, analysis of translation transformations used, application of the methods of intersemiotic and multimodal theories as well as some tools of cognitive linguistic theory thesis.
 Results. The present article deals with some aspects of graphic novels, its translation process and the result, from both proper linguistic and multidisciplinary point of view. The corpus of the investigation is the graphic novel Persepolis written by M. Satrapi, graphic novel English version and its published translations. It is described why graphic novels are analysed from point of view of semiotics, while its translation is considered to be realised in the intersemiotic framework.
 The term translation is used from a semiotic and intersemiotic perspectives as well as its cognitive and multimodal implementation is suggested in the article. It is disputed about the difference between terms translation and transcreation. Some special characteristics of inner and outer form of graphic novels have been given. It is further discussed the methods for the translator to apply to be able to translate, to offer its proper transcreation. It also challenges the scientific though to clarify the term translation in the case of translating graphic novel, and it asks many questions about the multimodal aspects of the trilogy – the author, the translator, the reader. Modulation is proved to be considered the main and universal method of translation. Illustrative examples are given.
 Discussion. One universal way of translating graphic novels is modulation, the translation shift, allowing to change the form with the sense unchanged. All the modalities should be taken into account while realizing translation of the one. From cognitive point of view graphic novel is the embodiment of cognitive metaphor and concepts blended inside one and the same narrative. As a perspective of the study it is suggested to further analyse the constraints of trilogy – the novel, its transmutation, the reader and the place with the role of every participant of a graphic novel creation defined and described.

On Beowulf's Elegiac Mood: from the Perspective of Cognitive Poetics

Beowulf is the longest narrative poem in ancient England and the most complete and outstanding epic in the early Middle Ages of Europe. It holds an important position in the history of British literature and even European literature. Beowulf mainly tells the great deeds of the hero Beowulf, who is half human and half divine, in subduing monsters and killing poisonous dragons. It has a mythological colour and can be regarded as a heroic mythological epic. It mainly praises Beowulf's heroic spirit, promotes Christian consciousness, and showcases England's unique cultural style during the Anglo-Saxon period. Most studies of Beowulf focus on Germanic culture, literary form, historical background, themes, and symbolic significance portrayed in the poem. By adopting theories in Cognitive Linguistics like prototype, iconicity, perspectives, metaphor, naming in cognitive poetics, this article peruses the elegiac language of Seamus Heaney's Beowulf, illustrating that Beowulf is an elegy of the deaths of heroes, the inconstant fate, the vicissitudes of the world and age, the collapse of tribal society, and ultimately—the elegiac world, and results in that Beowulf is more like an elegy than an epic.

(Im)personalization in German and English Negative Online Reviews: Contrasts, Comparisons, and Cognitive Implications

The current study contributes to the demand for more multilingual analyses of online reviews, comparing English and German-language hotel reviews on Booking.com. Specifically, it seeks to shed light on the linguapragmatic contrast of the German speaker showing a preference for more “content-orientation” and the English speaker more “person-orientation” by exploring the use of the first-person perspective (FPP) in online reviews. It further integrates cognitive linguistic theories of construal, considering whether the results implicate not only a difference in the assumedly intentional rhetorical preferences of speakers but also cognitive differences in ways of experiencing a hotel stay, which might also have important implications for how hotels tailor their language-specific responses and maybe even how hotels design their service and intended customer experience. The findings show that FPP did occur in more English reviews, indicating more personalization and thus a more personalized cognitive processing of the hotel stay. However, when FPP was identified in German reviews, it occurred at a similar frequency to English reviews, reflecting a similar degree of subjective involvement. The findings may thus indicate that while this contrast was robust on a whole, linguacultural differences may play an increasingly smaller role as online genres merge into more global styles, a trend that communications practitioners must increasingly consider.

A Study on Biden Administration’s Cognition on China: From the Perspective of Cognitive Discourse Analysis

By using “levels of categorization” in categorization theory in cognitive linguistics, this article studies Biden Administration’s cognition on China. After analyzing the categories it uses to recognize China in “Strategic Competition Act of 2021,” this article discovers that its categorizing model mainly consists of 5 modules: (1) dividing a category into semantically non-overlapping subcategories, (2) juxtaposing a subcategory and its elements, (3) ignoring the subcategory and upgrading its elements, (4) concealing the subcategory and its elements in the logical suppositions within the relevant discourses, and (5) putting some elements on the border of two subcategories.

Analysis of the Imagery of the Chinese Ba-construction from a Cognitive Perspective

The Ba-construction is a unique sentence form in Chinese that expresses the semantics of “disposition”, “causing”, and “purpose”. It has always been a critical research point in modern Chinese. In recent years, with the continuous development of cognitive linguistics theory, more and more researchers have applied it to the study of Ba-construction. In this article, we analyze the imagery schema of the Ba-construction according to the imagery schema theory of cognitive linguistics and classify it into four types: displacement schema, container schema, balance schema and circumferential coverage schema. The analysis of the Ba-construction in the cognitive domain is an essential inspiration and cognitive value for the in-depth understanding of the structure of the Ba-construction and other Chinese sentence patterns.

An Analysis of the Images in Hayao Miyazaki’s Movies from the Perspective of Cognitive Metaphor

Hayao Miyazaki’s (born on January 5, 1941 in Tokyo), is a Japanese animator, animation producer, cartoonist, animation director, and animation screenwriter. His movies have lasting impact. Based on the conceptual metaphor theory of cognitive linguistics, this study analyzes the multi-modal metaphors in his animated movies to explore his cognitive needs behind his creation and find out how these metaphors are generated. This paper uses the method of qualitative analysis and comprehensively analyzes the images, aiming to answer two questions: 1) What are the multi-modal metaphors in his animated movies? 2) What cognitive needs and creative motivations do these multi-modal metaphors reflect in his movies? 
 
 In this paper, five of Miyazaki’s animated movies are employed to analyze the images in it. The secondary data was collected from the website of movies. The results of the study showed that there is a large number of non-textual metaphors in his movies, such as: Pig, Totoro, Oil house, Chihiro, Animals, Fire, Bridge, Tain, and so on. These multimodal metaphors reflect the cognitive needs and psychological motivations behind his creations. Through the analysis of Hayao Miyazaki himself, basic color, emotions, space, daily habits, national culture and other metaphorical cognition in his movies, we have a full understanding of metaphorical cognition, language and culture, national psychology and thinking habits in the process of his creation. The findings are of great importance to the cognitive study of metaphors in the field of animated movies.

Mapping models in novel metaphors and their effect on gaze behavior and default interpretations in native and target languages

In the study, we address the problem of existing differences in reading and understanding novel metaphors in the text fragments in native and target languages (L1 and L2), with these differences potentially attributed to both the specifics of forming analogies in native and target languages, and the mapping characteristics of metaphors. The study identifies the contingency effects of several primary metaphors onto the gaze behavior and default interpretation of textual novel metaphors in L1 (Russian) and L2 (English). To proceed, we use the text fragments in L1 and L2 containing novel metaphors appearing in more and less focal syntactic positions in a two-stage oculographic experiment. We obtain the participants’ gaze metrics values and the participants’ responses specifying the target domains of the novel metaphors, which further allows us to disclose the contingencies. Methodologically, the study is grounded in the metaphor processing theories developed in cognitive psychology, which explore the structure of analogical reasoning and associative fluency as manifesting potentially different effects in L1 and L2. To validate it, we also address the cognitive linguistic theories which provide the framework for identifying the primary metaphor models (here the models PATIENT (OBJECT) IS AGENT, PARTS ARE WHOLE, CONCRETE IS ABSTRACT) and for testing their effect onto information construal. We hypothesize that reading and understanding metaphors will proceed differently in L1 and L2, which is attributed to associative fluency in metaphor mapping in native and target languages. The experiment results do not show the differences in understanding the mapping model PATIENT (OBJECT) IS AGENT in L1 and L2, whereas these differences appear in understanding the models PARTS ARE WHOLE and CONCRETE IS ABSTRACT with higher default interpretation index in L1. The model PATIENT (OBJECT) IS AGENT is also found to stimulate higher gaze costs. The results suffice to claim that there are differences in the cognitive costs produced by primary metaphor models, which allows us to range and specify their role in information construal in L1 and L2.

Methods of Annotating and Identifying Metaphors in the Field of Natural Language Processing

Metaphors are an integral and important part of human communication and greatly impact the way our thinking is formed and how we understand the world. The theory of the conceptual metaphor has shifted the focus of research from words to thinking, and also influenced research of the linguistic metaphor, which deals with the issue of how metaphors are expressed in language or speech. With the development of natural language processing over the past few decades, new methods and approaches to metaphor identification have been developed. The aim of the paper is to map the methods of annotating and identifying metaphors in the field of natural language processing and to give a systematic overview of how relevant linguistic theories and natural language processing intersect. The paper provides an outline of cognitive linguistic metaphor theory and an overview of relevant methods of annotating linguistic and conceptual metaphors as well as publicly available datasets. Identification methods are presented chronologically, from early approaches and hand-coded knowledge to statistical methods of machine learning and contemporary methods of using neural networks and contextual word embeddings.

Contrasting Accounts of Early Speech Perception and Production.

Language researchers have historically either dismissed or ignored completely behavioral accounts of language acquisition while at the same time acknowledging the important role of experience in language learning. Many language researchers have also moved away from theories based on an innate generative universal grammar and promoted experience-dependent and usage-based theories of language. These theories suggest that hearing and using language in its context is critical for learning language. However, rather than appealing to empirically derived principles to explain the learning, these theories appeal to inferred cognitive mechanisms. In this article, I describe a usage-based theory of language acquisition as a recent example of a more general cognitive linguistic theory and note both logical and methodological problems. I then present a behavior-analytic theory of speech perception and production and contrast it with cognitive theories. Even though some researchers acknowledge the role of social feedback (they rarely call it reinforcement) in vocal learning, they omit the important role played by automatic reinforcement. I conclude by describing automatic reinforcement as the missing link in a parsimonious account of vocal development in human infants and making comparisons to vocal development in songbirds.

Research trends in multimodal metaphor: a bibliometric analysis.

The concept of multimodal metaphor has generated a growing body of literature over the past decades. However, a systemic review of the domain seems to be lacking in relevant literature. This study, therefore, is an attempt to conduct a bibliometric analysis of the field of multimodal metaphor during 1977-2022, with a focus on 397 relevant publications retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) with the visualization tool VOSviewer. Some major quantitative findings are: (i) the number of publications in multimodal research began to surge in 2010 upon the seminal work of Forceville's (2009); (ii) USA, China and Spain are the most productive countries; (iii) journals in the field of advertising, communication and linguistics are important sources of publications; and (iv) eleven clusters of keywords are identified, such as "visual metaphor", "persuasion", "pictures", "impact", "multimodal metaphor", "model", etc., representing crucial areas of interests. We also identified, by qualitative observations, three research trends in multimodal metaphor, driven by cognitive linguistic theory, the theory of pragmatics and visual/multimodal rhetoric theory, respectively. Various theoretical perspectives may shed light on possible further research on multimodal metaphor.

A Cognitive Analysis on Conceptual Metaphor in English Economic Discourse

As one of the major theories in cognitive linguistics, conceptual metaphor has received lots of attention from scholars at home and abroad since it was first brought up. Metaphor is a cross-domain mapping from one concrete conceptual domain to another. Cognitive linguists recognize that metaphor converts complex and abstract concepts into intuitive and specific concepts, which is conducive to the understanding of abstract concepts and conducting abstract thinking. This is also why conceptual metaphor was widely used in economic discourse utilizing familiar concepts to help people comprehend abstract and obscure economic concepts. Based on the related theories of cognitive linguistics, taking economic passages about Chinese economy and business activities in The Economist as an example, this paper aims to find out and analyze some representative conceptual metaphors describing Chinese economy in economic discourse by the methods of quantitative and qualitative analysis with the hope to help ESP learners with their learning of economic discourse.

Roles of Cognitive Linguistics to Second Language Acquisition

Second language acquisition plays a significant role in language learning and instruction as the theories and hypotheses in this branch of linguistics provide mentors and learners with an outlook for applying the most appropriate methods for studying. Nonetheless, a distinct perspective supports different methods together with approaches that could complicate the situation. By reviewing the theories of second language acquisition and cognitive linguistics, the writers prove two main roles of cognitive linguistics to the process of acquiring a second language. Thanks to cognitive linguistics, the universal features of absorbing objects in the real world, including languages, could be figured out in another move elsewhere. That is the trigger role of cognitive linguistics for second language learning. Furthermore, explaining theories in mental processes, language instruction, and learning could be highlighted on appropriate methods and approaches for both lecturers and students. However, the researchers raise the concern of role change due to the shift from a conventional classroom to a virtual learning environment. After all, suggestions for bettering pedagogy quality are discussed by the application of cognitive linguistics to second language acquisition for opting for suitable methods and approaches for both instructors and learners.

Jauns termins labi zināmam jēdzienam valodā, literatūrā, kultūrā – poetonīms

The aim of the article is to introduce a new term in the Latvian language – poetonīms ‘poetonym’ – which would give one name to a set of proper names of fiction, which are used both in other works of art and in the description of cultural and artistic developments, phenomena, images, both in general lexicon and special lexicon, including terminology. In the proper name system of the Latvian language, the place and usefulness of a new term, which names a well-known concept, a set of proper names from fiction, is identified, marked and explained. It covers not only the set of personal names, but is also related to other proper names – toponyms, ethnonyms, zoonyms, patronymics, matronymics, chrononyms, etc. The term poetonīms was not created in the Latvian language, it has parts of speech characteristic of internationalism, and it is introduced by referring to the works of the Ukrainian philologist Valery Kalinkin. Methodologically, the article is based on cognitive onomastics, which combines the theory of onomastics and the theory of cognitive linguistics. Cognitive onomastics analyses the functioning of proper names in the minds of language users, emphasising the existence of the lexical meaning of proper names alongside the pragmatic aspect. The term biblionīms ‘biblionym’ is also applied as the name of a related concept – a proper name that comes from the Bible.

Conceptual Representations in Sherko Bekas’ Gray: A Cognitive Stylistic Study

The present paper aims to examine Bekas’ worldview (mind style) in the selected poem Gray from a cognitive stylistic perspective. The concept of mind style, which refers to any particular linguistic representation of an individual’s mental self, encompasses the process of “reality formation” in one’s mind. In cognitive stylistics, the worldview (mind style) of the poet, narrator and character is formed from and displayed through the linguistic structure of the text. Therefore, the highlighted research question is: How is Bekas’ worldview constructed and represented in the selected poem? This study is essential for readers and listeners because it will assist them in interpreting poetic texts so they can comprehend the poet’s worldview. To achieve the main aim, the researchers will apply the cognitive linguistic theories of schema, conceptual metaphor, and conceptual metonymy, all of which are concerned with the representation of conceptual structures. These cognitive theories are considered strong and dynamic theories in accounting for cognitive processes that underpin the production and interpretation of various types of discourse, whether factual or fictional, by forming mental representations in the mind. More specifically, schema theory can be used to explain how text worlds are created and processed during discourse processing, primarily when reading poetry. Additionally, schema theory involves researching mental models, which entails analysing how poets think about the world in contrast to readers. To examine the poet’s worldview, the researchers also use perspective and foregrounding in construal dimensions. Since the study is qualitative, the study’s data will be limited to the analysis of Bekas’ Gray. The study has concluded that Bekas views the world pessimistically and hopelessly.

Developing productive metaphoric competence through a frame-inspired task-based teaching model

The paper reports preliminary findings from applying a frame-inspired task-based approach to metaphor teaching in an EFL classroom. The teaching model used combines Frame Semantics, a cognitive linguistic theory that takes a usage-based view of meaning, with Task-Based Language Teaching, which emphasizes second/foreign language learning through interactionally authentic language use. In this paper we examine students’ productions in terms of the amount, type and function of metaphor use with a view to identifying the stages the students went through in developing their metaphoric competence in L2 writing. We illustrate how their metaphor awareness skills seem to develop along a continuum from non-deliberate isolated figurative instances to deliberate extended metaphor used as a conceptual and discursive framework for their writing. We thus provide preliminary evidence for the effectiveness of the proposed frame-inspired task-based approach to metaphor teaching.

‘주체’와 ‘자아’의 은유에 대한 인지 분석

This paper examines self, subject and cognitive neural network, showing that language of literature has a place in cognitive metaphor study. I raise some popular matters of the principle of metaphors; ‘cognitive linguistic metaphor theory’, self-subject metaphor more widely, inside the cognitive science of philosophical thought. The study of self-subject concerns the structure of our inner lives. Metaphor is a primary implement for understanding ourselves and our world, and entering into an contract with forceful metaphors is grappling in an important way with what it means to have a human life. I try to check up the cognitive linguistic metaphoric method of Great Expectations. As a result of analyzing, this research proposes that critical thought in consilience of the researches raised problems as to our basic principles and gave them fresh creative theories.

日本語・韓国語におけるかたさを表す擬態語の プロトタイプ的考察

In this paper, I propose a prototype model of each mimetic word by clarifying the central meaning and the peripheral meaning about the mimetic word which shows hardness among the sensory mimetic words of Japanese and Korean. In this paper, I tried to present the cognitive category structure composed of basic category and its surrounding language by considering the prototype semantic theory of cognitive linguistics. As a result, all bases of the Japanese mimetic words have the onomatopoeic aspect, but the onomatopoeic aspect is not shown in the Korean mimetic word. In the morphological consideration, in Japanese mimetic word, the type of CVCVx2 and CVQCVRi tend to have the central meaning, and CVQCVRi tends to have an abstract meaning. On the other hand, in Korean, the definition of hardness is simpler, but in the case of tantan, teunteun, theuntheun which take <hata> obligatorily, the definition is more abstract, which is similar to CVQCVRi in Japanese. In other words, in Japanese, CVCVx2 type has many central meanings, and in Korean, the words with autonomy in base have many central meanings. But it is notable that there are many usages of central meanings in <ttakttakhata> exceptionally. I could find some specific characteristics with phonologically and morphologically among the mimetic words which have the central meanings. It can be assumed that these characteristics are also important factors in selecting prototype models of mimetic words.

Metaphorical Transfers in the Azerbaijani and English Languages in Publicistic Texts

&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;em&gt;The purpose of the study&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;em&gt; is to identify current trends in metaphorical transfers in publicistic texts in Azerbaijani and English languages.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;em&gt;Research methodology.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;em&gt; In the course of the research, during the elaboration of the theoretical achievements of scholars the methods of analysis, synthesis, generalization, systematization were used; the method of comparison was used for identification of common and different in journalistic texts in Azerbaijani and English. The study is based on the theory of cognitive linguistics, according to which transfers are both linguistic and philosophical acts.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;em&gt;Results.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;em&gt; The article deals with metaphorical transfers in Azerbaijani and English. They apply to all people, regardless of their race or nationality. Linguistic sources of the outlined subject are analyzed. Human consciousness is able to maintain an infinite system of associations. As a rule, the conceptualization of different branches of knowledge based on metaphorical transfer is based on logical-syntactic and semantic frameworks of language. Metaphorical transfers, according to the theory of cognitive linguistics, are both linguistic and philosophical actions. The rationale for such provisions is presented in Western linguistics, modern research has confirmed that metaphorization is the result of intellectual activity, and its manifestation is the structure of the language. As for the human imagination, which usually has infinite limits, it is able to create the most complex cognitive models. These models of transfer, which are part of cultural thinking, are expressed through language. At the same time, people share the same cognitive models because they have similar life experiences. The article shows that metaphorical transfers in Azerbaijani and English languages are practically indistinguishable or have slight variations.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;em&gt;Novelty.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;em&gt; It is demonstrated by concrete examples that in the minds of all people there is a common metaphorical model and that forms of expression change depending on the interlocutors.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;em&gt;Practical importance.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;em&gt; The results obtained may be of interest to media language researchers and lecturers of philology and journalism.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;em&gt;Key&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;em&gt; &lt;/em&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;em&gt;words&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;em&gt;: English language, Azerbaijani language, cognitive linguistics, metaphorical transfer, publicistic text.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;