Applications of Conceptual Metaphors in Vocabulary Acquisition
 

A Thesis Submitted
to School of Foreign Languages, _______ University
in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements
for the Degree of Bachelor of Arts

By
_________
Supervisor：_______

May 10, 2010

 
Acknowledgements
I would like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to my supervisor, Wen Junchao, for his great effort and patience devoted to the course of my thesis writing, including helping me to choose the topic, decide the theme and content, amend my thesis and give me face-to-face instructions.
I would also like to extend my sincere thanks to the School of Foreign Languages, Xuchang University as well as all my teachers.
Besides, my great gratitude also goes to those writers and editors whose works I have perused and benefited greatly from without which the completion of the thesis would not have been possible.
Finally, I would appreciate to Gao Jun and my classmates, who help me a lot with my thesis writing.

摘要
   詞匯習(xí)得能力是外語學(xué)習(xí)者最重要的語言能力之一。為此，語言研究者探討了多種詞匯習(xí)得理論，但它們也有諸多不足之處。萊考夫提出語言是隱喻性的，這為我們研究詞匯習(xí)得提供了一個新的視角。鑒于此本文以概念隱喻理論為基礎(chǔ)探討其在詞匯習(xí)得中的應(yīng)用，以期對英語詞匯教學(xué)有所啟示，提高學(xué)習(xí)效率。
關(guān)鍵詞：概念隱喻; 詞匯習(xí)得; 多義詞; 習(xí)語

Abstract
Vocabulary acquisition ability is one of the most important linguistic competences for foreign language learners. Language researchers have explored a wide range of vocabulary acquisition theories. However, these theories also have their own weak points. Lakoff proposed that language is structured by metaphors, which provides us with a new perspective for studies of vocabulary acquisition theory. In light of this, this paper intends to analyze the applications of conceptual metaphors in vocabulary acquisition based on conceptual metaphor theory. This thesis intended to make some enlightenment on vocabulary acquisition so as to improve learning efficiency.
Key words: conceptual metaphors; vocabulary acquisition; polysemous words; idioms

Tables of Contents
Acknowledgements I
摘要 II
Abstract III
Tables of Contents  IV
Introduction  1
Chapter One On Vocabulary Acquisition 2
1.1 Traditional Studies on Vocabulary Acquisition 2
1.2 Problems of Traditional Studies 3
Chapter Two Conceptual Metaphors and Word Motivations  5
2.1 Definition and Types of Conceptual Metaphors 5
2.2 Word Motivations and Conceptual Metaphors 6
2.2.1 Semantic Motivation and Conceptual Metaphors 6
2.2.2 Cultural Motivation and Conceptual Metaphors 8
Chapter Three Applications of Conceptual Metaphors 10
3.1 Applications in Polysemy 10
3.2 Applications in Idioms 10
3.3 Applications in Affixes 11
Conclusion 13
Works Cited 14

Lakoff認(rèn)為：“隱喻是一種思維方式，隱喻無處不在，語言在本質(zhì)上是隱喻性的，我們借以思維和行動的概念系統(tǒng)在本質(zhì)上基本是隱喻的”。 束定芳和湯本慶指出：“語言教師可以利用隱喻理論來解釋語言意義的變化發(fā)展過程，解釋詞匯意義之間的相互關(guān)系，同時(shí)，還可以利用概念隱喻理論來解釋語言中各種不同形式的隱喻之間的系統(tǒng)性和相互關(guān)系”。蔡龍權(quán)認(rèn)為：“隱喻過程中的語義轉(zhuǎn)移為語詞的意義擴(kuò)展提供了平臺。隱喻、認(rèn)知和語言的這一密切關(guān)系為詞匯學(xué)習(xí)等外語學(xué)習(xí)找到了依據(jù)，這為我們研究詞匯習(xí)得提供了一個新的視角。

本論文以概念隱喻理論為理論根據(jù)，以詞匯習(xí)得理論的歷史研究及其不足之處為依據(jù)來探討概念隱喻理論在詞匯習(xí)得中的應(yīng)用。通過對國內(nèi)外研究現(xiàn)狀的分析，本論文將在前人研究的基礎(chǔ)上，對概念隱喻理論在詞匯習(xí)得中的運(yùn)用作進(jìn)一步的研究。心理語言學(xué)研究表明，本族語者能夠流利的表達(dá)并不是因?yàn)榇竽X中存儲大量孤立的單詞，而是多詞序列，因此本論文不僅研究了概念隱喻理論在多義詞中的應(yīng)用，而且研究其在習(xí)語習(xí)得中的應(yīng)用，還深入研究了詞的理據(jù)與概念隱喻的關(guān)系。