The metaphor in the Changing Place.docVIP

The metaphor in the Changing Place 　　Abstract： This paper attempts to use some basic principles in the modern metaphor theory in the cognitive theory to analyze the Changing Place， which is one of the representatives of David Lodge’s academic fictions， so that it can help to have a better understanding of the metaphor used in this fiction. 　　Key words：Metaphor， language use in fiction， Changing Place 　　1. Introduction 　　According to the definition made by Lakoff and Turner， each fictional story can be seen as an extension of the rhetorical devices， so that we can understand our inner life through the narration of the outside world. Because the literal meaning is no longer powerful enough for the author to express his mind， he chooses the figurative use of language， which refers to language used in a figurative way for a rhetorical purpose. David Lodge’s writing skills are permeated with his own theories. He makes full use of metaphor on the basis of the modern linguistic theory. Take the Changing Place as example， the fiction could be regarded as a metaphor as a whole， which is made of plots and characters. Therefore， we could search for the exact metaphorical meaning of the fiction and the metaphorical use through what David Lodge shows. 　　2. Metaphorical language used in Changing Places 　　2.1 Metaphor in the novel 　　The motif of quest in Changing Places as a textural device is developed by the exchange program which sets the story in motion. “The faculty exchanges of Morris Zapp and Philip Swallow sets off a chain of complication that address most of the practical dilemmas of modern existence.” In Changing Places， the author uses human being as tenor and cultural system as vehicle in the metaphorical language. The novel is also made in the contrast between the two protagonists which is as well symbolic of that between British and American cultures and cultural systems. 　　The different characters of the two men result in their discoveries of different self-