动物隐喻中的语义损伤.pdfVIP

Journal of Pragmatics 35 (2003) 771–797 /locate/pragma Semantic derogation in animal metaphor: a contrastive-cognitive analysis of two male/female examples in English and Spanish Almudena Fernandez Fontecha, Rosa Marıa Jimenez Catalan*´ ´ ´ ´ ´ University of La Rioja, Department of Modern Philology, C/. San Jose de Calasanz, s/n, 26400, Logrono, La Rioja, Spain ˜ Received 3 August 2001; received in revised form 25 July 2002; accepted 13 August 2002 Abstract In this paper we present a contrastive cognitive analysis of metaphorical usages of the word pairs fox/vixen and bull/cow, together with their Spanish counterparts zorro/zorra and toro/ vaca. We have four specific aims. Firstly, we wish to find out whether these examples of Ani- mal Metaphor are equally conceptualized in English and Spanish. Secondly, we investigate whether the two paired examples within each language are used in semantic derogation, understood as the use of a word to convey negative connotations and stereotypes, here inter- preted specifically with respect to the two sexes. Thirdly, if there is indeed semantic deroga- tion, we wish to ascertain whether it applies equally to male and female terms. Finally, we would like to know whether the same degree and kind of semantic derogation is observed in the two languages, on the bases of the examples analyzed. Our analysis shows that first, the words in these particular animal pairs are indeed metaphorically applied to persons in both English and Spanish, though we noted subtle but