In this most recent collaboration, Lakoff has teamed up with a philosopher to study metaphor (-me... more In this most recent collaboration, Lakoff has teamed up with a philosopher to study metaphor (-melaphorical concept). As the authors themselves note, this study is the result of what they thought would be "'.,. a brief paper giving some linguistic evidence to point up shortcomings in recent theories of meaning" (p. ix). The first ten chapters (pp. 3-51) of Lakoff and Johnson's (henceforth L&J) study are devoted to the definition and exemplification of the notion of metaphor. Webster's unabridged version of the Third Inlet'national Dictionary (p. 1420) defines metaphor as "a figure of speech designating by word or phrase usa[ally] one kind of subject or idea in place of another to suggest a likeness or analogy between them ... a compressed simile that makes explicit an implied comparison ...". L&J's notion of metaphor is radically different from the conventional account. They state that "the essence of metaphor is understanding and experiencing one kimi of thing in terms of another" (p, 5). More precisely, they adopt the controversial position that "'... human thought processes are largely metaphorical" (p. 6) The authors subdivide metaphor in the following ways :z !. Structural m~taphors ("|O]ne concept is metaphoricaliy ~-'tructured in terms of another" [p. 14).) ARGUMENT IS WAR: (p. 4) Your claims are indefensible. He attacked ever), weak point in my argument. His crilicisr s were right on target. I demolished his argument, 1 L&J's explanation of these concepts are conlained in parentheses. Selected e~amples from the text are included for each category. In order to reflect accurately the theory developed in this book. many direct quotes, especially in the form of examples, are employed, 2 Throughout the text conceptual metaphors are indicated by the Drmulaic equation "X IS Y' in upper case type.
Los cuerpos de la memoria y la memoria de los cuerpos
Metaphors we live by
Journal of Pragmatics, May 1, 1982
Amir Biglari (a cura di), La Sémiotique en interface, Paris, Kimé, 2018, pp. 672
Versus, 2020
Italie
Semiotics has a long and distinguished tradition in Italy. Currently, Semiotics is taught in diff... more Semiotics has a long and distinguished tradition in Italy. Currently, Semiotics is taught in different universities where structured groups of research work, particularly in Bologna, Reggio Emilia, Palermo, Teramo, Torino, Roma, Siena, Urbino and Venezia (Ca’ Foscari). Main centres of research Centro di semiotica e teoria dell’immagine Omar Calabrese (Università di Siena, http://www.media.unisi.it/css/centro.html) Centro Internazionale di Studi Interculturali di Semiotica e Morfologia (Univer..
Beyond the body: Towards a full embodied semiosis
De Gruyter eBooks, Mar 18, 2008
Beyond the body: Towards a full embodied semiosis Patrizia Violi Abstract The notion of embodimen... more Beyond the body: Towards a full embodied semiosis Patrizia Violi Abstract The notion of embodiment has become very prevalent in current research in a num- ber of disciplines associated with cognitive science such as philosophy, computer science, psychology, linguistics and semiotics. ...
This dissertation deals with the problems and the opportunities of a semiotic approach to percept... more This dissertation deals with the problems and the opportunities of a semiotic approach to perception. Is perception, seen as the ability to detect and articulate an coherent picture of the surrounding environment, describable in semiotic terms? Is it possibile, for a discipline wary of any attempt to reduce semiotic meaning to a psychological and naturalized issue, to come to terms with the cognitive, automatic and genetically hard-wired specifics of our perceptive systems? In order to deal with perceptive signs, is it necessary to modify basic assumptions in semiotics, or can we simply extend the range of our conceptual instruments and definitions? And what if perception is a wholly different semiotic machinery, to be considered as sui generis, but nonetheless interesting for a general theory of semiotics? By exposing the major ideas put forward by the main thinkers in the semiotic field, Mattia de Bernardis gives a comprehensive picture of the theoretical situation, adding to the ...
... The Philosophy of John Dewey. Ed. John J. McDermott. Chicago : U of Chicago P, 1981. DeWitt,S... more ... The Philosophy of John Dewey. Ed. John J. McDermott. Chicago : U of Chicago P, 1981. DeWitt,Scott Lloyd. "The Current Nature of Hypertext Research in Computers and Compositions Studies: An Historical Perspective." Computers and Composition 13 (1996): 69-84. ...
Dalla nave di Teseo al campanile di Venezia. Una prospettiva semiotica sulla identità
Rivista Italiana di Filosofia del Linguaggio, 2019
This article aims to analyse the notion of diachronic identity within a semiotic framework rooted... more This article aims to analyse the notion of diachronic identity within a semiotic framework rooted in the structuralist approach. What are the conditions that allow to maintain the identity of a given entity through temporal transformations? When can we say that ‘something’ is still the same? Tracing back to the works of Umberto Eco and Luis Prieto, the author discusses the conditions that regulate changes of semantic identity, claiming that identity cannot be defined on the basis of any substantial essence, but only in relational terms, according to different criteria of relevance. Various examples are discussed in order to show a similar non empiristic and non-essentialist definition of identity and the ways in which it can change over time. Far from being just the result of cultural diversities, semantic identify turns out to be a heuristic and a methodological tool that can explain the system of meaning and values of a given culture.
Luoghi della memoria: dalla traccia al senso / Places of memory: from traces to meaning
Rivista Italiana di Filosofia del Linguaggio, Oct 31, 2016
This paper aims to investigate the ways in which space signifies the past and conveys memories, w... more This paper aims to investigate the ways in which space signifies the past and conveys memories, with a particular attention to traumatic pasts. After having offered a synthetic description of the specificity of a semiotic approach to the study of memory seen as an endless construction and reconstruction of the past, rather than its faithful representation, and having made a claim for a basic distinction between events and their sense, the article considers some particular places devoted to the transmission of a traumatic memory, denominated "trauma sites". Trauma sites are memorials that elaborate existing traces of mass murders of various kinds that have taken place in that specific point in space. This paper argues for the indexical nature of such places, and discusses the semiotic nature of imprints and traces, proposing a non-ontological perspective on indexicality based on beliefs rather than on referential links to external reality.
Spaces of memory and trauma: a cultural semiotic perspective
De Gruyter eBooks, May 22, 2017
Over the last twenty years memory and trauma have been the object of fast growing attention in th... more Over the last twenty years memory and trauma have been the object of fast growing attention in the Humanities and have been investigated within the perspectives of Cultural Studies and Critical Theory. This paper aims to discuss how a culturally oriented semiotic approach is more adequate in terms of reframing in a more insightful way some fundamental issues of this field. With reference to my recent research regarding memorials and museums, I will analyse the relationship between space and memory and the key role that a number of specific places play in the cultural memorisation of traumatic events, demonstrating how a semiotic methodology may serve to clarify a number of theoretical and methodological impasses. In particular I will discuss the notion of trauma, as it has been defined within the field of Trauma Studies, and also the notion of trauma sites, a category of \u2018places of memory\u2019 that exhibit a very specific type of semiotic functioning. The notions of trace, authenticity and indexicality will be presented and further analyzed in terms of their usefulness within this broader perspective
Uploads
Papers by patrizia violi