What is a Road? A sociolinguistic Analysis of Metaphor in Japanese and English Language
Academic Level at Time of Presentation
Senior
Major
Japanese
Minor
Biology
List all Project Mentors & Advisor(s)
Tanya Romero-Gonzalez; LeRon Harrison; Yoko Hatakeyama
Presentation Format
Oral Presentation
Abstract/Description
Introduction:
This study examines and attempts to explain patterns of descriptions of various images by native speakers of English and Japanese through the lens of Lakoff and Johnson's "Metaphors We Live By."
Methods:
A sixteen-question survey designed for this experiment was answered by a number of native English and Japanese speakers. The answers given to this survey were analyzed.
Results:
Descriptions of images given by both native Japanese and English speakers rarely used metaphorical language, but the metaphorical descriptions which were used indicate some of the differences in the metaphorical understandings of complex concepts perceived through the lens of each language.
Conclusion:
This survey indicated a number of metaphors in each language, including but not limited to “The heart is emotion” across both English and Japanese, and “The heart is a building” exclusively in Japanese
Highlights:
The largest difference in descriptions between English and Japanese responses was in the perception of where in the world an image may have been taken. For one image, English-speaking responses were split evenly between the image having been taken in Spain, France, and Italy. Japanese-speaking respondents almost exclusively indicated that the photo was taken in Spain, with a single response indicating Italy.
Other Scholars Week Event
GLT 400 Fall 2020
What is a Road? A sociolinguistic Analysis of Metaphor in Japanese and English Language
Introduction:
This study examines and attempts to explain patterns of descriptions of various images by native speakers of English and Japanese through the lens of Lakoff and Johnson's "Metaphors We Live By."
Methods:
A sixteen-question survey designed for this experiment was answered by a number of native English and Japanese speakers. The answers given to this survey were analyzed.
Results:
Descriptions of images given by both native Japanese and English speakers rarely used metaphorical language, but the metaphorical descriptions which were used indicate some of the differences in the metaphorical understandings of complex concepts perceived through the lens of each language.
Conclusion:
This survey indicated a number of metaphors in each language, including but not limited to “The heart is emotion” across both English and Japanese, and “The heart is a building” exclusively in Japanese
Highlights:
The largest difference in descriptions between English and Japanese responses was in the perception of where in the world an image may have been taken. For one image, English-speaking responses were split evenly between the image having been taken in Spain, France, and Italy. Japanese-speaking respondents almost exclusively indicated that the photo was taken in Spain, with a single response indicating Italy.