Title: A Cognitive Study of Calligraphic Concepts “Fei” (fat) and “Shou” (thin) and Their Meaning Construction

Abstract: “Fei” (fat) and “shou” (thin) are commonly used to describe a person’s appearance, but in calligraphic texts, these two concepts turn out to be the most frequent and typical. This study shows that, as calligraphic concepts, “fei” and “shou” generally refer to the thickness and strength of strokes, the size and the spacing of Chinese characters, neither with emotional tendency. The calligraphic concept “fei” appears later than “shou”. Based on cognitive experiences as well as encyclopedic knowledge mapped by metaphor and metonymy, “fei” and “shou” obtain their respective basic meanings, which are further constructed on-line through association and analogy according to their calligraphic contexts.

Keywords: calligraphic discourse, “fei” (fat), “shou” (thin), meaning construction, cognitive mechanism

Author: Huali Li, Ph.D. Candidate, Foreign Studies College, Hunan Normal University, Changsha, Hunan, China; Lecturer, School of Foreign Languages, Hunan University of Technology and Business, Changsha, Hunan, China.