Title: A Comparative Study of Chinese and English “Spleen” Conceptual Metaphors

Abstract: Metaphor is a universal cognitive approach and a fundamental path of human conceptualization. The human body serves as a basis for our understanding of the world, with body-related metaphors permeating the entire process of cognitive construction. The spleen, often considered the “blood bank” of the human body, is a source of numerous metaphorical expressions in both Chinese and English. This paper uses data from the CCL and COCA corpora to systematically compare spleen metaphors in these two languages, in line with the principles of contemporary metaphorology. It summarizes the similarities and differences in Chinese and English spleen metaphors and analyzes the mechanisms behind these coexistent similarities and differences, considering both cognitive commonalities and cultural specificities.

Keywords: conceptual metaphor, spleen, experiential cognition, cultural specificity

Authors: Yi Sun, Professor, Center for Linguistics and Applied Linguistics, Guangdong University of Foreign Studies, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China; Jingying Zhang, Faculty of English Language and Culture, Guangdong University of Foreign Studies, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China; Cihang Cui, Ph.D., Institute of Foreign Literature and Cultutre, Guangdong University of Foreign Studies, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China.

DOI: 10.19967/j.cnki.flc.2024.02.011