Kognitivne metafore prostora v madžarskih glagolsko-argumentnih konstrukcijah

Lingvistični krožek Filozofske fakultete v Ljubljani vabi na 1215. sestanek, ki bo v ponedeljek, 17. oktobra 2022, ob 18. uri v predavalnici 325 v 3. nadstropju Filozofske fakultete. Na temo Kognitivne metafore prostora v madžarskih glagolsko-argumentnih konstrukcijah / Cognitive metaphors of space in Hungarian verb-argument constructions bo predavala prof. dr. Mónika Dóla, Oddelek za jezikoslovje Univerze Pécs, Madžarska. Predavanje bo v angleščini. Potekalo bo v hibridni obliki (povezava na Zoom).

Povzetek v angleščini:

Have you ever wondered why it is ‘be surprised AT something’ in English and presenečen NAD nečim in Slovene (‘be surprised ABOVE sth.’), or meglepődik valamiN (‘be surprised ON sth.’) in Hungarian?

Cognitive linguistics, as a usage-based functional approach to language, claims that the way people use language to communicate meaning leaves an imprint on the linguistic structure. The linguistic structure and the meaning of linguistic expressions are influenced by general cognitive processes such as categorisation and conceptualisation of experience. Linguistic expressions are not just a matter of words: they describe how the world is seen and understood by speakers. Cognitive linguists argue that one key conceptual process to shape linguistic expressions is metaphor: “understanding one kind of thing in terms of another” (Lakoff and Johnson 1980:5).

The presentation will look at (mainly Hungarian) verb-argument constructions like the ones above for complex abstract ideas and events – namely emotions, thoughts, and social relations. It will argue that such constructions are not simply about idiosyncratic ‘lexical units’ beyond the reach of ‘grammar’, but about thinking: about a way of seeing and understanding the world, making sense of complex and abstract events in terms of simpler and more concrete things that we can relate to at a simpler sensory level – such as space and directionality. In the analysis of space metaphors involved in various Hungarian predicate-argument constructions, we will address issues like conceptual metaphor, categorisation, schema formation, and the prototype effect on grammar.

Finally, we will discuss possible related psychological implications. If the ways we view the world and communicate our experiences about it influence linguistic expressions, can it be that language also shapes the way we see and think about the world? Are linguistic metaphors a psychological reality? And how about bilinguals and language learners? Is there any psychological evidence for the common experience of many that when they are learning a new language, a fresh light is cast on a concept, or a new perspective on the world opens up to them?