On Cognition and the Tension of Live Metaphors

Abstract

‘Live’, or novel, metaphors continue to occupy an interesting space in both the philosophical and cognitive sphere. One metaphorical theory, offered by French philosopher Paul Ricœur, is thoroughly fleshed out in relation to other dominant linguistic accounts of metaphor. Ricœur’s theory is underrepresented in much of contemporary neurolinguistic literature even though it bears great resemblance to many features of modern theories in cognitive science; as such, the current article attempts to establish a clear connection between Ricœur’s work and the cognitive sciences without collapsing into ‘psychological associationism’. The present article offers this connection to re-establish the value of philosophy and hermeneutics to the scientific enterprise by embracing interdisciplinary study.

Keywords: live metaphor, Neurolinguistics, cognition, metaphor, Paul Ricœur, hermeneutics, linguistic tension