Conceptual Metaphors In Dholuo: A Cognitive Linguistic Approach

Abstract

There has been an insatiable interest in the study of conceptual metaphors across languages. This has been prompted by the principal reason that for a long time, the traditional approach to the study of metaphors had taken centre stage with most scholars viewing metaphor as a decorative mechanism in which a word is used to replace another even though no new information is emanated. It was not until the revolutionary study of Lakoff and Johnson that scholars started exploring metaphor from a different perspective. Conceptual Metaphors pervade our speeches but we use them unconsciously because we are unaware of them. For this reason, they should be made overt because they are not only instrumental in meaning construction but are also rich subtle elements of language. This study was guided by four objectives: to prototypically categorize conceptual metaphors in Dholuo, to account for meaning construction in the blends of conceptual metaphors in Dholuo, to explain the schematic patterns that are instrumental for the comprehension of conceptual metaphors in Dholuo and to explain the socio-cultural implications of the images used in conceptual metaphors in Dholuo. Data was collected from forty eight respondents using a tape recorder. A total of three hundred and fifty metaphorical expressions constituted the sample size. Secondary data was derived from the researcher‟s intuition as well as library study. The data for the study was qualitatively analyzed using some tenets of two theories namely: Conceptual Integration theory and Image Schema theory. Through these theories a more explicit, detailed account of the creativity of human language and thought was brought to perspective. The study adopted a descriptive research design. The findings of the study revealed that grouping by prototype is important since it provides an avenue where individuals make sense of their experiences and learn about the world around them through embodiment. In addition, prototype is the ideal level essential for classification because of cultural values attached to it and the comprehensive treatment that it accords different entities. The study further revealed that the blending processes of composition, completion and elaboration are essential in the construction of meaning of conceptual metaphors in Dholuo. Moreover, the basic image schemas are principal and they play a central role while subsidiary image schemas are peripheral and play a subordinate role. Finally, the study noted that animal metaphors that are used in reference to both men and women in the Luo society are sexist in nature and therefore disclose a reality of a social imbalance pitting the male against the female with the latter being brought out as subjugated and degraded and the former as elevated and dignified. The findings of the study would make a contribution to linguistics especially the discipline of Cognitive Linguistics which is relatively new and has therefore not been subjected to extensive research.