The Life of Metaphor

张沛Peking University Press2004

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Word count
270K words
Chapters
40
Series
Peking University Comparative Literature Academic Library
ISBN
9787301068434

Tags

Literature Classical Literature Peking UniversityLiterary TheoryComparative PoeticsPhilosophy of LanguageAcademic MonographComparative LiteratureMetaphor StudyEast-West ComparisonAncient Greece and RomeComparative Culture

Summary

The Life of Metaphor is an academic monograph by Zhang Pei, a scholar at the Institute of Comparative Literature and Comparative Culture at Peking University, published by Peking University Press in 2004 in the Peking University Comparative Literature Academic Library series. Taking metaphor as its object of study, the book seeks to open new perspectives and territory in contemporary Chinese metaphor research. The author surveys representative Chinese and Western materials on metaphor as comprehensively as possible and, drawing on traditional Chinese rhetoric and literary theory, defines the historical periods, domains, and types of metaphor research: in the West, from the rhetorical-poetic period of ancient Greece and Rome, through the transitional Middle Ages and Renaissance, the poetic-linguistic period from the 16th to the 19th century, and the linguistic-philosophical and anthropological period of the first half of the 20th century, to the cognitive and pluralistic research of the second half; in China, from the initial formation and consolidation of the pre-Qin era, through the transformation of Qin and Han, the transmission and reaction of Han, Wei, and the Six Dynasties, the bridging role of Sui and Tang, the leap and flourishing of Tang and Song, the incubation of Jin and Yuan, the prosperity and crisis of Ming and Qing, to the challenges and responses from the late Qing and early Republic onward. Centered on the conflict and reconciliation between beauty and truth, the book approaches metaphor from four dimensions—rhetoric, poetics, philosophy of language, and epistemological-ontological philosophy—to establish a preliminary interactive theory of metaphor and to examine systematically metaphor's transformative-generative character. It then proposes that metaphor is an organic existence in constant transformation and generation, and that human language, literature, cognition, and life itself all possess transformative-generative metaphorical qualities.

Editor's review

这是一部“以一本书梳理两条脉络”的著作。很多隐喻研究要么只谈西方从亚里士多德到莱考夫、约翰逊的理论谱系，要么只在中国古典修辞与文论里打转；张沛则把两条线索并置在同一张时间表上，让读者一眼看出中西隐喻观在各自历史阶段的重心差异与内在呼应。 本书的结构相当清楚：先立“转换生成”这一核心命题，说明隐喻如何在语境中生成、转换与再生成；再用一章做中西研究史的“地图”；随后依次进入修辞学、诗学、语言学、哲学四个维度，层层递进。第三章把“春秋笔法”与“显白书写”放在政治修辞学的框架下讨论，是全书颇具中国问题意识的亮点；第四章以“想像”连接美与真，第六章则把隐喻提升为思维与存在方式的问题。 对比较文学、文艺学、语言哲学方向的研究者与研究生而言，本书的价值在于它提供了一个可继续推进的理论框架，以及较为完整的中西文献索引；对普通读者，它也是一本可以按章选读的“隐喻研究入门地图”。需要说明的是，作为学术专著，书中术语密度较高，阅读时不妨配合参考书目与原著对读。

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Reading tips

  1. 先读第一章与第六章，抓住“转换生成”这一核心命题，再回看中间四章的具体展开。
  2. 第二章可按兴趣选读西方或中国部分，配合章末结语与参考书目延伸阅读。
  3. 阅读第三章第三节时，可对照《春秋》《左传》原文，体会政治修辞学的分析路径。
  4. 准备专题讨论或论文时，建议以修辞学、诗学、语言学、哲学四维为纲做读书笔记。

About the publisher

Peking University Press China · Founded in 1979

Peking University Press is a comprehensive university press whose publishing areas cover classical literature, popular science, social culture, world history, Western philosophy, and culture. Its catalogue contains 6,031 titles, with representative books including A Dream of Red Mansions, Relativity: The Special and General Theory (15th Edition) (with Einstein's classic papers on unified field theory and other topics), Elements, Conics, The Aristocratic Families of the Eastern Jin, The Philosophy of Mythology (Volume I), The Philosophy of Mythology (Volume II), and The Origin of Continents and Oceans. Representative authors include Cao Xueqin, Zhou Ruchang, Albert Einstein, Euclid, Apollonius, Tian Yuqing, Schelling, and Xian Gang. The press has developed distinctive strengths in classical Chinese literature and in the translation of Western philosophical classics, while also covering scientific classics and social and cultural studies. As public information is limited, this description is based only on the books in the catalogue and offers no further extrapolation.

Contents

  1. Preface
  2. Introduction
  3. A Note on Format
  4. Chapter 1 Transformation and Generation: The Mode of Existence of Metaphor
  5. Section 1 Defining Metaphor
  6. Section 2 The Environment of Metaphor's Existence
  7. Section 3 The Mode of Existence of Metaphor
  8. Section 4 Transformation and Generation: The Working Mechanism of Metaphor
  9. Section 5 The Reason for Metaphor's Existence
  10. Conclusion: Metaphor Is the Transformative-Generative Third
  11. Chapter 2 The History and Present State of Metaphor Research
  12. Section 1 The History and Present State of Western Metaphor Research
  13. (1) Ancient Greece and Rome (the rhetorical-poetic period)
  14. (2) The Middle Ages to the Renaissance (a period of transition and preparation)
  15. (3) The 16th to 19th Centuries (the poetic-linguistic period)
  16. (4) The First Half of the 20th Century (the linguistic-philosophical and anthropological period)
  17. (5) The Second Half of the 20th Century (the cognitive and pluralistic research period)
  18. Conclusion: Transformative-Generative Western Metaphor Research
  19. Section 2 The History and Present State of Chinese Metaphor Research
  20. (1) Pre-Qin: The Period of Initial Formation and Consolidation
  21. (2) Qin-Han: The Period of Transformation
  22. (3) Han, Wei, and the Six Dynasties: A Flourishing Period of Transmission and Reaction
  23. (4) Sui-Tang: A Transitional Period of Bridging Past and Future
  24. (5) Tang-Song: A Period of Leap and Flourishing
  25. (6) Jin-Yuan: A Period of Incubation
  26. (7) Ming-Qing: A Period of Coexisting Prosperity and Crisis
  27. (8) Late Qing and Early Republic to the 20th Century: A Period of Challenge and Response
  28. Conclusion
  29. Chapter 3 A Rhetorical Study of Metaphor
  30. Section 1 A Genealogical Study of Rhetoric (Metaphor and Simile, Metaphor and Irony, Metaphor and Metonymy)
  31. Section 2 The Affinity Function of Metaphor
  32. Section 3 The Spring and Autumn Style of Writing and Esoteric Writing: A Political-Rhetorical Study of Metaphor
  33. Section 4 Metaphor: The Rhetoric of Cognition, Cognizing Rhetorically
  34. Chapter 4 A Poetic Study of Metaphor
  35. Section 1 A Genealogical Study of Poetics (Metaphor and Image, Symbol, Myth)
  36. Section 2 Imagination: The Metaphorical Productivity of Beauty and Truth
  37. Section 3 The Realm of Simulation: The Metaphorical Mode of Existence of Literary Texts
  38. Chapter 5 A Linguistic Study of Metaphor
  39. Section 1 Metaphor: The Reconciler of Humans and Language
  40. Section 2 Crossing the Chasm of Meaning: The Eternal Pursuit of Literal Meaning and Metaphorical Meaning

FAQ

这本书是讲写作技巧的实用书吗？ 不是。它是学术专著，讨论隐喻的本质、历史与理论体系，重点在修辞学、诗学、语言哲学与哲学层面，而不是教人如何写出漂亮的比喻句。
没有哲学或文论基础能读吗？ 可以读，但需要耐心。建议从第一章和第二章入手，先建立隐喻研究的基本问题和历史脉络，遇到术语可先查书末的人名术语中西文对照。
书名里的“生命”应如何理解？ 作者用“生命”比喻隐喻的有机性与生成性：隐喻不是固定的修辞装置，而是在语境中不断转换生成、具有生存形态的存在，这也是全书的核心论点。
书中有讨论中国传统的部分吗？ 有。第二章第二节按时代梳理中国隐喻研究的历史，第三章第三节专门讨论“春秋笔法与显白书写”的政治修辞学，是中国资源与西方理论对话的重点章节。
适合作为教材或课程参考书吗？ 适合作为比较诗学、隐喻研究相关课程的参考书或专题阅读材料，但它的体例是专著而非教材，更适合配合教师讲解与原著选读使用。

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About the author

张沛 Author

Zhang Pei is a writer whose interests span literature, politics, and Eastern philosophy. Public information about him is limited, and details of his identity and life are not readily available. Judging from the eight works held in the library, his interests cover Shakespeare studies, comparative literature, political thought, and classical interpretation. These include in-depth discussions of Shakespeare and his political implications, such as The Question of Hamlet, Hamlet: Annotations and Interpretation, and Shakespeare, Utopia and Revolution; translations or discussions of themes concerning the public and politics, such as On the Ignorance of Oneself and the Masses and Democracy and Leadership; an interpretation of a classic of Eastern philosophy in An Interpretation of the Zhongshuo; and a textbook-like anthology, A Basic Reader in Comparative Literature. In addition, The Application of Electric Power Big Data in Business Management shows that his writing also extends to data applications in the power industry. Overall, his works combine scholarship with readability and often connect classic texts with contemporary issues, making them suitable for readers interested in literature, political thought, and interdisciplinary topics.