The Language of Space & Time
Svetlana Nedelcheva
1
Embodied meaning and spatial
experience
The real world provides the raw substrate for our
sensory perceptions and the conceptualizations
which arise from them.
• humanly perceived
experience is fundamental
to human cognition
• determined by the nature of the bodies we have
• => experience is embodied
Meaning itself is embodied
(Evans, 2000; Heine, 1997: Jackendoff. 1983, 1990, 1992; Johnson, 1987;
Lakoff, 1987; Langacker. 1987; Talmy, 2000, etc.)
the concept of CONTAINMENT
• the surrounding LM will often offer physical
protection from outside forces
• hide the TR from outside view
the spatial particle in codes the concept of
CONTAINMENT
•
•
•
I awoke in my
bedroom
I went to the cupboard
in the kitchen
I found the box of
cereal in the cupboard
•
•
•
I read it in the
newspaper
Anne Frank lived in
perilous times
Will is in love
not limited to English
Spatial scenes
• we segment our perceptions of the world into spatial
scenes
• these spatial scenes result from entities in the world
- which exist independently of human beings
• perceived, then analysed and understood in ways
which are wholly dependent upon the kind of neural
architecture of the human brain, the particularities
of the human body and the way these bodies
interact with the world
My cup is on the table.
•
•
•
•
•
contact
functionally - support
gravity
prevents a cup from falling
an understanding of the
physical properties of the
entities involved (e.g. size,
materials they are made of,
etc.)
the earliest formative experiences humans
undergo
• battling with gravity to
remain upright
• discovery of force
dynamics (e.g. we can
cause sth to move away
from us when we push it
and towards us when we
pull it)
Polysemous lexemes, such as English spatial
particles, form semantic polysemy networks
Polysemy networks form as a result of speakers perceiving
communicatively useful connections between a nonprimary use and the primary sense.
OVER
• Its distinct senses did not just accidentally
arise because, for instance, speakers could not
think of another phonological string with
which to label the distinct concept.
• Speakers must have found something in the
basic spatio-physical configuration of over
which connected to the concept of, say,
'completion' (e.g. The movie is over
[=complete]).
Principled polysemy
• a particular form is conventionally associated
with a number of distinct but related
meanings
• not all contextually varying uses of a form
constitute distinct senses
• the distinct senses constitute a semantic
network in a systematic and motivated way
a spatial particle such as over has a
number of distinct meanings or senses
associated with it
• there has been a tendency among some
cognitive linguists, especially those working on
lexical polysemy, to exaggerate the number
distinct senses associated with a particular
form
Methodology for determining distinct senses
Tyler & Evans (2003)
• The reason - to minimize the subjective nature
of our analysis
• First, a distinct sense must involve non-spatial
meaning or a different configuration between
the TR and LM than found in the proto-scene.
• Second, there must be instances of the sense
that are context independent.
The helicopter hovered over the ocean.
The bird hovered over the flower.
• over designates a spatial relation in
which the TR is located higher than
the LM
• the same basic TR-LM configuration
holds in both and no additional nonspatial meaning is prompted for by
one and not the other
TR
LM
TR
LM
Determining the primary sense - problems
• in terms of over, Lakoff (1987) following Brugman
([1981] 1988), argued that the primary sense for
over is 'above and across', including a path, as in The
plane flew over the city.
• Kreitzer (1997) disagreed, suggesting that the
primary sense is something akin to an above sense,
as in The bird hovered over the flower.
Tyler and Evans (2003) - methodology
to narrow the arbitrariness in the selection of a
primary sense
• earliest attested meaning
• predominance in the semantic network
• relations to other spatial particles
One likely candidate for the primary sense is the
HISTORICALLY EARLIEST SENSE.
• The earliest attested uses have to do with a
spatial configuration holding between the TR
and the LM.
• Predominance within a semantic network - the
unique spatial configuration that is involved in
the majority of the distinct senses found in the
network.
Certain clusters of particles appear to form
compositional sets that divide up various
spatial dimensions.
• the particles above, over, under and below appear to
form a compositional set which divides the vertical
dimension into 4 related subspaces
• up and down, before and after, and in front of and
behind, and in and out
A spatial scene is an abstract representation of a
recurring real-world spatio-physical
configuration mediated by human conceptual
processing.
• configurational element
• functional element
configurational element
• a trajector (TR), (i.e., the element located) and
is typically smaller and movable;
• a landmark (LM), which is the element with
respect to which the TR is located and is
typically larger and immovable;
• and a conceptual spatial relation between the
TR and the LM.
The infant is in her playpen.
TR

LM
• TR is the infant
• LM is the playpen
• conceptual spatial
relation - in
functional element
• reflects the interactive relationship b/n the TR
and the LM in a particular spatial
configuration (Herskovits, 1986; Vandeloise, 1991, 1994)
• in designates a relation in which the TR is
enclosed by the LM - containment
• LM is three-dimensional in nature, and the TR
is located within the bounded area of the LM
A proto-scene with more than one functional
element
The kids sat on the table
• the table supports the
kids
• the table constrains the
actions of the kids
• they place pressure on
the table
• their bodies cover part
of the table and that
part is not visible
A proto-scene is an idealized mental representation
across the recurring spatial scenes associated with a
particular spatial particle.
• It is an abstraction across many similar spatial
scenes.
• It combines idealized elements of real-world
experience (objects called TRs and LMs) and a
conceptual relation (a spatial configuration
b/n the objects).
The cat is in the box.
The convict is in his cell.
• TR - the shaded sphere
• LM - diagrammed by the dark
lines
• the functional element of the
configuration – containment
the conceptual spatial
relation (in)
• the vantage point for construing
(i.e. viewing) the spatial scene is
'off-stage' (Langacker, 1987,
1991a)
The notion of a vantage point suggests how a
particular spatial scene is construed.
The tablecloth is on the table.
The cloth is over the table.
The table is under the tablecloth.
• Certain parts of the spatial scene are profiled
(see Langacker, 1987,1992).
Temporality / atemporality
a spatial particle does not profile a relation
which evolves through time
• represents a conceptualized relation holding
between two entities (a TR and a LM)
• independent of sequential evolving
• profiles atemporal relations
Experiential correlation
Joseph Grady (1997a, 1999)
a consequence of the nature of interaction between
humans and their environment is that certain kinds
of experiences are frequently correlated (e.g. vertical
elevation of a physical entity and an increase in the quantity
of the entity)
The notion of two distinct experiences being
correlated is an important one, as it leads to two
distinct concepts becoming linked at the conceptual
level.
•
•
•
•
Prices have gone up recently.
The stock market is rising.
She's just got her highest test score of the
semester.
The population size is on the way up.
another example of experiential correlation -the
experiences of knowing and seeing
• I see what you mean.
• I see what you're trying to say.
• Now I see! [= understand]
• Your vision is just what our company needs.
Seeing, sight and vision are conventionally
interpreted as representing knowledge and
understanding.
IMAGE SCHEMAS FORM THE BASIS FOR
ABSTRACT THOUGHT
Lakoff (1987, 1990, 1993) and Johnson (1987)
The birds are in love.
Птиците са влюбени.
Ben is in trouble.
Бен е в беда.
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Some more examples:
• The boss is in good mood today. Шефът е в добро настроение
днес.
• The government is in a deep crisis.Правителството е в голяма криза.
• She’s coming out of the coma.
Тя излиза от комата.
• I’m slowly getting into shape.
Бавно влизам във форма.
• He fell into a depression.
Той изпадна в депресия.
• He is on duty.
Той e на дежурство.
• Val and his men were on alert.
Вал и хората му бяха нащрек/ в
пълна готовност.
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‘State’ senses of English prepositions
• We are on alert/best
behaviour/look-out/the
run.
‘state’ sense
• Ние сме в готовност/ с
най-добро държане/
нащрек/ на свобода.
‘state’ sense
cf. We are on the bus.
cf. Ние сме в автобуса.
‘spatial’ sense
‘spatial’ sense
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‘State’ senses of English prepositions
• We are at war/
variance/ dagger’s
drawn/ loggerheads
‘state’ sense
cf. We are at the bus stop.
‘spatial’ sense
• Ние сме във война/ в
разногласие/ на нож/
в конфликт
‘state’ sense
cf. Ние сме на
автобусната спирка.
‘spatial’ sense
(see Evans and Green 2006: chapter 10, for a review; see also
Evans, Bergen and Zinken 2007)
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ABSTRACT CONCEPTS
• our conceptual system organises abstract
concepts in terms of more concrete kinds of
experiences: motion, vertical elevation and
physical proximity
• Christmas is fast approaching.
• The number of shares has gone up.
• Those two have a very close friendship.
TIME
QUANTITY
AFFECTION
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To sum up
• rigorous criteria for determining the primary
sense of a spatial particle
• and for determining when an occurrence of a
particle represents an independent sense in
the network
• an interpretation created on-line for purposes
of local understanding
However,
• even with these constraints, different speakers
may have somewhat different intuitions
concerning the precise relationship b/n the
proto-scene and a particular 'extended' sense.
• Spatial scenes are complex and can be
construed in many ways.
• The synchronic network reflects many aspects
of its diachronic development.