Textual Metaphor from the Perspective of Relator

Abstract

Grammatical metaphor in the Hallidayan sense consists of ideational metaphor and interpersonal metaphor. This propels some systemicists to think of the inclusion of textual metaphor into grammatical metaphor since the three metafunctions are intertwined, and to carry out research on textual metaphor from different perspectives. However, Halliday has never discussed textual metaphor, only mentioning the textual effects of ideational metaphor. Following the notion of cline, we propose that the relation between the two figures of a sequence can be realized along two lines, one being the unidirectional transfer from the conjunctive adverbial groups through paratactic and hypotactic conjunction groups to preposition groups, the other being that from the conjunctive adverbial groups through paratactic and hypotactic conjunction groups to verbal groups and finally to nominal groups. Based on the double functionality principle, five types of textual metaphor from the perspective of relator are identified: zero conjunctive adverbial groups, conjunctionalization of conjunctive adverbial groups, prepositionalization of conjunction groups, verbalization of conjunction groups and nominalization of conjunctive verbal groups.

Keywords:

• Grammatical Metaphor
• Textual Metaphor
• Double Functionality
• Relator
• Cline

Funding

This work was supported by Grant from Guangdong Province (GD14CWW02), China National Social Sciences Fund (15BYY016) and Grant from the Ministry of Education of China (13JJD740010).

Notes

¹ For a different interpretation of the imperative as metaphor of mood, see Lassen (2003b), pp. 279–308.

² Note that Lassen's term is Textural, not Textual.