THE QUESTION OF METAPHORICITY: A RELEVANCE-THEORETIC PERSPECTIVE

Abstract

The paper deals with the question of the status of metaphoric expressions depending on the interpretative processes they require. I begin with lexicalized metaphors which, in fact, do not have the status of a metaphor since their interpretation requires mere decoding. Turning to genuine metaphoric expressions, the first question I attempt to answer is – what makes an expression metaphoric? This question is relevant for establishing demarcation between metaphor and other loose uses of language. Once the criterion is clearly set, the question of the level of metaphoricity imposes itself. Hence, the main aim of this research is to suggest a possible solution for the continuum of metaphoric expressions – from those that represent a descriptive language use to those that are highly unconventional and frequently involve mental imagery. The proposed continuum goes from instances of descriptive language use whose interpretation results in formation of ad hoc concept, through instances of interpretative language use where the communicated concept departs even more from the encoded one, to extended poetic metaphors whose relevance lies in the weak implicatures.