نگار ولی پور

Abstract

Since the introduction of conceptual metaphors by Likoff and Johnson in ۱۹۸۰, the traditional definition of metaphor has been undergone changes and redefinition. Metaphor is no longer a literary and rhetorical device and does not belong to Figurative language. The conceptual metaphor is so deeply rooted in our minds that it affects and shapes our attitudes, speech, actions and even our culture. Since then, a lot of bodies of research have been conducted on this area and its various aspects so that cognitive linguists can get a better understanding about the cognitive aspects of language. One of the fields studied is women conceptual metaphors, which has been less worked on. The aim of the present study was to gain knowledge about the nature of conceptual metaphors of women in the Persian-speaking Iranian language community through the examination of colloquial terms, as well as presence of finding gender-biase through examining the hidden conceptual metaphors in colloquial terms referring to women. In order for that, three wuestions wrer posed being the type of conceptual metaphors for women, the image schemas of these metaphors, and the determination of gender bias in them. The present study, of a qualitative type, was conducted by alphabetically indexing the data. ۱۱۳۷ coloquial terms were collected. Having analysed the dataT four types of concepyual metaphors were detected: ontological, structural, image and orientational. In addition, due to overlaps between conceptual metaphor types, two combined types were detected: ontological-image metaphors and structural-image metaphors. Analyzing the obtained metaphors, ۳۵ types of image schemas were detected. Having examined the source domains present in the obtained metaphors through Great Chain of Being, of the first priority, and emotional aspects of the colloquial terms, of the second priority, it was revealed that there is gender-bias towards women conceptual metaphors in Persian.