CONCEPTUAL METAPHOR DENOTING “ECONOMY” AS “HUMAN BODY” IN NYTIMES.COM AND FICA.VN (2013)

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF POSTGRADUATE STUDIES
o0o



HỒ THỊ HẢI YẾN


CONCEPTUAL METAPHOR DENOTING “ECONOMY” AS
“HUMAN BODY” IN NYTIMES.COM AND FICA.VN (2013)

Ẩn dụ ý niệm biểu hiện “kinh tế” được dùng như “cơ thể con người”
trong báo nytimes.com và fica.vn (2013)


M.A. Minor Programme Thesis

Field: English Linguistics
Code: 60220201


Hanoi, 2014


VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF POSTGRADUATE STUDIES
o0o

HỒ THỊ HẢI YẾN


CONCEPTUAL METAPHOR DENOTING “ECONOMY” AS
“HUMAN BODY” IN NYTIMES.COM AND FICA.VN (2013)

Ẩn dụ ý niệm biểu hiện “kinh tế” được dùng như “cơ thể con người”
trong báo nytimes.com và fica.vn (2013)

M.A. Minor Programme Thesis

Field: English Linguistics
Code: 60220201
Supervisor: Dr. Huỳnh Anh Tuấn


Hanoi, 2014
i

DECLARATION
Title:
“Conceptual metaphor denoting “economy” as “human body” in the
nytimes.com and fica.vn (2013)”
I hereby declare that the master thesis is my own original work under strict
guidance of my supervisor. All sources used for the thesis have been fully and
properly cited. No part in the thesis has been copied or reproduced by me from any
other person‟s work without acknowledgements.
Hanoi, 8

th
October, 2014

Hồ Thị Hải Yến










ii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Foremost, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my supervisor, Dr.
Huỳnh Anh Tuấn for his great patience, encouragement, ceaseless academic support
and insightful comments. Without his guidance and contributions, the present study
would have never seen the light.
My great thankfulness is also given to all my lecturers of the Faculty of
Postgraduate Studies for their ideas to my paper and many thanks to all my friends
who have been always willing to help and give their best suggestions during the
time of collecting necessary data and information for the study.
Last but not least, I would like to acknowledge and extend my heartfelt
gratitude to my whole family who were always supporting me and encouraging me
with their best wishes.

Hanoi, 8

th
October 2014

Hồ Thị Hải Yến







iii

ABSTRACT
Metaphors are rhetorical figures used to express one thing which is more
abstract or unfamiliar in terms of another thing which is more familiar and concrete.
Metaphor has often been regarded as a special language use characteristic of poetry
and drama, but in the ground-breaking work Metaphors We Live By (2003), Lakoff
and Johnson showed that metaphor is, in fact, a fundamental structuring mechanism
in the way we interact with and perceive the world around us. Studies have also
shown metaphor to be common not only in everyday language but also in language
of economy. Having chosen Lakoff and Johnson‟s Conceptual Metaphor Theory
(2003) as the analytical framework, 74 metaphorical expressions from English and
Vietnamese newspapers were analyzed to address how conceptual metaphor
denoting “economy” as “human body” works in English and Vietnamese
newspapers as well as indicate the similarities and differences between both
languages in terms of this conceptual metaphor. It aims to enhance the effectiveness
of teaching, learning and translating conceptual metaphors in English and
Vietnamese.

iv

TABLE OF CONTENTS

DECLARATION……………………………… …………………………………………………i
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii
ABSTRACT iii
TABLE OF CONTENTS iv
PART A: INTRODUCTION 1
1. Rationale of the study 1
2. Aims and objectives 2
2.1. Aims of the study 2
2.2. Objectives 2
3. Scope of the study 3
4. Significance of the study 3
4.1. In terms of theory 3
4.2. In terms of practice 3
5. Method and procedures 3
5.1. Research questions 3
5.2. Research method 4
5.3. Data collection 4
5.4. Data analysis 4
6. Organization of the study 4
PART B: DEVELOPMENT 6
CHAPTER I: THEORICAL BACKGROUND AND LITERATURE REVIEW 6
1.1. Theorical Background 6
1.1. Cognitive linguistics 6
1.2. Cognitive Semantics 6
1.2.1. Definition of cognitive semantics 6

1.2.2. Main tenets of cognitive semantics 7
1.2.2.1. Conceptual structure is embodied 7
1.2.2.2. Semantic structure is conceptual structure 7
1.2.2.3. Meaning representation is encyclopedic. 8
1.2.2.4. Meaning construction is conceptualization 8
1.3. Conceptual Metaphor Theory 8
v

1.3.1. Metaphor 8
1.3.1.1.Traditional views on metaphor 9
1.3.1.2.Metaphor in the light of cognitive linguistics 9
1.3.2. Conceptual metaphor 10
1.3.2.1. Definition of conceptual metaphor 10
1.3.2.2. Classification of conceptual metaphor 11
1.3.2.2.1. Structural metaphor 11
1.3.2.2.2.Orientional metaphor 12
1.3.2.2.3. Ontological metaphor 12
1.3.2.3. Metaphorical mapping 13
1.3.2.3.1. Mapping principles 13
1.3.2.3.2. Image schema 14
1.3.2.3.3. Metaphorical entailment 14
2. Literature Review 15
3. Contrastive Analysis. 16
CHAPTER 2: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 18
1. Research questions 18
2. Research method 18
3. Research procedures 18
4. Data analysis 19
4.1. Data collection 19
4.2. Data analysis 20

4.2.1. Data analytical framework 20
4.4.2.Data analytical units 21
CHAPTER 3: DATA ANALYSIS 22
1. Conceptual metaphor denoting economy as human body in nytimes.com in 2013 22
1.1. Stages of economy system are stages of human body development 22
1.2. Aspects of economy are organs of human body 22
1.3. Appropriate economic conditions are healthy human body conditions. 23
1.4. Inappropriate economic conditions are unhealthy human body conditions 24
1.5. Solutions to the economy are treatments to the human body 26
1.6. Recovery of economy is recovery of human body 26
1.7. Collapse of economy is the death of human body 27
2.2. Aspects of economy are organs of human body 28
vi

2.4. Inappropriate economic conditions are unhealthy human body conditions 29
2.5. Solutions to economy problems are medical treatments to human body problems 30
2.6. Recovery of economy are recovery of human body 31
2.7. Collapse of economy are collapse of human body 31
CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 32
1. Similarities and differences between conceptual metaphor denoting economy as human
body in nytimes.com and fica.vn (2013) 32
PART C: CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS 35
1. Conclusion 35
2. Implications 36
2.1. Implications to Translation Practice 36
2.2. Implications to Foreign Language Teaching 37
3. Limitations and suggestions for further studies 37
REFERENCES 39
APPENDICES VIII
APPENDIX I

APPENDIX II IX


1

PART A: INTRODUCTION

1. Rationale of the study
It is indisputable that economy has a close relationship with human beings
and human society since economic growth is considered as a foremost contributor
to sustained progress in human development. Given the global trends emerging
these days when nations‟ budget focuses more on boosting economy, the number of
economics studies is proliferating considerably. Specifically, language of economy
is one of burning concern of reasearchers (e.g. Boers, 2000; Charteris-Black, 2000;
Broone & Feyaerts, 2005). Thebreakneck speed of global economic evolution has
provided the language of economy with constant changes and innovations.
In recent times, cognitive linguistics has become an exponentially essential
discipline of modern psycholinguistics in language studies. Among researched
issues dealing with cognitive linguistics is cognitive semantics which focuses on
metaphor – a specific mental mapping that provides a foundation of human
conceptualization. In the view of the classic theory, metaphor is regarded as a
special language use characteristic of poetry and drama. However, according to the
Conceptual Metaphor Theory as initiated by Lakoff and Johnson (1987), used as a
theoretical framework for this paper, metaphor is not just a poet‟s tool for aesthetic,
rhetorical purposes but rather pervasive in everyday life and plays an indispensible
role in defining the way people perceive the world and the way we interact with the
world. Our conception of abstract concept is achieved by virtue of a more concrete
concept, thus creating what is called a “conceptual metaphor”. The prevalence of
metaphors within the concept – economy is a pivotal topic of research. In 1983,
McCloskey, in The Rhetoric of Economics recognized the importance of metaphor in

economic contexts. McCloskey argues that economy is metaphorical in nature and
economic texts are “heavily metaphorical”(McCloskey, 1983:502). Economic
expressions such as “economic growth”, “infant industry”, “mature economy”,
“underdeveloped”, “depression”, “human capital”, etc. are, in fact, used widely
2

and frequently. Of all the areas of economy that rely on metaphors to convey
abstract ideas, perhaps the most interesting is the study of economy as human body.
Metaphorically, the economy is regarded as human body with natural cycles of
growth, decline and death. How economy can be conceptualized as human body in
English and Vietnamese newspapers and how conceptual representations vary
across languages and cultures will be illustrated in my research entitled:
“Conceptual metaphor denoting “economy” as “human body” in nytimes.com and
fica.vn (2013)”. Considering the limited size of the material, the results of the study
may probably not be generalized, but they can hopefully contribute to spark a brief
insight into conceptual metaphors denoting economy as human body in English and
Vietnamese online newspapers. Furthermore, they are considered to be
important to specialist translators, English for Special purposes (hereafter
ESP) teachers and students in understanding and interpreting these conceptual
metaphor expressions efficiently, as well as to non-native writers who may be
better equipped to produce economic texts.
2. Aims and objectives
2.1. Aims of the study
As the title of my paper suggests, my primary aim is to investigate how
conceptual metaphor denoting “economy” as “human body” are manifested in
English and Vietnamese online newspapers, nytimes.com and fica.vn respectively
in 2013 in the light of cognitive perspective.
2.2. Objectives
The study is intended to fulfill the following objectives:
- To analyze the concept of “economy” metaphorically expressed as “human body”

in two eminent English and Vietnamese online newspapers, namely nytimes.com
and fica.vn respectively in the year of 2013.
- To discover and explain the similarities and differences between conceptual
metaphors denoting “economy” as “human body” in nytimes.com and fica.vn in
2013.
3

- To make some suggestions for teaching, learning and translating conceptual
metaphors denoting “economy” as “human body”.
3. Scope of the study
Due to time constraints and within the framework of an M.A thesis,
the research is limited to 74 expressions of conceptual metaphors denoting
“economy” as “human body” which are selected from available articles
during 2013 in nytimes.com and fica.vn from cognitive linguistic
perspective.
4. Significance of the study
4.1. In terms of theory
The present paper may not only provide empirical evidence for studies of
linguistic units but also shed light on the studies of economics and applied cultural
linguistics.
4.2. In terms of practice
The study is hoped to be useful for ESP teachers and studentsbetter
understanding and interpreting metaphorical expressions denoting “economy” as
“human body”in English and Vietnamese newspapers and economic texts as well.
Besides, non-native writers and translators are also facilitated.
5. Method and procedures
5.1. Research questions
In order to achieve the aims of the study the following research questions
should be taken into consideration:
- How is the concept of “economy” metaphorically expressed as “human body” in

English and Vietnamese online newspapers?
- What are the similarities and differences in expressions of conceptual metaphors
denoting “economy” as “human body” in English and Vietnamese online
newspapers?
4

5.2. Research method
A contrastive analysis was adopted in this study so as to describe and analyze
the similarities and differences in expressions of conceptual metaphor denoting
“economy” as “human body” in both English and Vietnamese newspapers from
cognitive linguistic perspective.
5.3. Data collection
74 metaphorical expressions denoting “economy” as “human body” are
collected from available articles during the year of 2013 in two eminent
English and Vietnamese online newspapers which are nytimes.com and
fica.vn. The most compelling and concrete ones are selected to demonstrate crucial
points under the investigation.
5.4. Data analysis
Using Lakoff‟s and Johnson‟s Conceptual Metaphor Theory (2003) as the
model of linguistic expressions of conceptual metaphor, the study is qualitatively
conducted to describe and analyze the data collected. In this model, conceptual
metaphors are classified to be the extension of ontological metaphors. Qualitatively,
data are described and analyzed in order to find out the similarities and differences
in expressions denoting economy as human body in English and Vietnamese
newspapers.
6. Organization of the study
This study is composed of three main parts:
Part A – Introduction introduces the rationale, the aim, the methodology, the
scope, the significance and the organization of the study.
Part B – Development consists of four chapters

Chapter 1 – Theoretical background and Literature review focuses on
introducing important theoretical matters relevant to the topic of the study
such as definition of cognitive semantics, main tenets of cognitive semantics, the
5

theories of metaphor, the conceptual metaphors, the metaphoric mappings. Besides,
it presents some previous researches on economic discourses.
Chapter 2 – Research methodology discusses the methods and the procedures of
the research. It also deals with the description of samples and how the data are
collected, described and analyzed.
Chapter 3 – Data analysis involves describing and analyzing conceptual metaphors
denoting “economy” as “human body “in the two English and Vietnamese
newspapers, namely nytimes.com and fica.vn respectively (2013).
Chapter 4 – Findings and discussion deals with metaphorical expressions which are
compared and contrasted so as to find out the similarities and differences in
metaphorical expressions denoting “economy” as “human body “in both languages.
Part C: Conclusion
The results of the study and implication for better teaching, learning and
translating conceptual metaphors in economic texts are illustrated in the final part of
the thesis. This part also puts forward some issues which have not been
mentioned in the thesis and some suggestions for further researches.




6

PART B: DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER 1: THEORICAL BACKGROUND AND LITERATURE REVIEW
This chapter provides the key concepts occurring in the subject matter and

reviews the theories and findings of related studies in the research area. In addition,
this review will reveal the research gap, thus rationalizing the need to conduct the
study.
1. Theorical Background
1.1. Cognitive linguistics
Cognitive linguistics which originally emerged in the 1970s is the scientific
study concerned with investigating the relation of language structure to things
outside language such as “cognitive principles and mechanisms not specific to
language, including principles of human categorization; pragmatic and interactional
principles; and functional principles in general, such as iconicity and economy”
(Kemmer, 2010:12).Cognitive linguistics practice could be roughly divided into two
main areas of research: cognitive semantics and cognitive grammar. Cognitive
grammar, the model language developed by Ronald Langacker is concerned with
modeling the language system rather than the nature of mind itself. Cognitive
linguistics assures that grammar is conceptualization. People use grammar or
language to conceptualize their experiences to express them (Jensen, 2004).
Cognitive semantics is concerned with investigating the relationship between
experience, the conceptual system, and the semantic structure encoded by language.
Moreover, it is noteworthy that cognitive semantics considers meanings which are
from our mind, or rather, meanings are in the head (Gardenfor, 1994).
1.2. Cognitive Semantics
1.2.1. Definition of cognitive semantics
Cognitive semantics is part of cognitive linguistics. According to Evans
(2006), cognitive semantics is concerned with the investigating the relationship
7

between human experience, the conceptual system in human mind, and the semantic
structure encoded by language. In the light of this, scholars studying in cognitive
semantics investigate knowledge representation (conceptual structure), and meaning
construction (conceptualization).

1.2.2. Main tenets of cognitive semantics
As summarized by Evans and Green (2006:157), there are four guiding
principles that collectively characterize cognitive semantics as follow:
- Conceptual structure is embodied
- Semantic structure is conceptual structure
- Meaning representation is encyclopedic
- Meaning construction is conceptualization
1.2.2.1. Conceptual structure is embodied
The first major principle, “Conceptual structure is embodied”, claims that we
have a specific view of the world due to the nature of our body (Geerarts, 1993,
Talmy, 1985, 2000; Taylor, 1989). We perceive the world from our independent
perspectives. Each person has his or her own ways of looking at the world,
which is fundamentally based on his or her own bodily experience. In this
respect, conceptual is a consequence of the nature of our body embodiment. That is
to say, any theory of conceptual structure should be accordant with the ways which
we experience the external world.
1.2.2.2. Semantic structure is conceptual structure
The second principle states that language refers to concepts in the mind of
the speaker about the real world rather than entities which inhere in an external
world. In the other words, semantic structure (the meaning conventionally
associated with words and other linguistic units) can be equated with conceptual
structure (Rosch, 1973). However, the claim that semantic structure is conceptual
8

structure does not mean that the two above are identical. Instead, cognitive
semanticists claim that the semantic structure (meanings associated with linguistic
units) such as words arise from only subset of possible concepts in the mind of
speakers and hearers.
1.2.2.3. Meaning representation is encyclopedic.
The third principle holds that lexical concepts do not represent a bundle of

meaning as we may see in a dictionary, but access to repositories of knowledge
relating to a particular concept (Evan and Green, 2006:160). Of course, it can be
deniable that words have conventional meanings associated with them.
Nevertheless, in order to understand what the speaker means in his or her utterance,
we draw upon our encyclopedic knowledge relating to a specific situation and
selected a meaning that is appropriate in the context of the utterance to construct its
meaning.
1.2.2.4. Meaning construction is conceptualization
Last but not least, the fourth principle confirms that “Meaning construction is
equated with conceptualization, a process whereby linguistic units serve as prompts
for an array of conceptual operations and the recruitment of background
knowledge” (Evan and Green, 2006:162). In this respect, the meaning of linguistic
expressions does not relate directly or objectively to the real world, but rather it is
based on our ways of experiencing or conceptualizing the real world.
1.3. Conceptual Metaphor Theory
1.3.1. Metaphor
Metaphor is a topic within linguistics that has been studied in great
detail. Generally, there are two main approaches in the study of metaphors.
On one hand, the traditional approach encompasses many different theories
but shares some fundamental presumptions, and on the other hand metaphor
9

on the light of cognitive linguistics, despite being very recent, has become
the most influential theory of metaphor (Richard 2005:19).
1.3.1.1.Traditional views on metaphor
Metaphor has traditionally been viewed as a stylistic device used only in
literature. There are various definitions of metaphors proposed by different linguists
and scholars in different perspectives.
According to Aristotle (1992:49) who was first to provide a scholarly
treatment of metaphors, metaphor is giving something a name that belongs

to another thing. This substitution theory describes metaphor as an
expression, which can be paraphrased by a literal expression.
According to Đỗ Hữu Châu (1966:54), metaphor is a way of naming an
object in terms of the name of another, based on the similar relationship
between them.
To put it simple, metaphor is traditionally a hidden comparison and a
transference of names of one thing for another, and it is considered as one of the
figures of speech, a rhetorical device, or a florid decorative means used in
literature to achieve an aesthetic effect.
1.3.1.2.Metaphor in the light of cognitive linguistics
Metaphor in the light of cognitive linguistics is not only used in poems and
prose but also present in daily life language. Two of the leading researchers
within this field are two American linguists George Lakoff and Mark
Johnson. The ground-breaking work Metaphor We Live By launched by Lakoff
and Johnson (1980) revolutionizes the study of metaphor from the cognitive
perspective and has become the foundation for much other researches. They
both claim that metaphor is omnipresent and indispensable in our everyday
language, not merely as a view of rhetorical device but as a matter of human
thought processes and it exists in our conceptual system. To be more specific, we
10

talk about things metaphorically because we conceive them that way and we act by
the way we conceive of things (Lakoff and Johnson,1980:7). This viewpoint is
shared by Barcelona (2000:3) who states that “metaphor is the cognitive mechanism
whereby one experiential domain is partially „mapped‟, i.e. projected onto a
different experiential domain so that the second domain is partially understood in
terms of another experiential domain”.
General speaking, the cognitive approach is in opposition to the traditional
approach in many ways. It attributes cognitive value to metaphor, meaning that
metaphor is not considered to be just a matter of language, but primarily a matter of

thought. It reflects the mechanism by which people understand and explain about
the real world. In this sense, in order to explain a rather complex concept, people
tend to refer to another concept which is easier to comprehend.
1.3.2. Conceptual metaphor
1.3.2.1. Definition of conceptual metaphor
As stated in Metaphor We Live By (2003) by Lakoff and Johnson,
conceptual metaphor (or cognitive metaphor) in cognitive linguistics refers to the
understanding of one conceptual domain in terms of another domain. An unknown,
difficult target-domain is interpreted or reconceptualized in terms of an easier and
more concrete source domain. In other words, we use metaphor as a means for
comprehending new difficult abstract phenomena in terms of familiar ones. Anger,
for example, is a complex emotion, and we have no direct way of understanding it.
Thus there are different ways in which it is understood and explained. One of those
ways is understanding “anger” in terms of “war” as manifested in expressions such
as:
- “Your claims are indefensible”.
- “He attacked every weak pint in my argument”.
According to Lakoff and Johnson (2003), most of the actions that we
perform when arguing are structured from the concept war, as we view the
11

person we are arguing with as an opponent, we attack his position and we
defend our own, gain and lose ground, we plan and use strategies, etc.
Therefore, we understand and talk about ARGUMENT in terms of WAR. In
this case, the source domain and the target domain are „war' and 'anger” respectively.
“Argument is war” is considered conceptual metaphor, and the
representations of metaphor are metaphorical expressions.
Similarly, Radden and Divren (2007:16), conceptual metaphor is viewed as
"a means of understanding abstract domains by relating them to better-known
domains and experiences in the physical world".

For Johansen (2007:11), a conceptual metaphor is “a metaphor that exists in
the mind of a speaker, and may thus be unconscious”.
In Vietnam, Trần Văn Cơ in his book “Khảo luận ẩn dụ tri nhận”
(Epistemology of Cognitive Metaphor) (2009:86-87) explains carefully that
conceptual metaphor is viewed as when we think one object in terms of another one.
Metaphors are often related to the complex and abstract objects, but not the discrete
ones. Thereby, in the process of perception, these complex and abstract things,
through metaphor, establish the correlation with more concrete or observable ones.
For instance, human emotions can be compared with fire, the fields of economics
and politics can be compared with games, sport contests, etc.
1.3.2.2. Classification of conceptual metaphor
According to Lakoff and Johnson (2003), conceptual metaphors are
classified into three different kinds which are presented in the following, starting
with structural metaphors, following orientational and ontological metaphors.
1.3.2.2.1. Structural metaphor
Structural metaphors are instances involving “the structuring of one kind of
experience or activity in terms of another kind of experience or activity” (Lakoff
and Johnson, 2003:8). This phenomenon is exemplified with the conceptual
metaphor “Time is money”. As can be seen from the example, the concept “time” is
12

metaphorically structured in terms of the concept “money”. This conceptual
metaphor is realized in language by expressions such as “That flat tire cost me an
hour” (Lakoff &Johnson, 2003:8). Here, we treat our time as something precious
that should not be wasted or should at least be spent or even invested wisely.
1.3.2.2.2.Orientional metaphor
Following Lakoff and Johnson (2003),unlike the structural metaphor,
orientational metaphor “does not structure one concept in terms of another but
instead organizes a whole system of concepts with respect to one another” (Lakoff
and Johnson 2003:15). As the name suggests, these metaphors are based on the

orientation in space such as up- down, front-back, near-far, etc. Hence, a special
relationship is made for a concept such as “Happy is up”. The physical basis for
the mentioned-above metaphor is that an erect posture with a positive
emotional state, leading to English expressions like “I‟m feeling up today”.
Besides, it is noteworthy that even if they are based on physical experience
common to all humans, these metaphors are also determined by culture; for example,
in some cultures the future is ahead, and in others it is behind us (Lakoff and
Johnson, 2003:14).
1.3.2.2.3. Ontological metaphor
Ontological metaphors are about understanding our experiences in terms of
entities and substances, and alternative names for them are therefore entity and
substance metaphors (Lakoff and Johnson, 2003:25). By this way, when the target
domain is not discrete or bounded, we can still quantify them, categorize them, and
reason about them. Moreover, Lakoff and Johnson (1980:33) claim that the most
obvious ontological metaphors are cases when we specify a physical object as being
a person; when we see something nonhuman as human. This is called
personification, and covers a wide range of metaphors, each of which focuses on
different aspects of, or ways of looking at, a person (Lakoff and Johnson, 1980:34).
13

Personification is not only common in literature but also omnipresent in everyday
discourse such as in the two following metaphorical expressions:
- Inflation makes me sick
-We need to combat inflation
Viewing “inflation” as an entity allow us to refer to it, quantify it, identify a
particular aspect of it, see it as a cause, act with respect to it, and perhaps even
believe that we understand it.
Another concept are the container metaphors. According to Lakoff and
Johnson(2003), human being are containers with boundaries and an orientation of
inside and outside. For example:

- He fell in love
- We will be out of the trouble soon
The prepositions in, out relating to the emotions are containers metaphor. All these
cases conjure up the image of a three – dimensional bounded region (an emotion,
abstract entity).
By and large, Lakoff and Johnson (2003:265) stated that “The division of
metaphors into three types – orientational, ontological and structural – was artificial.
All metaphors are structural (in that they map structures to structures); all are
ontological (in that they create target-domain entities); and many are orientational
(in that they map orientational image-schemas). Therefore, it will be difficult to get
a clear-cut distinction between structural and ontological metaphors. In this thesis,
all those not clearly structural metaphors will be counted as ontological metaphors.
1.3.2.3. Metaphorical mapping
1.3.2.3.1. Mapping principles
According to Radden and Divren (2007), conceptual metaphor is “a
conceptual shift” leading to meaning extension. This cognitive process that relates
14

to literal meanings and extended meanings is called mapping. A mapping is the
systematic set of correspondences that exist between constituent elements of the
source and the target domain. In other words, a conceptual metaphor is created by
mapping a concept from source domain onto a concept from target domain. Certain
aspects of the source and those of the target are brought into correspondence with
each other in such a way that constituent elements of the source correspond to
constituent elements of the target (Kovecses, 1987:93). A brief way to represent this
mapping is the following: Target domain is source domain. “Argument is war” is
an example of an inference pattern that is mapped from one domain to
another. It is via such mappings that we apply knowledge about “war” to concept
“argument”.
1.3.2.3.2. Image schema

The theory of conceptual metaphor developed the idea that certain
concepts are image- schematic in nature. According to Lakoff and Johnson
(2003), image schemas may assume the function source domain for
metaphorical mapping. Kovecses (2007) defines image schemas as acquired
through our bodily interactions with external world, as such, these interactions
occur repeatedly in human experiences which then give the emergence of certain
schema structures represented in our mind. The structures that emerge this way are
what we call image schemas.
1.3.2.3.3. Metaphorical entailment
Kõvecses (1987:94) states that “when rich additional knowledge about a
source is mapped onto a target, we call it metaphorical entailment”. In this sense,
conceptual metaphors also have to provide additional and detailed
knowledge due to the fact that some aspects of the source domain that are
not explicitly stated in the mappings can be inferred. Thus, entailments or
rich inferences are carried by metaphorical mappings. For example, in the
metaphor “argument is war”, we use an additional piece of knowledge about
journey to make sense of a feature of argument.
15

In conclusion, we can say that metaphor plays a role in human thought,
understanding, and reasoning, and beyond that, in the creation of our social,
cultural, and psychological reality. Understanding metaphor then means understand
a vital part of who we are and what kind of world we live in.
2. Literature Review
There have been a number of scholars inspired and interested in
conceptual metaphors with regards to economy. In the 18
th
century Adam
Smith, the founder of modern economics mentioned invisible hand. It is perhaps the
earliest use of metaphor in economic contexts. He argues that the invisible hand of

the market manipulates prices so as to efficiently allocate scarce recourses
according to consumer preferences and production costs (Boers, 1997:45).
Then in 1983 McCloskey, in The Rhetoric of Economics recognized the
importance of metaphor in economic contexts. McCloskey argues that economics is
metaphorical in nature. He sees metaphor as the most important example of
economics rhetoric, essential to economic thinking and states that "To say that
markets are represented by supply and demand 'curve' is no less a metaphor than to
say that the west wind is the 'breath of autumn' being(McCloskey, 1983:502).
Charteris –Black (2000) carries out a comparative language analysis of the
Economist magazine and the economic section of the Bank of English corpus is carried
out by Charteris- Black (2000). The results suggests that the metaphoric lexis in the
Economist are higher in frequency than in the general magazines. This suggest that ESP
learners are dealing with more specific types of metaphors as part of their “technical”
register.
Pecican (2007) carries out a study comparing the use of conceptual metaphor in
English and Romanian which shows that the underlying conceptual metaphors are
basically the same, and that there is a higher preference for fight related metaphors in
English where Romanian preferred metaphors relating to the health and psychological
state of living organism.
However, it seems that there has no studies into the similarities and
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differences between English and Vietnamese languages in relation to the use of
conceptual metaphor denoting economy as human body. Therefore, this paper
complements previous studies in that it sets out to examine the nature of conceptual
metaphors denoting economy as human body employed in English and Vietnamese
newspapers to identify and discover the similar and different expressions of
conceptual metaphors used for describing economy as human body in English and
Vietnamese newspapers, namely nytimes.com and fica.vn in 2013. Subsequently,
some implications for teaching, learning and translating conceptual metaphors for

further researches are demonstrated.
3. Contrastive Analysis.
"Contrastive analysis was developed and practiced in the 1950s and 1960s as
application of structural linguistics to language teaching" (Richards, Platt & Platt,
1992). It is obviously explained by Arnold (2009) that “contrastive analysis
is systematic comparison of specific linguistics characteristic of two or
more languages”. Furthermore, the contractive analysis is a method of
linguistic analysis that tries to describe, prove, and analyze the differences
and similarities of languages aspects of the two or more languages (Ridwan,
1998).
Contrastive Analysis Hypothesis (CAH) – this extension of the notion of CA
attributed the ability to predict errors to a CA of two languages, a predictability that
practitioners associated with the degree of similarity between the two systems.
According to Robert Lado (1957:2), “… those elements that are similar to this
native language will be simple for him, and those elements that are different will be
difficult. The Contrastive Analysis emphasizes on the influence of the mother
tongue in learning a second language in phonological, morphological and syntactic
levels. Contrastive Analysis is not merely relevant for second language teaching
and learning but it can also make useful contributions to machine translating and
linguistics typology. It is relevant to the designing of teaching materials for use in
all age groups. Chaturvedi (1973) suggests the following guiding principles for
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contrastive study:
- To analyze the mother tongue and the target language independently and
completely
- To compare the two languages item-wise-item at all levels of their structure
- To arrive at the categories of similar features, partially similar features or
dissimilar features for the target language
- To arrive at principles of text preparation, test framing and target language

teaching in general