The Metaphors of Emotion in English and Amharic: Taking off from the runway of the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis
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Date
2010-06
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
The core subject of this thesis is The Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis. The main focus of the
problem is that the Hypothesis overlooks the fact that language is the product of the cognitive
power and that different languages externalize the product of that cognitive power through their
native languages. It further overlooks the fact that language is manipulable. This study is
therefore directed at showing the supremacy of the mind over language, and that language
reflects thought and cannot be understood as influencing thought.
Moreover. the Hypothesis upholds the view that some languages can be inferior to others
in the expression of concepts expressible in certain other languages. This view may also be
unacceptable. My own main argument of the thesis also rests on the theory that thought, which
emanates from the power of the cognitive faculty, precedes the creation of language. Language
is thus shown to be the embodiment of thought.
To help me verify that language is the embodiment of thought, I was able to come by new
terms such as Fomits (phonetic matters), and Semits (sememic matters). I believe that these are
the core constituents of Language. It is pointed out further that, when compared with de
Saussur's linguistic Sign, the Signifier, and the Signified (de Saussure, 1966 pp. 11 f, 65f. lllf)
the use of Fomits and Semits can demystify the essence of language. Since this idea mainly
focuses on the relationship between language and thought, the views of other scholars are brought
in to get a much wider conception of this relationship and this is treated extensively in the
background.
The comparative method is then used to show that any given language may not be inferior
to any other and that it may not also influence thought. The metaphors of emotion of Amharic
and English are used for the purpose of the comparison. The data of the English metaphors, as
well as the theory of metaphor, are taken from K6vecses (2000, 2004). The Amharic data is
collected by Alo Mulusew Asrate. He is not only a native speaker of Amharic but has also a lot of
experience in teaching it at the Elementary, High School, and the University levels. The
reliability of the data was tested on native speakers of some faculty members of the University .
. Supported by literature review, my own New Hypothesis, which is made to replace the
Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis, and based on my theoretical framework, the metaphors of English and
Amharic are compared to prove that even the weak version or the Sapir-Wharf Hypothesis is
wrong. The thesis thus shows that what is universally possessed by humans is the knowledge of
associating Semits with Fomits to represent concrete and abstract referents. As shown in the body
of the thesis, what Semits are associated with what Fomits are freely determined by the cognitive
faculties of different native speakers. So, Fomits vary from language to language. Based on this,
a conclusion is then made showing that the experiences, natural and social environments, frames
of reference and the powers of cognition of the native speakers of different languages determine
what Semits are encapsulated into what Fomits and that language-the Semil- encapsulated-Fomitdoes
not influence thougbt.
Key words
The Sapir-Wholj Hypothesis, the Fon-native Process, the Manipulative Process, Fomits, Semits, the New Hypothesis, metaphors and rnetonymies of emotion
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Keywords
The Sapir-Wholj Hypothesis, The Fon-native Process, The Manipulative Process, Metaphors and rMetonymies of Emotion