Metaphors in The Great Gatsby:A Cognitive Poetic Approach

DONG Fangyuan

Shanghai International Studies University,Shanghai,201620,China

[Abstract]This paper examines metaphors in The Great Gatsby with a cognitive poetic approach.It aims to address two research questions below:

[Keywords] metaphors;The Great Gatsby;cognitive poetics

I.Introduction

F.Scott Fitzgerald’sThe Great Gatsbylays claim to being one of the classics of American literature.In the last few decades,researchers both at home and abroad have conducted a multitude of studies on the masterpiece;nonetheless,few of them have touched upon its metaphors from the perspective of cognitive poetics.Based on a cognitive poetic approach,the present study attempts to examineThe Great Gatsbyby identifying the use of metaphors as one of its stylistic features.More specifically,it first reviews previous research on metaphors andThe Great Gatsby,then employs cognitive poetics as a theoretical perspective,and finally illustrates the vital role of metaphors in the appreciation of the novel.The main purpose of this study is to fully understand how metaphors are used inThe Great Gatsbyand how their presence facilitates themes and characterization of the fiction.

II.Review of literature

In this section,existing studies both at home and abroad are discussed concerning two aspects:metaphors andThe Great Gatsby.

1.Studies of metaphors

According to Lakoff and Johnson(1980),metaphors are not only ornamental figures of speech,but also used ubiquitously yet unconsciously in everyday language for reasoning and understanding abstract concepts.Conceptual metaphors are regarded as one of the most researched topics in cognitive poetics;hence,there has been a considerable body of scholarly work on their functions in poems(Xu,2015)and fictional prose(Shan,2016).

Meanwhile,multimodal metaphors have also been widely discussed in recent publications.For example,Gavins and Steen(2003:100)argue that metaphors can be expressed in different modalities “because its underlying reality is conceptual and so not confined to any single mode of expression”.Gibbons(2013)focuses on the usage of multimodal metaphors in contemporary experimental literature.

2.Studies of The Great Gatsby

F.Scott Fitzgerald’sThe Great Gatsbyhas attracted much attention from researchers and critics over the past few decades.For one thing,The Great Gatsbyis studied from the literary perspective,with emphases on themes(Dewalt,2016)and characterization(Gu,2007).For another,The Great Gatsbyis analyzed from the linguistic perspective,the major focal points being stylistic analysis(Liu,2010)and translation studies(Kérchy,2013).

From the above review,it is self-evident that remarkable achievements have been made in studies of metaphors andThe Great Gatsby,which are by and large examined separately.The joint study of metaphors andThe Great Gatsby,therefore,remains mostly unexplored,which casts light on the necessity of the current paper.

III.Theoretical approach

As a relatively new and emerging field,cognitive poetics enables the marriage between cognitive linguistics and literary criticism.Being precursors of this branch,Lakoffand Turner(1989)propound a theory and methodology for the analysis of poetic metaphors,and Turner(1996)highlights the role of literary thinking in cognitive science.Basic cognitive poetic principles are introduced by Stockwell(2002),whereas their application to literary texts is of special interest to scholars such as Gavins and Steen(2003),Zu(2008)and Feng(2011).

Building on previous work,this study endeavors to take a cognitive poetic approach in the exploration of metaphors inThe Great Gatsby.

IV.Conceptual metaphors and multimodal metaphors inThe Great Gatsby

The current section is primarily concerned with qualitative evaluations of metaphors inThe Great Gatsby.Conceptual metaphors and multimodal metaphors are both studied with regard to characters,objects and colors in the novel.

1.Conceptual metaphors concerning characters

As regards characters,conceptual metaphors are investigated from three angles:those concerning Gatsby,Daisy and Nick.

(1)Conceptual metaphor concerning Gatsby

(1)HEAVENS ARE BELONGINGS:

Something in his leisurely movements and the secure position of his feet upon the lawn suggested that it was Mr.Gatsby himself,come out to determine what share was his of our local heavens.

(Fitzgerald,1999:15-16)

Via the use of “share”,the conceptual metaphor assists in the characterization of the protagonist Gatsby,who materializes his dream by simply assuming that money could buy access to everything,including local heavens.

(2)Conceptual metaphor concerning Daisy

(2)VOICE IS MUSIC:

It was the kind of voice that the ear follows up and down,as if each speech is an arrangement of notes that will never be played again.

(Fitzgerald,1999:8)

There are several mentions of Daisy’s voice in the novel,each containing the metaphor VOICE IS MUSIC.Through the use of “notes”,it explains the inexhaustible charm of her voice,which attracts Gatsby the most and is also found in Jordan’s voice.

(3)Conceptual metaphor concerning Nick

(3)TIME IS A TRICK:

The instant her voice broke off,ceasing to compel my attention,my belief,I felt the basic insincerity of what she had said.It made me uneasy,as though the whole evening had been a trick of some sort to exact a contributory emotion from me.

(Fitzgerald,1999:13)

Nick is the narrator of the fiction,as he finds himself “within and without,simultaneously enchanted and repelled by the inexhaustible variety of life”(Fitzgerald,1999,p.24).Having spent an unpleasant evening at Tom and Daisy’s house,Nick feels somehow deceived and employs this conceptual metaphor to express his dissatisfaction.

2.Conceptual metaphors concerning objects

In terms of objects,conceptual metaphors are explored from three perspectives:those concerning houses,cars and parties.

(1)Conceptual metaphor concerning houses

(4)BUILDINGS ARE PEOPLE:

Their house was even more elaborate than I expected,a cheerful red-and-white Georgian colonial mansion,overlooking the bay.

(Fitzgerald,1999:6)

The word “overlooking” gives life to Tom and Daisy’s house,implying the “old money” class’ attitude toward the “new money” and exposing to readers spiritual crisis in the Jazz Age.

(2)Conceptual metaphor concerning cars

(5)CARS ARE ANIMALS:

On weekends his Rolls-Royce became an omnibus,bearing parties to and from the city between nine in the morning and long past midnight,while his station-wagon scampered like a brisk yellow bug to meet all trains.

(Fitzgerald,1999:26)

The word “scampered” reflects the large quantity of cars preparing for Gatsby’s parties;moreover,the conceptual metaphor demonstrates the uncivilized side of those cars,thus foreshadowing the subsequent occurrence of a car accident.

(3)Conceptual metaphor concerning parties

(6)PARTIES ARE WARS:

And on Mondays eight servants,including an extra gardener,toiled all dry with mops and scrubbing-brushes and hammers and garden-shears,repairing the ravages of the night before.

(Fitzgerald,1999:26)

The word “ravages” vividly captures how lavish,extravagant and wild Gatsby’s parties are.Furthermore,it serves to satirize the corrupted modern life lived by the Lost Generation,conveying the writer’s disillusionment with the American Dream.

3.Conceptual metaphors concerning colors

When it comes to colors,conceptual metaphors are elaborated in three aspects:those concerning the color white,the color yellow and the color green.

(1)Conceptual metaphor concerning the color white

(7)CITY IS FOOD:

Over the great bridge,with the sunlight through the girders making a constant flicker upon the moving cars,with the city rising up across the river in white heaps and sugar lumps all built with a wish out of non-olfactory money.

(Fitzgerald,1999:44)

White colors normally stand for purity,but sometimes denote a sense of hollowness and a state of drifting along,as shown in the depiction of natural scenes when Gatsby and Nick drive to the city.Here,the city is understood metaphorically in terms of food,which symbolizes the unpractical ideals pursued by people from lower class families.

(2)Conceptual metaphor concerning the color yellow

(8)ADVERTISEMENTS ARE PEOPLE:

They look out of no face,but,instead,from a pair of enormous yellow spectacles which pass over a nonexistent nose.

(Fitzgerald,1999:16)

These words are a portrayal of the eyes of Doctor T.J.Eckleburg in the valley of ashes.Although the color yellow is inextricably linked to personal wealth and prosperity,this conceptual metaphor draws upon “yellow spectacles” to foresee that an abandoned billboard will assume the role of God by witnessing numerous wrongdoings.

(3)Conceptual metaphor concerning the color green

(9)PLACES ARE PLANTS/HUMANS:

And as the moon rose higher the inessential houses began to melt away until gradually I became aware of the old island here that flowered once for Dutch sailors’ eyes - a fresh,green breast of the new world.

(Fitzgerald,1999:115)

The color green is often associated with Gatsby.To a large extent,the green light in the novel signifies the hope,ideals and dream Gatsby has been devoted to.A similar usage can be seen in the abovementioned example,where the “green breast” represents the Lost Generation’s incessant but futile struggle for new possibilities in a world full of unknown challenges.

4.Multimodal metaphors in The Great Gatsby

Multimodal metaphors inThe Great Gatsbyare collected exclusively from the book cover of the masterpiece(as shown in Figure 1)and analyzed concerning characters,objects and colors in the fiction.

Figure 1:The book cover of The Great Gatsby

(1)Multimodal metaphor concerning characters

Figure 1 demonstrates that most characters are standing or looking up;therefore,the metaphor POWER IS UP may function to indicate their social position - the upper class.

(2)Multimodal metaphor concerning objects

Objects(tables,chairs,flowers,decorations,etc.)in the picture are by and large arranged for the party,which hints at the extravagant lifestyle in the Jazz Age.

(3)Multimodal metaphor concerning colors

The two dominant colors are white and blue.The white color symbolizes purity,elegancy,hollowness and even cruelty of the upper class,while the color blue stands for Gatsby’s innermost feelings,encompassing faith,brevity,tolerance,disappointment and melancholy.

V.Conclusion

This study centers on a cognitive poetic analysis of metaphors inThe Great Gatsby.In light of preceding discussions and in answer to research questions,the following findings are made:

(1)Conceptual metaphors are used concerning characters,objects and colors inThe Great Gatsby,which account for themes and characterization in the novel.

(2)Multimodal metaphors are employed concerning characters,objects and colors inThe Great Gatsby,which facilitate themes and characterization in the fiction.

The results above suggest that the cognitive poetic approach to metaphors is of great significance to the interpretation ofThe Great Gatsbyand may shed light on further analysis of the fiction.However,metaphors studied in this paper are typical ofThe Great Gatsbybut not representative of literary works as a whole.Thus,future inquiries into this domain call for the expansion of data source.