Chapter 3
“… all spirits, and are melted into air, into thin air”
Metaphorical connections in the history of English
This article uses data from Mapping metaphor with the Historical thesaurus to describe conceptual connections between the supernatural and other areas of the lexicon across the history of English. By discussing the cases of angels and evil in some detail, we also argue that the data and worldview presented here about the spirit world challenge the conventional concrete/abstract division found in metaphor theory, and propose an alternative.
Article outline
- 0.Christian Kay, 1940–2016
- 1.Mapping metaphorical connections
- 2.Examining metaphor through lexical overlap
- 3.1Q The supernatural
- 4.Angels real and imagined
- 5.Roots of evil
- 6.Conclusion
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Notes
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References