Quantitative Study of the Metaphorical Projections of Zeit (Time) in Der Zauberberg by Thomas Mann

Abstract

In this article we will analyze, in a delimited corpus of narrative production,how the notion of time is organized in complex interaction with our cognitiveconceptual system. The analyzed corpus belongs to the novel Der Zauberbergby Thomas Mann, which is a masterpiece of this author. The aim is to mapthe metaphorical network that projects the concept TIME in Der Zauberberg.A metaphorical system refers to the network of metaphors that looms over aconcept to co-create it. Different authors have studied the organization ofthese metaphorical systems, especially in the domain of emotions (Barcelona,1986; Lakoff & Kövecses, 1987). In order to bring to light the metaphoricalsystem of Der Zauberberg, we have extracted the complete set of metaphori-cal expressions of TIME from the German original version of Der Zauber-berg. These expressions have been located and systematized according to theconceptual metaphor to which they belong. We have been categorizing thelinguistic expressions of the corpus of study, following the typology of Lakoffand Johnson (1980) and their developments. This study builds on relevantresearch questions and findings on how metaphorical networks work and alsohow they co-create a concept, which is, in this case, the concept of TIME (Zeit).