The flower of the throat

Abstract

This article analyses metaphorical and metonymic expressions in the Zo’é language, with an emphasis on constructions related to parts of the human body. Examples of lexicalized metaphors and metonymies are examined, considering their morphological and morphosyntactic formation, as well as their respective pragmatic uses. The theoretical framework is grounded in the cultural dimensions of the metaphorical embodiment process (

; ; ; ; ). The study seeks to contribute with the Zo’é data to the question which metaphors, or which aspects of metaphorical knowledge emerge from the interaction between a common body schema and a shared physical world, and which arise from culturally specific bodily experiences, carried out in a particular natural and social environment. The research corpus was compiled from the Linguistic Support Manual for Health Care Services for the Zo’é People ( ) and the Manual of Semiological Questions in the Zo’é Language (Cabral & Sompré, in preparation). These data enabled the identification of metaphorical and metonymic patterns and mechanisms through which speakers of the Zo’é language name and conceptualize human body parts, thereby revealing the underlying conceptual mapping patterns involved.