The Interactive Origin and the Aesthetic Modeling of Image-Schemas and Primary Metaphors

Abstract

According to the theory of conceptual metaphor, image-schemas and primary metaphors are preconceptual structures configured in human cognition, based on sensory-motor environmental activity. Focusing on the way both non- conceptual structures are embedded in early social interaction, we provide empirical evidence for the interactive and intersubjective ontogenesis of image-schemas and primary metaphors. We present the results of a multimodal image-schematic microanalysis of three interactive infant-directed performances (the composition of movement, touch, speech, and vocalization that adults produce for-and-with the infants). The microanalyses show that adults aesthetically highlight the image-schematic structures embedded in the multimodal composition of the performance, and that primary metaphors are also lived as embedded in these inter-enactive experiences. The findings allow corroborating that the psychological domains of cognition and affection are not in rivalry or conflict but rather intertwined in meaningful experiences.Laboratorio para el Estudio de la Experiencia Musica