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Abstract
on gestures). The interaction of metonymy and metaphor shows that they are
not two opposite poles, but two parts of a continuum from literalness to
metaphor, as Radden (2002: 409) suggests.
Metonymy is understood here as an internal mapping of a subdomain
within the same experiential domain (Lakoff and Johnson 1980, Radden
2002; for the topic of multimodal metonymy per se, see Yu this volume).
While a metaphorical mapping bridges the distance between entities that are
experienced as belonging to two different domains, in metonymy a mapping
is connected to the mental highlighting or activation of one (sub)domain over
another (Barcelona 2002, Croft 1993). The target and source domains in a
metaphor establish symmetrical correspondences between different concepts
in a way that does not happen in metonymy. For instance, in the metaphor of
LOVE IS A JOURNEY the concepts in the target (lovers, love relationship, etc)
correspond to the concepts in the source (travelers, vehicle, etc) as Lakoff
(1993: 208) has shown. As Barcelona (2002) says, in metonymy this corre-
spondence is asymmetrical: “the metonymic source projects its conceptual
structure onto that of a target, not by means of a systematic matching of
counterparts, but by conceptually foregrounding the source and by back-
grounding the target (cf. Barcelona 2002: 226, italics in original). For in-
stance, in case 4, the front of the car stands for the whole car or even the
whole car company. The foregrounding of the source (the car front: bumper,
spoiler with company logo, head and turning lights) highlights features of the
car which the advertiser intends to underscore. In contrast with metaphor,
which can be either referential or predicative (e.g., Warren 2006), metonymy
has been considered to have mostly a referential function (Lakoff and Turner
1989: 103). Other functions can be “meaning extension” (cf. Taylor 2002:
325) or pragmatic inferencing (cf. Panther and Thornburg 2003).
The distinctions between metaphor and metonymy are fuzzy. An instance
of how metonymy and metaphorical mappings can overlap is found in a
discussion in Forceville (1996). In a printed advert a beer bottle is pictured
in a wine cooler, thus expressing the metaphor BEER IS CHAMPAGNE. This
metaphor is developed from the metonymy which connects both target and
source to a single domain: [alcoholic] drinks.2 Research on metonymy-
metaphor interaction has led to different typologies. Goossens (1990) was
the first to analyze their interaction in linguistic action expressions and cre-
ated the term “metaphtonymy.” This term included four types of combina-
tion in cases of meaning extension: “metaphor from metonymy,” “metonymy
within metaphor,” “demetonymisation inside a metaphor” and “metaphor
within metonymy.”
Interaction of multimodal metaphor and metonymy 99
3. Case studies
2 3
4 5
6 7
Ahora más
versiones
Now more
versions
8 9
…Renault 11
10 11
Figure 1. Fasa Renault 1986 01 Salto Renault 11 “Salto” ‘Jump.’
102 Eduardo Urios-Aparisi
both domains is the power of the car’s engine (and metonymically the whole
car), and the power of the athlete who can jump very far. Just before the
jump, the car appears completely and the male voice-over says: “Now more
versions…” The verbal mode explicates the target of the commercial: the
new properties and more powerful motor of a car model.
The attributes by which both domains are cued constrain the metaphori-
cal mappings by highlighting those features which are relevant for the target
domain and the intention of the advertiser. Although both source and target
of the metaphor are identified by the montage of images of the athlete and
the car, the voice-over further anchors the commercial’s message by clarify-
ing the target domain of the metaphor.
The montage of the images of the athlete and the car identify both target
and source of the metaphor, and verbal anchorage further clarifies the target
of the metaphor. The potential mappings in the metaphor CAR IS PERSON are
limited to the ones the advertiser is interested in activating by creating meto-
nymical visual correspondences between the domains and by the verbal mo-
dality naming those conceptual features.
Submode 2: Soft
colors and low
modality.
SOFT COLOR IS
WARMTH
The visual mode could be divided into several submodes such as color or
movement. As mentioned above, the submodes are building blocks of each
mode (cf. Stöckl 2004: 14). The movement of the tea tag acts out the way a
104 Eduardo Urios-Aparisi
hypnotizer’s watch moves. The soft colors in a gold and brown hue and the
slightly out of focus image represent the view of the person who is falling
under the spell of the watch. The hue and colors are stereotypically warm
and thus represent the feeling of wellness that the product is supposed to
give and associate to the metaphor SOFT COLOR IS WARMTH and, thus, to the
metaphor AFFECTION IS WARMTH which can be found in the context of emo-
tional relationships (cf. Kövecses 2000: 93) and, if that is the case, the color
submode would integrate experiences of friendship and emotion with the
product. The visual mode also activates the sound mode with the speaker’s
hushed tonality which is similar to the color and hues of the image. The
modes and their association with different components in the metonymy and
metaphor in this commercial are listed in table 2.
In conclusion, the metaphor is elaborated through a complex interaction
of modal techniques. Each mode and submode associates the product with
the main metaphor TEA TAG IS A HYPNOTIZER’S WATCH and relates it to
sensations of warmth, relaxation and wellness.
This commercial’s point is not to advertise any new model, but it is a public
announcement and praise for the safety fixtures and reliability of all the cars
of that brand. Therefore, it is a kind of corporate advertising with a public
service tone, most likely aired around a time of high traffic and traveling, as
the voice-over clearly implies: “En estos días mucha gente saldrá a la carret-
era…” (“These days a lot of people will go on the highway…”). The com-
mercial’s design is very simple: the camera focuses on the front grill of a
Volvo car from the 240 series which was developed in the 1970s.3
of the car is a complex image. In it we can see the frame of the car with its
bulky design, the big bumpers and lights, the license plate with the word
Volvo in blue capitals with a white background (the official typeface of the
brand; Egyptian according to http://www.volvoclub.org.uk /history/volvo_
logo.shtml) and the logo which is located on top of the radiator. These two
elements are symbolic metonymies of the product and they have metonymi-
cal (LOGO FOR PRODUCT) as well as other meanings (on logos as multimodal
metaphors, see Koller this volume).4 The image represents the identity of the
corporation in three aspects: the product, the corporate signs and symbols,
and the main features they want to associate themselves with: reliability,
strength and safety.
Table 3. Metonymies and metaphor in Case 3
Figure Components Visual Words Sound
Metonymy 1 TARGET Car
PART FOR SOURCE Front of the car
WHOLE
Front of the car
with logo and
official typeface
Metonymy 2 TARGET Car’s reliability
PART FOR and safety
WHOLE SOURCE Front of the car Changing
Changing weather
weather condi- conditions
tions and sounds
associated
to moving
car
Metaphor TARGET Car
SOURCE Person:
Advice to a
driver by the
voice-over
Metonymy 3 TARGET Company
PART FOR SOURCE “Intelligent” car,
WHOLE Logo and official
typeface
106 Eduardo Urios-Aparisi
After the first image of the car, the camera pulls back and the “front of the
car” moves through all kinds of weather and driving conditions smoothly and
surely, and this driving is accompanied by metonymical sounds and images
which can be associated with these driving conditions and to passengers and
other persons: the sound of children getting in the car, the door closing, the
noise of the car engine, the rain, thunder and snow (also visible in the im-
ages), the turn signal noise and image, the noise and the image of a ball sud-
denly bouncing in front of the car, the car horn and brakes.
On the one hand, the images are metonymies of the car as a whole, per-
haps referentially highlighting the car’s strength, sturdiness and immutability
towards the changes in the road conditions. Also, as mentioned above, the
color submodality would also contribute to these meanings. On the other
hand, the language used does not refer to the product at all. The male voice-
over addresses the consumer directly by giving advice about how to drive
when there is high traffic during vacation time (the images suggest that it is
winter). The words insist that the driver be sensitive, drive safely and pru-
dently, and focus on the importance of the family (referenced metonymically
as “carga” or “load”) and on arriving safely (which implies that it is better to
arrive safely than fast).
As we can observe, this commercial features good examples of meto-
nymic references in various modes. Metonymy, in this case, is mostly refer-
ential with respect to the car, its passengers, and the weather and driving
conditions, but this metonymy can create further implicit meanings by the
audience’s knowledge of car-safety and brands. Besides these components,
there is one obvious absence in the visual representations: that of the driver
who is directly addressed in the words. Whereas the commercial features
various metonymies, the voice-over’s address predicates of the car some of
the properties which generally are associated with a person, the driver of the
car: sensitivity and prudence. Therefore, as part of the creation of the corpo-
rate image, the car seems to be personified (CAR IS PERSON). A personifica-
tion is a kind of ontological metaphor in which the target is understood in
human terms (Lakoff and Johnson 1980). It can be explained along the lines
of Lakoff and Turner’s (1989: 195) discussion of metaphors like PERSONS
ARE ANIMALS (Achilles is a lion) within the cultural model of the GREAT
CHAIN METAPHOR. According to this metaphor, attributes and behaviors are
associated with animate creatures within a hierarchical scale: “the Great
Chain is a scale of forms of being – human, animal, plant, inanimate object
– and consequently a scale of the properties that characterize forms of being
– reason, instinctual behavior, biological function, physical attributes, and so
on” (Lakoff and Turner 1989: 167). In this commercial, we understand the
Interaction of multimodal metaphor and metonymy 107
perspective on the bootie changes and the camera shows a close-up of the
thread of the bootie slowing down. The source has been identified by the
visual mode while the target is in the verbal mode throughout the commercial
until the final sentence: “no vivas pendiente de un hilo” (“don’t live hanging
by a thread”) which is made literal in the image by showing the last thread of
the bootie. The final expression is a conventional metaphor in Spanish and
returns to some extent to the first metaphor: MAKING A DECISION IS PULLING
A THREAD. The commercial leaves the opportunity to reach other conclu-
sions to the audience.
10. Planifícate
Make plans
Figure 4. “Patuco” (“baby bootie”) (1988) Ministerio de Sanidad (Health Depart-
ment, Spanish Government). Advertising company: Vitruvio.
Interaction of multimodal metaphor and metonymy 109
In table 4, I have summarized the metonymy and the metaphors of this com-
mercial. It is an emotionally charged commercial. The bootie, out of all the
possible pieces of baby clothing, is readily associated with a baby (older
children do not wear booties); also, it shows with more immediacy the shape
of the body, and, finally, it has immediate connections to life and movement:
crawling and walking. The metonymy motivates the metaphor, but also maps
other meanings to the target of the metonymy (the baby). This process to-
gether with the music (the so called Brahms’ Lullaby) creates another emo-
tional layer to the commercial by reliving the decision making process in the
enactment of undoing a bootie.
Table 4. Metonymy and metaphor in case 4.
SOURCE UNDOING A
BOOTIE
SOURCE UNKITTING A
BABY-BOOTIE
4. Conclusions
the colors can be associated not only with the difficult driving conditions but
also with the strength and endurance of iron or steel. While in case 4, the
choice of yellow in the color of the baby bootie intentionally avoids colors
like blue or pink, which are gender-specific. The diffused light of the back-
ground highlights the baby bootie and its dramatic undoing. In the case of
metaphor, they include meanings that aim at supporting the visual consis-
tency and the identification with those features which are stereotypical of the
domain.
In brief, I would conclude:
1. Television commercials are dynamic texts in which all modes can con-
tribute to multimodal metaphors either in the source domain or the target
domain.
2. In order to understand how metaphor creates meaning, metaphor needs
to be studied within its embeddedness in the context of the commercial and
the persuasive functions of advertising.
3. The interactions of metaphor and metonymy show that layering of rhe-
torical figures is not random, but follows clear cognitive patterns which re-
strict and define their design and persuasion. As seen in case 2, the meton-
ymy has a double function: represent the target for the metaphor in a way
that can be realistic for the metaphorical representation, and motivate the
message of the commercial. Once metonymical correspondences are mapped,
the commercial can create additional metaphorical mappings. Also, meton-
ymy can identify those entities which are to be transferred from the two do-
mains, as in case 1.
4. As shown, a metaphor expands the meaning by associating new do-
mains with the original metaphor or metonymy. It creates further imagery
that can trigger more emotional or intellectual associations with the product.
5. The grounding of the meaning of a commercial in the viewer’s knowl-
edge and experience can be accomplished by various means. One of them is
metonymy, and this is consonant with general views on this figure. Meton-
ymy is considered closer to literalness in the literalness-metaphor continuum
(Radden 2002 and Dirven 2002), and is frequently used in realist art (Jakob-
son 1971 [1956]). In narrative it can highlight conventional belief, structure
episode development and, thus, help interpretation (cf. Pankhurst 1997). In
the commercials, the metonymy activates or highlights an aspect of the real-
ity of the product. This feature can be recognized by the audience most eas-
ily or can be productive to provoke implicit positive meanings. As shown, it
also can constrain the amount of possible correspondences in a metaphorical
mapping.
112 Eduardo Urios-Aparisi
Acknowledgments
I would like to thank Charles Forceville, Brian Patrick, John Bardem and Cristin
Siebert for their insightful comments on, and thorough revisions of, earlier ver-
sions of this chapter.
Interaction of multimodal metaphor and metonymy 113
Notes
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