Conceptual Metaphors of the Word “Family” in the Thai Social Context
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Abstract
This research aims to analyze the conceptual metaphor of the word “family” in the context of Thai society using the conceptual metaphor framework proposed by Lakoff and Johnson (Lakoff & Johnson, 1980). Data were collected from the Thai National Corpus of the Department of Linguistics, Chulalongkorn University. The texts containing the word “family” were sourced from 4,263 newspaper headlines and semi-academic writings. The conceptual metaphors were analyzed and interpreted descriptively and analytically. The findings revealed 1,304 instances of metaphors associated with the word “family,” reflecting four conceptual metaphors from the perspective of Thai language users: [family is space], [family is human], [family is objects], and [family is buildings]. These results highlight the conceptual system of Thai speakers regarding the word “family” from both positive and negative perspectives. From a positive perspective, the ideal family is perceived as warm and stable. Conversely, the negative perspective views the family as fragile, requiring care, support, and assistance.
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ข้อความรู้ใดๆ ตลอดจนข้อคิดเห็นใดๆ เป็นของผู้เขียนแต่ละท่านโดยเฉพาะ คณะมนุษยศาสตร์ มหาวิทยาลัยนเรศวร และกองบรรณาธิการวารสารมนุษยศาสตร์ฯ ไม่จำเป็นต้องเห็นพ้องด้วย
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