A Study on Metaphor and Metonymy of Hand

*
Hyun Jung Ahn․Yeon Jin Kwon 1)

(Pusan National University)

Hyun Jung Ahn․Yeon Jin Kwon (2007), A Study on Metaphor and

Metonymy of Hand. Journal of Language Sciences 14-2, 195～215.
Metaphorical and metonymical expressions of body-part terms have been
understood in light of cognitive linguistics. From the cognitive linguistics on
the conceptual metaphors and metonymy, studies on body-part terms have
proliferated. Especially, We tried to examine the body-part term, hand, because
there are relatively lots of idiomatic expressions and studies. However, since
the studies on hand have focused primarily on the most common idiomatic
expressions, they have been somewhat limited in their scope, and are unable
to account for almost all kinds of idiomatic expressions. Therefore we suggest
that the addition of new standpoints for metaphors and metonymy of hand be
necessary to account for the wealth of expressions that cannot be understood
solely on the basis of previous approaches. In metaphor of hand, orientational
metaphor and structural mataphor have been added to the previous standpoint.
Also, in metonymical expressions of hand, a few of standards of metonymy of
hand have included. A variety of newly added idiomatic standpoints of
metaphor and metonymy of hand would be helpful to understand many
expressions of hand. (Pusan National University)

Key Words: conceptual metaphor, metonymy, cognitive linguistics, body-part

terms, hand, idioms

1. Introduction

Idiomatic expressions in which metaphors and metonymys are used

imply words uniquely used in specific group of people. The idiom is a
word which consists of two or more words but the meaning is totally
different from the inner individual word(Hockeet 1958). In idioms used
in our lives, the most frequent and important parts are metaphors and

*
Corresponding author
196 언어과학 제14권 2호 (2007. 6)

metonymys. Namely, we use metaphor and metonymy everytime we

speak, often without realizing it. In the past, they have been
considered stylistic devices in literature. But Reddy(1979) maintained
that our language spoken everyday is mainly metaphoric. Lakoff and
Johnson(1980) have also suggested that they are problems not only in
language but also in the human conceptual system. Sweetser(1990)
says that even the ordinary words we use in our everyday lives
contain conceptual metaphors that we can isolate by looking into their
etymologies. Metaphor and metonymy are easy methods to explain
something by conceptualized mapping, and a result from conceptual
thinking by person. Even though the two are mainly similar,
metonymy is somewhat different from the metaphor. Barcelona(2003a)
points out that in the course of conceptual mapping, the two domains
are based on up-and-down relation. Linguists were considering
metaphor and metonymy through a cognitive linguistic point-of-view.
We made a study of hand in English, because the hand is the most
frequently used term in body-part terms.
We claim, however, that the previous standards and approaches for
these expressions cannot include many expressions. This means that
in spite of many idioms by hand, the standards are limited. In this
paper, therefore, we try to include some more idiomatic expressions in
light of cognitive linguistic standpoint. We add both standards and
expressions which can be easily understood by the new standards.

2. Metaphor and Metonymy

2.1. Metaphor

Cognitive linguistics holds that language is part of a cognitive

system which comprises perception, emotions, categorization,
abstraction process, and reasoning(Barcelona 2003a, Barcelona 2003b,
 A Study on Metaphor and Metonymy of Hand 197

Dirven and Pörings 2002, Gibbs 1999, Haser 2005, Panther and Radden
1999). Lakoff(1987) claims that conceptual metaphor is defined as a
cross-domain mapping in the conceptual system, and metaphors are
expressions that are the surface realization of such a cross-domain
mapping. Thus, metaphor is an important instrument which makes us
understand abstract things well by more specific ones.
Lakoff and Johnson(1980) classified metaphor into three groups;
structural metaphor, orientational metaphor and ontological metaphor. A
structural metaphor is a metaphor in which one concept is understood
and expressed in terms of another structured, sharply defined concept.
Here is an example of the Love-as-Journey structural metaphor(Lakoff
and Johnson 1980: 44-45).

(1) a. Look how far we've come.

b. We'll just have to go our separate ways.
c. We can't turn back now.
d. I don't think this relationship is going anywhere.

The abstract concept of love is expressed through more specific

concept journey, since their inner structures are similar.
Orientation metaphor is that most of them have to do with spatial
orientation: up-down, in-out, front-back, central-peripheral. These
spatial orientations arise from the fact that we have bodies of the sort
we have and that they function as they do in our physical
environment(Lakoff and Johnson 1980: 14).

(2) HAPPY IS UP; SAD IS DOWN

a. I'm feeling up.
b. That boosted my spirits.
c. Don't be so cast down.
d. You're in high spirits. (Lakoff and Johnson 1980: 15)
198 언어과학 제14권 2호 (2007. 6)

Physical basis of expressions in (2) is drooping posture or heads go

along with sadness and depression, erect posture with a positive
emotional state like happiness.
Just as orientational metaphors, so our experiences with physical
objects provide the basis for an extraordinarily wide variety of
ontological metaphors. Ontological metaphors serve various purposes,
and the various kinds reflect the kinds of purposes served.

(3) INFLATION IS AN ENTITY

a. Inflation is lowering our standard of living.
b. If there's much more inflation, we'll never survive.
c. We need to combat inflation.
(Lakoff and Johnson 1980: 26)

In (3), viewing inflation as an entity allows us to refer to it,

quantify it, identify a particular aspect of it. With our experiences or
specific and familiar things, abstract subjects can be expressed.

2.2. Metonymy

Like metaphor, metonymy is principally a way of conceiving of one

thing in therms of another, but it has primarily a referential function.
It allows us to use one entity to stand for another. It also serves the
function of providing understanding.

(4) a. She's just a pretty face.

b. There are an awful lot of faces out there in the audience.
c. We need some new faces around here.

We have in our conceptual system special cases of the metonymy

THE PART FOR THE WHOLE, namely, THE FACE FOR THE
PERSON. Metonymic concepts are also systematic, as can be seen in
 A Study on Metaphor and Metonymy of Hand 199

the following representative examples.

(5) Kinds of metonymy

A. THE PART FOR THE WHOLE

a. We don't hire long-hairs.
b. The Giants need a stronger arm in right field.
c. We need a couple of strong bodies for our team.
B. PRODUCE FOR PRODUCT
a. He bought a Ford.
b. He's got a Picasso in his den.
c. I hate to read Heidegger.
C. OBJECT USED FOR USER
a. The gun he hired wanted fifty grand.
b. We need a better glove at third base.
c. The buses are on strike.
D. CONTROLLER FOR CONTROLLED
a. Nixon bombed Hanoi.
b. Napoleon lost at Waterloo.
c. A Mercedes rear-ended me.
E. INSTITUTION FOR RESPONSIBLE
a. The Army wants to reinstitute the draft.
b. The Senate thinks abortion is immoral.
c. I don't approve of the government's actions.
F. THE PLACE FOR THE INSTITUTION
a. The White House isn't saying anything.
b. Washington is insensitive to the needs of the people.
c. Hollywood isn't what it used to be.
G. THE PLACE FOR THE EVENT
a. Remember the Alamo.
b. Pearl Harbor still has an effect on our foreign policy.
c. Watergate changed our politics.
200 언어과학 제14권 2호 (2007. 6)

Long-hairs, a stronger arm, and bodies in (5A) mean people with

long-hair, a stronger arm, and bodies. This metonymy is a typical
metonymy. All of the examples in (5B) show that the products are
used to indicate the producers or composers. The metonymy in (5C)
shows that objects are replaced for the users. In (5D), a group is
replaced by its leader or representative. Nixon in (5Da) means the
group leaded by Nixon, Napoleon in (5Db) is a group of soldier by
Napoleon. The expressions in (5E) show that the institution directs its
responsible people. Army in (5Ea) is a person in charge of the army.
The metonymical expressions in (5F) tells us that places are used to
indicate the institution. Hollywood in (5Fc) is just a name of a place
but it means the movie industry in the U.S. If a big event happens,
many people remember the place. From this, the metonymy of (5G) is
conceptualized. For example, Pearl Harbor in (5Gb) is a war which
occurred in the place of Pearl Harbor.

3. Metaphor and Metonymy of hand

In this section, we review expressions of metaphor and metonymy

of the word hand on the basis of the many expressions that use this
term, and on the basis of the manifold literature that exists on this
term. Next we suggest to add new standpoints to account for
metaphor and metonymy of hand.

3.1. Metaphor of hand

Over the past years, researches into the body-part terms for hand
have been carried out and the metaphorical standards for
hand-expressions by function, shape, and position of hands have been
divided. The previous studies on metaphors of hand primarily relate to
the ontological metaphor, THE HAND IS A CONTAINER(Boers 2000,
 A Study on Metaphor and Metonymy of Hand 201

Cuyskens 2001, Hanks 2004).

Hand is metaphorically similar to 'container' in its shape and
function. Numerous studies have examined this metaphor, and the
related statement THE HAND IS A CONTAINER; SOMETHING IN
THE HAND IS ENTITY. In what follows, we briefly summarize the
metaphorical standards of hand in the previous studies.

(6) Ontological metaphor of hand: THE HAND IS A CONTAINER.

a. HOLDING IN THE HAND IS POSSESSION.
b. HOLDING IN THE HAND IS CONTROL.
c. HOLDING IN THE HAND IS COOPERATION.
d. HOLDING IN THE HAND IS ATTENTION.

The shape and function of hand are similar to the container. Like the
container, we put something in our hand and bend our fingers around
it. Almost all of the previous studies have dealt with the ontological
metaphor of hand, THE HAND IS A CONTAINER; SOMETHING IN
THE HAND IS ENTITY. Let us look at the examples.

(7) HOLDING IN THE HAND IS POSSESSION.

a. The pirates could keep any treasure they laid hands on.
b. How can I go to Seoul empty-handed?
c. The store has plenty of merchandise on hand for sale.

In (7a) lay hands on something means "get something", in (7b)

empty-handed "have nothing", and in (7c) on hand "have something".

(8) HOLDING IN THE HAND IS CONTROL.

a. Put the matter in the hands of the lawyer.
b. While their parents away, the children got out of hand giving
the baby sitter hard time.
c. I want to take in hand in the new project.
202 언어과학 제14권 2호 (2007. 6)

We can think that something in our hand is our own, and further we
can even control it. Abstract concept of 'control' is easily
conceptualized by the specific action of holding in hands. In (8a), in
the hands of someone means "in someone's control", get out of hand
in (8b) "get out of control", and take in hand in (8c) "have control".

(9) HOLDING IN THE HAND IS COOPERATION.

a. Korea and America hold hands again.
b. We have to go along the street hand in hand.
c. They work hand in glove in time of crisis.

The action of holding hands of each other implies the two persons
have a positive relationship. Hold hands in (9a) is "cooperate with
each other", hand in hand in (9b) means "accompanying each other" or
"closely connected", and hand in glove in (9c) implies "work together".

(10) HOLDING IN THE HAND IS ATTENTION.

a. Do they have anything to do with the matter in hand?
b. Could you just concentrate on the job in hand?

In hand in (10a-b) means "in attention". When we have something in

our hand, we are usually awakened our interest in what we hold.
Although well-categorized standards for explaining hand expressions
have been suggested, they are not sufficient for a number of reasons.
Of course, the following reasons are deeply related to the current
idiomatic expressions.
First, the ontological metaphor of hand, HAND IS A CONTAINER,
cannot be tenable to account for the following examples.1)

1) The examples cited in this paper are drawn from Collins Cobuild Dictionary
of Idioms(2000), Essence Dictionary of English Idioms(2000), and YBM
English-Korean Dictionary(2004).
 A Study on Metaphor and Metonymy of Hand 203

(11) a. He tried to fix the car, but threw up his hands.

b. Hands up! As you know, you cannot beat me.
c. He won the championship hands down.
d. Our team is expected to win hands down at the final game.
e. I would read any book I could lay my hands on.
f. We can't put our hands on enough of the clothes.

All of these idiomatic expressions are expressions of the direction

and position of hand. This means that the ontological metaphor THE
HAND IS A CONTAINER cannot explain them well because they
cannot be understood by virtue of the ontological metaphor of hand by
itself. These expressions are, instead, examples of the orientational
metaphor of hand. Namely, another way to understand them is needed.
Second, the ontological metaphor of hand cannot include the
expressions of the structural metaphors of hand. Consider the
following examples:

(12) a. The hands of a clock told me it was already eleven o'clock.

b. Watch out! The crab's hand is approaching you.
c. You have to grasp the hand of a gun smoothly.

Hands in all the sentences above are not human hands but parts of
other things. This means THE HAND IS A CONTAINER metaphor
cannot explain all the meanings of these expressions of hand.
Third, as was discussed in the previous section, there are, according
to Lakoff and Johnson(1980), three kinds of conceptual metaphors:
ontological, structural, and orientational. Metaphorical expressions of
hand can be understood in the context of these types of metaphors.
To deal with these potential problems, we suggest two additional
types of metaphors in more detail in what follows, expanding on the
work in the previous approaches on the subject which have failed to
take into sufficient account on structural and orientational metaphors.
204 언어과학 제14권 2호 (2007. 6)

The first standpoint of orientational metaphor that we would add is

SURRENDERING ONESELF IS UP.

(13) SURRENDERING ONESELF IS UP.

a. He tried to fix the car, but threw up his hands and walked
away.
b. Hands up! Or I will shoot you.
c. I already put my hands up, so please forgive me.

As soon as we raise up our hands, we drop the weapons in our

hands like a gun or a knife. This implies "surrendering"2). The
expressions in (13a) and (13b), throw up one's hands and hands up
mean "give up", "surrender", or even further "give up all hope". The
basic expression for "abandonment" in English is, give up in which
the adverb up is used. From the viewpoint of orientational metaphor,
SURRENDERING ONESELF IS UP, we can understand the
expressions in (13a) and (13b).
The second standpoint of orientational metaphor to be added is
BEING EASY IS DOWN.

(14) BEING EASY IS DOWN.

a. He won the championship hands down.
b. Our team is expected to win hands down at the final game.

We feel comfortable when we put our hands down after putting

them up for a long time. To put hands down is far easier than to
raise them. This action can be imaged in this metaphor in (14). In
English, the activity of putting hands down usually implies "easy". It
also means "win easily without exertion" or "attain", as in the case of
the expressions hands down in (14a-b). This metaphor is frequently

2) Here, hand stands for hand and arm. That is metonymy of THE PART FOR
THE WHOLE.
 A Study on Metaphor and Metonymy of Hand 205

used in many English expressions.

The third standpoint of orientational metaphor to be added is
FINDING SOMETHING IS ON SOMETHING.

(15) FINDING SOMETHING IS ON SOMETHING.

a. I would read any book I could lay my hands on.
b. She's only marrying him to get her hands on his money.
c. We can't put our hands on enough of the clothes.

Finding out about something, we usually say that we have put our
hands on it. Therefore, the expression of putting hands on something
means "make contact with something" and further to "find out
something, attain, or succeed". The expression lay one's hands on in
(15a) means "find", get one's hands on and put one's hands on in
(15b-c) mean "attain". These expressions are also orientational
metaphors; hand is on the upper side.
Next, let us consider the structural metaphor of hand. Hands in
(12a-c) are not person's hands but are parts of other things. A hand
is very familiar to us, and then many parts of other things are called
"hand" easily. This is what is known as an individual metaphor. Hand
is "a stylus of a clock" in (12a), "a claw of a crab" in (12b), and "a
handle of a gun" in (12c). Although these examples are not exactly
the case of mapping from specific items to abstract ones, we can say
that the source domain "human hand" is mapped to the target domain
"other parts of things". The cognitive mapping from the source domain
to the target domain in (12a) is as shown in (16) below.

(16) cognitive mapping from source domain(human hand) to target

domain(a stylus of a clock)
206 언어과학 제14권 2호 (2007. 6)

domain target domain: stylus of a

source domain: hand
aspect clock
position in the middle of a body in the middle of a clock
function indicate direction or position indicate time
It moves /Motion is visible.
It moves. /Motion is visible.
/ It is one of the most
role /It is one of the most important
important and movable parts
and movable parts of a body
of a clock
disorder Injury Disorder

The hand of a clock can be a conceptual mapping from the source

domain of the human hand. The two have in common position,
function, role, and disorder. We can think that, for this reason, the
hand is easily used in many cases which are not parts of a person.
To wrap up, conceptual metaphor of hand can be divided into these
three kinds of metaphor by adding orientational metaphor and
structural metaphor, and can thus include all of the other metaphorical
idiomatic expressions. Thus we summarize all of the standpoints of
the conceptual metaphors of hand as follows.

(17) Conceptual metaphors of hand

expressions of metaphor metaphorical expressions of hand
· THE HAND IS A CONTAINER
- HOLDING IN THE HAND IS POSSESSION
ontological metaphor - HOLDING IN THE HAND IS CONTROL
- HOLDING IN THE HAND IS COOPERATION
- HOLDING IN THE HAND IS ATTENTION
· SURRENDERING ONESELF IS UP
orientational metaphor · BEING EASY IS DOWN
· FINDING SOMETHING IS ON SOMETHING
- HANDS OF A CLOCK, CRAB'S HANDS,
structural metaphor
LOBSTER'S HAND, THE HAND OF A GUN
 A Study on Metaphor and Metonymy of Hand 207

3.2. Metonymy of hand

Similarly, there are a lot of metonymical expressions of hand and

studies to go along with these expressions. In the studies of idiomatic
expressions of hand, metonymical expressions are more than
metaphorical expressions. The previous studies for metonymy of hand
(Boers 2000, Cuyskens 2001) have well-divided standpoints of
metonymy. In what follows, we review a few of these expressions.

(18) Metonymy of hand

a. THE HAND STANDS FOR PERSON.
b. THE HAND STANDS FOR PERSONALITY/ EMOTION.
c. THE HAND STANDS FOR ACTIVITY.
d. THE HAND STANDS FOR SKILL.
e. THE HAND STANDS FOR CONTROL / INFLUENCE.
f. THE HAND STANDS FOR GIVING.
g. THE HAND STANDS FOR SIDE.

First of all, let us consider the first case (18a).

(19) THE HAND STANDS FOR PERSON.

a. That gentleman is my father's right hand man.
b. We have difficulty in working because we are short of hands.
c. The book travelled from hand to hand.

This is one of the most frequently used metonymys of hand. This

is even found not only in English but in other languages like Korea
n3). This metonymy is a typical metonymy of THE PART FOR THE
WHOLE. Right hand in (19a) means "a loyal or believable person". In

3) Ku jibeun son-i guihaeseo ku pumonim-un agi-lul gajigi wonhanta.

(The parents want to bear a child, because the family needs hands.)
In this example of Korean, the hand(son) is used to mean a person.
208 언어과학 제14권 2호 (2007. 6)

this metonymy, the right side implies "good and favorable things", and
hand directly indicate "person". Hands in (19b-c) are also used to
mean "person".
Let us consider the second case (18b).

(20) THE HAND STANDS FOR PERSONALITY/ EMOTION.

a. Politicians should be clean-handed and live an honest life.
b. We try to treat with open hands out of pity for him.
c. Brian welcomed me with glad hands.

Even further from the metonymy of (20), hand means the

personality or emotion of the owner. In (20a), clean-handed means "be
moral". Open hands and glad hands in (20b-c) imply "open mind" and
"glad mind".
The following examples illustrate the third case (18c).

(21) THE HAND STANDS FOR ACTIVITY.

a. Brian has studied hard and put the last hand to the test.
b. When I cried over my much work, he gave his hand to me.
c. She is so brave that she takes her life in her hands
traveling to Africa.

It is easily thought that hand stands for the activity by the hand.
The last hand in (21a) means "the last trial", hand in (21b) is "work",
and hand in (21c) is "traveling".
The following examples illustrate the fourth case (18d).

(22) THE HAND STANDS FOR SKILL.

a. My mother is a dab hand at making cookies.
b. He is notorious for running the company with a heavy hand.
c. I am no hand at playing the piano.
 A Study on Metaphor and Metonymy of Hand 209

People have a special skill usually in hand-related work. Namely,

among our body-part, we have many skills especially with our hands.
From this concept, hand is widely used to indicate "skill" or "ability".
A dab hand and a heavy hand in (22a-b) mean "a dab skill", and hand
in (22c) means "skill" or "ability".
Let us consider the fifth case (18e).

(23) THE HAND STANDS FOR CONTROL/ INFLUENCE.

a. The slaves were in his hand.
b. New information about the terror attack came to hand this
week and the police can carry out more widespread
investigation.
c. Our workers tend to grow lazy if they are given a free
hand.

Holding something in our hands, it naturally belongs to us, and we

can even further control it. This conceptualized process can make the
metonymy in (23). Hands in (23a-c) all mean "control" or "influence".
The sixth case (18f) is supported by the following examples.

(24) THE HAND STANDS FOR GIVING.

a. All the students must hand in a report every other week.
b. She put the food into bowls and handed them around to us.
c. I need a person to help me hand out these leaflets on the
street.

The action of giving is one of the most important role of hand.

This metonymy is not difficult to think of. Especially, hands in this
metonymy in (24a-c) is used as verb, "giving".
The seventh case (18g) is supported by the following examples.
210 언어과학 제14권 2호 (2007. 6)

(25) THE HAND STANDS FOR SIDE

a. You have to get in the right-hand and go straight.
b. You can across the street because no traffic is on either
hand of the road.
c. The east of Korea is warm. The west, on the other hand, is
somewhat cold.

Hand or finger are often used to point at something. From this,

hand indirectly means direction or side. Also we can figure out that
hands are located in "side" of our body. Hands, anyway, can be
metonymically used to mean "side". Likewise, hands in (25a-c) can be
replaced with "side".
As we have seen so far, hand is usually metonymically used in
idiomatic expressions, such as a person who works with their hands,
an activity that is done by hands, and etc.
Aside from these idiomatic expressions, however, there are many
other idioms and metonymy of hand. These expressions cannot be
accounted for by the previous approaches.

(26) a. With the final exam at hand, how can you go to the movie?
b. We need reliable English dictionary constantly close at hand.
c. I heard the news at second hand from John.
d. Raise your hand if you know the answer.
e. The thieves bound them hand and foot.
f. I had a hard time with my homework, but I finally got a
hand with it from Sean.
g. Only if you ask, there are many persons who will bear
hand.
h. Would you like a hand carrying these luggages?

In these expressions in (26), all hands are used in other meanings

metonymicaly. They, of course, may be somewhat understood by the
 A Study on Metaphor and Metonymy of Hand 211

previous standpoints above, but the meanings are not clear. This
means that they need to be caught by other metonymical expressions.
Therefore, to account for the potential problems on metonymy of
hand, we suggest that a few standpoints of metonymy of hand should
be added. The first is the following.

(27) THE HAND STANDS FOR CLOSE DISTANCE/ROUTE.

a. With the final exam at hand, how can you go out tonight?
b. We need reliable English dictionary constantly close at hand.
c. I heard the news at second hand from John.

The first standpoint is THE HAND STANDS FOR CLOSE

DISTANCE/ROUTE. We can easily think that when we stretch out
our hands to approach something, it is at a close distance. In this
case, we may consider hand as an instrument of distance. In other
words, what is metonymical in these expressions is the fact that
nearness is conceptualized by hand. Also, when we give directly
something to someone, we use our hands. Direct activity is used as
"at first hand" and indirect activity as "at second hand". In (27a-b),
hand is used to indicate both distance of space and distance of time.
Examples are the expressions at hand, close at hand, and on hand. As
is the case in (27c), hand is used as a standard of process or route;
at first hand, and at second hand.

(28) THE HAND STANDS FOR RELATIVE HAND-PARTS.

a. Raise your hand if you know the answer.
b. The thieves bound them hand and foot.

Hand in (28) is used to indicate parts of the hand or relative

hand-parts of body. For example, hand in (28a) is not just the hand
but the entire arm including the hand. Also in (28b), the thieves
bound the arms and hands. These are examples of the metonymy,
212 언어과학 제14권 2호 (2007. 6)

THE PART FOR THE WHOLE. With these standpoints, the idiomatic
expressions in (26d-e) can be well explained.

(29) THE HAND STANDS FOR HELPING.

a. I had a hard time with my homework, but I finally got a
hand with it from Sean.
b. Only if you ask, there are many persons who will bear hand.
c. When we were all hurrying to prepare for the party, Jay sat
watching TV and wouldn't turn a hand.

When we help others, we generally use our hands, by carrying

luggages, working in the field, cleaning, or taking down something
from a place others cannot approach. Therefore, hand is used to
indicate the activity of helping. In the expression in (29a), to get a
hand means to "be helped by someone", in (29b-c), to bear hand and
lend a hand mean to "help someone". Similarly, the idiom to give a
hand is to "participate in the activity of helping".
Below are the various metonymy of hand including those in the
previous studies and in the standpoints added in this study.

(30) Metonymy of hand

expressions of
Metonymy of hand
metonymy
- THE HAND STANDS FOR PERSON
relative parts/
- THE HAND STANDS FOR PERSONALITY / EMOTION
position of
- THE HAND STANDS FOR CLOSE DISTANCE / ROUTE
hand
- THE HAND STANDS FOR RELATIVE HAND-PARTS
- THE HAND STANDS FOR ACTIVITY
- THE HAND STANDS FOR SKILL
function/role - THE HAND STANDS FOR CONTROL / INFLUENCE
of hand - THE HAND STANDS FOR GIVING
- THE HAND STANDS FOR SIDE
- THE HAND STANDS FOR HELPING
 A Study on Metaphor and Metonymy of Hand 213

4. Conclusion

Since the end of the 20th century, cognitive linguistics has

influenced the study of metaphors and metonymy. Expressions of
body-part terms have been also understood in light of cognitive
linguistics. Among them, studies on metaphorical and metonymical
expressions in the term of hand have proliferated. However, the
approaches from an ontological metaphor of hand cannot tackle all
kinds of metaphorical expressions of hand. Also with regards to
metonymy of hand, the standpoints are so limited that other
metonymical expressions could not accounted for. That is, because
these studies on hand have focused primarily on the most common
idiomatic expressions, they have been limited in their scope and reach.
Thus, we have suggested that the addition of new standpoints for
metaphors and metonymy of hand is necessary to handle expressions
involving hand which cannot be understood solely on the basis of
previous standpoints. Specifically, we have suggested the addition of
orientational metaphors of hand like SURRENDERING ONESELF IS
UP, BEING EASY IS DOWN, FINDING SOMETHING IS ON
SOMETHING, and structural metaphors to explain expressions like
HANDS OF A CLOCK, CRAB'S HANDS, and THE HAND OF A
GUN. With regards to metonymical expressions of hand, we also
suggested the addition of THE HAND STANDS FOR CLOSE
DISTANCE / ROUTE, THE HAND STANDS FOR RELATIVE
HAND-PARTS, and THE HAND STANDS FOR HELPING.
To include more idiomatic expressions of conceptual metaphors and
metonymy of hand, the newly added standpoints would be helpful.
Since hand is a body-part term that is frequently used, the increased
ability to explain a variety of idiomatic expressions on the basis of
these new sets of standpoints will prove valuable for future analysis.

주제어: 개념은유, 환유, 인지언어학, 신체어, 손, 관용어

214 언어과학 제14권 2호 (2007. 6)

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Hyun Jung Ahn․Yeon Jin Kwon

609-735 Department of Linguistics
Pusan National University
30 Jangjeon-dong Geumjeong-gu, Busan, Korea
Tel: 051-510-1518/ 510-2026
E-mail: tanyaahn@naver.com/ yeonjin@pusan.ac.kr

Received: 2007. 04. 15

Accepted: 2007. 05. 30