From Cognitive Linguistics, Linguistics is returning to human body, flesh and living itself. The principle of Cognitive Linguistics is that cognition emerges from human’s flesh and living, namely experience; those cognitions are accumulated to produce meaning, namely conception; they are put into language, expand to metaphor; by the languages and conception humans live. In a way figurative language reflects conceptual structure. However, the major concerns of cognitive linguistics and rhetorical study of the core issues closely touch since the context in which any meaning occurs, is categorized, is expressed in language is rhetorical context. This is the starting point of this study.
Without passing through the lens of rhetoric which is constantly conscious of the concreteness of life and the essential conditions of language activities (including speech act), there are limits to capture vivid context for the emergence of the core concepts of Cognitive Linguistics as cognition, concept, metaphor, language, specifically in the lives of human beings. For example, although George Lakoff’s attempts to generalize human cognition by capturing conceptual metaphors in the form of specific language has brought the great progress, we can raise doubts about the ’the narrowness of conceptual metaphor’, ‘a fixations on the specific form of language’ and ‘the tendency of generalize or reduce them’. On the other hand, when viewed from the perspective of Rhetorical Study, It is worth noting that not by the innovation in Rhetorical Study but the innovation in the field of Linguistics broke the long perspective of ‘General Rhetoric’ which has regarded metaphors as linguistic deviant.
This article attempts and seeks the organic combination of Cognitive Linguistics and Rhetorical Study. It will pay attention to the methodology of the Conceptual Metaphor Theory and to expand the methodological and cognitive narrowness by applying Rhetorical point of view.
When we attempt to turn Cognitive Linguistic observation about the ‘conception’ into a Rhetorical observation, ‘Proverbs’ can be one of the best text showing the passage very well. Proverb can be redefined as “the text with the effective rhetorical format which represents collective cognition accumulated in a language and culture community over a long period of time”. Proverbs are the collective wisdom accumulated in community in cognitive aspects and in rhetorical aspects. Proverbs are commonly used by anyone. Everyone can be the subject of Proverbs. Proverbs are available to all.
I analyzed how Korean people conceptualizes time through Korean Proverbs. The result shows that our conception of time occurs, maintains and changes(transfers) depending on various phases and contexts humans have encountered. Rhetorical challenge situations occur in them. I extracted the 5 conceptions of time of the high frequency; categorized as follows.
1. Time as Accumulation
2. Time as Convergence
3. Time as Stage
4. Time as Elapse
5. Time as Regression
These 5 conceptions and modalities continue to exchange. The validity of the conception of time depends on relationships with others, on the phase and context of external situation. A person’s conception of time continues to adjust and replace because one’s conception of time and others’ conception of time meet, merge, strengthen, band together or strike, conflict, crash; and one’s conception of time and external circumstances cross.