Chapter 1 Introduction 1
1.1 Metaphorical competence—a neglected dimension 1
1.2 Different approaches to the study of metaphorical competence 3
1.3 Why a systemic perspective on metaphorical competence now? 7
1.4 The general framework of the present book 9
Chapter 2 An Overview of the Researches on Metaphorical Competence 11
2.1 The proposition of metaphorical competence 12
2.1.1 Historical backgrounds 12
2.1.2 Gardner＆Winner's research in metaphorical competence 20
2.2 Further researches on metaphorical competence 27
2.2.1 Non-constructivist approaches to metaphorical competence 27
2.2.2 Constructivist approaches to metaphorical competence 32
2.2.2.1 Danesi's metaphorical competence and conceptual fluency 33
2.2.2.2 Littlemore's metaphoric competence and metaphorical intelligence 38
2.2.2.3 Cognitive linguists'views on metaphorical competence 40
2.2.2.4 Systemic functional linguists'approaches to metaphorical competence 43
2.3 Studies on metaphorical competence in China 45
2.3.1 Researches in the Chinese linguistic circle 45
2.3.2 Researches in the foreign languages circle 47
2.4 Relationship between metaphorical competence,linguistic competence and communicative competence 50
Chapter 3 Reconsidering Metaphorical Competence—From a Systemic Perspective 54
3.1 Theoretical basis 55
3.2 Redefinition of metaphorical competence 61
3.2.1 "Metaphor"in metaphorical competence 61
3.2.1.1 First-order metaphor 62
3.2.1.2 Second-order metaphor 65
3.2.2 Redefining metaphorical competence 72
3.3 The nature of metaphorical competence 73
3.3.1 Constructiveness 76
3.3.2 Dynamicness 78
3.4 A diachronic approach to metaphorical competence 79
3.5 Summary 91
Chapter 4 Aspects of Metaphorical Competence 93
4.1 Metaphorical competence and related factors 94
4.1.1 Metaphorical competence and thought 94
4.1.2 Metaphorical competence and context 99
4.1.3 Metaphorical competence and culture 106
4.1.4 Metaphorical competence and language pedagogy 111
4.1.4.1 Foreign language learning vs first language acquisition 111
4.1.4.2 Metaphorical competence in language pedagogy 116
4.2 Realizations of metaphorical competence 121
4.2.1 First-order metaphorical competence 122
4.2.2 Second-order metaphorical competence 127
Chapter 5 The Development of Metaphorical Competence in Foreign Language Learning—A Small-Scale Corpus Study 133
5.1 Research methodology 134
5.1.1 The proposition of research questions 134
5.1.2 The origin of the corpus 137
5.1.3 Data collection and analysis 139
5.2 Results and discussions 143
5.2.1 Differences between learners'display of their first-order and second-order metaphorical competence 143
5.2.2 The development of first-order metaphorical competence 151
5.2.3 The development of second-order metaphorical competence 157
5.3 Findings 169
Chapter 6 Implications for Foreign Language Pedagogy 172
6.1 Implications for syllabus designing 172
6.1.1 A critical evaluation of the present syllabuses in operation 172
6.1.2 A conceptual-cultural syllabus 177
6.1.2.1 Guiding principles of a conceptual-cultural syllabus 177
6.1.2.2 Designing a conceptual-cultural syllabus 183
6.2 Further implications for foreign language pedagogy 191
6.2.1 Implications for teaching materials designing 191
6.2.2 Implications for foreign language teaching and learning 194
Chapter 7 Conclusions 203
7.1 Summary 203
7.2 Conclusions 205
7.3 Suggested areas for future researches 208
Bibliography 210
Appendix Selected Compositions from the Corpus 225