Mental space compression in ancient myths: The case of catabatic journeys (Part 4)
PART 4 (FINAL) of an interview in which Anna Bonifazi and Riccardo Ginevra share their interest in applying the cognitive-linguistic concept of compression to the analysis of ancient Greek and other ancient Indo-European myths. A particularly congenial script for such an application is the tale of catabatic journeys: mythological characters or heroes get the chance […]
MENTAL SPACE COMPRESSION IN ANCIENT MYTHS: THE CASE OF CATABATIC JOURNEYS (PART 3)
Part 3 of an interview in which Anna Bonifazi and Riccardo Ginevra share their interest in applying the cognitive-linguistic concept of compression to the analysis of ancient Greek and other ancient Indo-European myths. A particularly congenial script for such an application is the tale of catabatic journeys: mythological characters or heroes get the chance to enter the subterranean world with some purpose in mind, and manage to come back alive. The interviewer, Cristóbal Pagán Cánovas, a cognitive scientist and classicist himself, gets the interviewees involved in a conversation on what makes our minds able to discern catabatic elements in ancient myths, and more in general on viable tools for a more comprehensive understanding of conceptual systems in ancient traditions.
Mental space compression in ancient myths: The case of catabatic journeys (Part 2)
Part 2 of an interview in which Anna Bonifazi and Riccardo Ginevra share their interest in applying the cognitive-linguistic concept of compression to the analysis of ancient Greek and other ancient Indo-European myths. A particularly congenial script for such an application is the tale of catabatic journeys: mythological characters or heroes get the chance to enter the subterranean world with some purpose in mind, and manage to come back alive. The interviewer, Cristóbal Pagán Cánovas, a cognitive scientist and classicist himself, gets the interviewees involved in a conversation on what makes our minds able to discern catabatic elements in ancient myths, and more in general on viable tools for a more comprehensive understanding of conceptual systems in ancient traditions.
Mental space compression in ancient myths: The case of catabatic journeys (Part 1)
In this interview, Anna Bonifazi and Riccardo Ginevra share their interest in applying the cognitive-linguistic concept of compression to the analysis of ancient Greek and other ancient Indo-European myths. A particularly congenial script for such an application is the tale of catabatic journeys: mythological characters or heroes get the chance to enter the subterranean world with some purpose in mind, and manage to come back alive. The interviewer, Cristóbal Pagán Cánovas, a cognitive scientist and classicist himself, gets the interviewees involved in a conversation on what makes our minds able to discern catabatic elements in ancient myths, and more in general on viable tools for a more comprehensive understanding of conceptual systems in ancient traditions.
Cognitive Linguistics and Characterization in Euripides’ Electra
(First published on May 2, 2023) Evert van Emde Boas explains two ways that “cognitive sciences might help us understand what goes on in literary characterization” in Euripides’ Electra: “First, they might help us get to grips with how the interpretation of characters actually works, that is, with what goes on in our brains and bodies when we meet characters in literature, drama, or film.” And second, these insights “can help us understand issues of literary character is as a ‘lens’ through which to look at the characterization of individual figures in literature (and drama, tv, film, etc.).” For the whole discussion, read on!
How do We Recognize and Read Metaphors in Ancient Texts?
How does a scholar reading an ancient text know that a word is being used metaphorically? I don’t think that we have the intuitive luxury in reading an ancient text that we have with our native language. I don’t think we can accurately make intuitive determinations when studying word forms that come to us, so to speak, out of nowhere. Instead we must rely soley on a mechanical procedure which mimics intuition.
Monks & Saints: Blended Viewpoint in the Construction of Selves
Eve Sweetser hosts an interview with Historian LIne Cecile Engh and Cognitive Scientist Mark Turner on their research about how vivid physical metaphors in medieval monastic training manuals helped novices to form “blended selves” that shaped their identity as monks and as persons.
Peter Stockwell on Cognitive Poetics (part 4)
In this final instalment of an interview with Peter Stockwell, he discusses the biggest obstacles to interpreting ancient texts, how cognitive poetics an help, and the extent to which we can apply matters of modern psychology to the ancient mind.
Peter Stockwell on Cognitive Poetics (part 3)
In this third instalment of an interview with Peter Stockwell, he discusses the payoff of using a cognitive approach to literature, and what a cognitive approach “do” for us in relation to other approaches.
Peter Stockwell on Cognitive Poetics (part 2)
In this second instalment of the interview with Peter Stockwell, he defines ‘cognitive poetics’ and explains how cognitive science has changed the landscape of inquiry into the study of language and literature.