USING METAPHOR IN EFL CLASSROOM TO ENHANCE WRITING SKILLS: A CASE STUDY

Nguyen Thi Hong Thu(1*),

(1) Hanoi Law University, Viet Nam
(*) Corresponding Author

Abstract


This study is aimed to investigate the effects of using metaphor in the development of writing skill as well as find out the challenges learners may face, then propose the suitable suggestions to boost metaphoric awareness and competence in learning English. The writer conducted two measuring instruments: pro- and pre-test for two groups (control and experimental) to examine the effectiveness of using metaphor in writing; two questionnaires to measure the attitude of the students towards using metaphor in writing that was conducted basing on a 5 point Likert-scale. The studys participants were 40 English major students at Hanoi Law University. The findings from the study showed that learners with the instruction from teachers on metaphor in songs when writing tended to get better scores than the other ones. However, they also showed that although it is important to learn metaphor, a lot of challenges still maintain. The paper hopefully helps learners have new insight into aspects of figurative language studies and pedagogical applications.

Keywords


metaphor, metaphoric competence, metaphoric awareness, conceptual metaphor.

Full Text:

PDF

References


Boers, F. (2000a). Enhancing metaphoric awareness in specialized reading. English for Specific Purposes, 19, 137-147.

Boers, F. (2000b). Metaphor awareness and vocabulary retention. Applied Linguistics, 21(4), 553-571.

Boers, F., & Lindstromberg, S. (2006) Cognitive linguistic applications in second or foreign language instruction: rationale, proposals, and evaluation. In G. Kristiansen, M. Achard, R. Dirven & F. J. Ruiz de Mendoza Ibez (Eds.), Cognitive linguistics: Current applications and future perspective (pp.305-355). Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.

Boers, F. (2004). Expanding learners vocabulary through metaphor awareness: What expansion, what learners, what vocabulary? In M. Achard and S. Niemeier, (Eds.), Cognlinguistics, second language acquisition, and foreign language teaching (pp. 211232). Berlin: De Gruyter.

Cooper, T. C. (1999). Processing of idioms by L2 learners of English. TESOL Quarterly, 33(2), 233-262. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/3587719 Glucksberg, S. (2001). Understanding figurative language: From metaphors to idioms. New York: Oxford University Press.

Grady, J. (2007). Metaphor. In Geeraerts, D., and Cuyckens, H. (Eds.), The Oxford handbook of cognitive linguistics, (pp. 188213). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Lakoff, G. (1987). Woman, fire, and dangerous thing: What categories reveal about the mind. Chicago, London: University of Chicago Press.

Lakoff, G., & Johnson, M. (1980). Metaphors we live by. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Jakobson, R. (2003). The metaphoric and metonymic poles. In R. Dirven & R. Prings (Eds.). Metaphor and metonymy in comparison and contrast (pp. 41-47). Berlin, New York: Mouton de Gruyter.

Kalyuga, M., & Kalyuga, S. (2008). Metaphor awareness in teaching vocabulary. Language Learning Journal, 36(2), 249257. https://doi.org/10.1080/09571730802390767

Kathpalia, S., & Carmel, H. (2011). Metaphorical competence in ESL student writing. RELC Journal 43(2), 273290. https://doi.org/10.1177/0033688211419379

Kendon, A. (2004). Gesture: Visible action as utterance. Cambridge: Cambridge University

Kjeldsen, J. E. (2009). Retorikk i vr tid. En innfring i moderne retorisk teori. Oslo: Spartacus Forlag AS.

Kvecses, Z. (2002/2010), Metaphor: A practical introduction. New York: Oxford University Press.

Littlemore, J., & Low, G. (2006a). Figurative Thinking and Foreign Language Learning. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.

Littlemore, J, Krennmayr, T., Turner, J., & Turner, S. (2014). An investigation into metaphor use at different levels of second language writing. Applied Linguistics, 35(2), 117144https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/amt004

Low, G. (1988). On teaching metaphor. Applied Linguistics, 9(2), 125147. https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/9.2.125

MacArthur, F. (2010). Metaphorical competence in EFL: Where are we and where should we be going? A view from the language classroom. AILA Review, 23(1), 155-73.

Nacey, S. (2013). Metaphors in learner English. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.

Ungerer, F., & Schmid, H. (2006). An introduction to cognitive linguistics, second edition. Harlow, England: Pearson Longman.




DOI: https://doi.org/10.24071/ijhs.v3i1.2005

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Copyright (c) 2019 Nguyen Thi Hong Thu




Indexed and abstracted in:

 

         

 

IJHS Sinta 3 Certificate (S3 = Level 3)

International Journal of Humanity Studies (IJHS) has been nationally accredited Sinta 3 by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia based on the decree  No. Surat Keputusan 158/E/KPT/2021. Validity for 5 years: Vol 4 No 1, 2020 till Vol 8 No 2, 2024

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under CC BY-SA.

Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

 

p-ISSN: 2597-470X (since 31 August 2017); e-ISSN: 2597-4718 (since 31 August 2017)

Flag Counter

Notice: The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors. They do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of the editorial team or publishers.

International Journal of Humanity Studies (IJHS) is a scientific journal in English published twice a year, namely in September and March, by Sanata Dharma University, Yogyakarta, Indonesia.