EXAMINING CONCEPTUAL METAPHOR IN THE LEGAL DISCOURSE OF THE EU ACQUIS

Abstract

This paper analyzes conceptual metaphors in a small specialized corpus comprising three legal acts from the EU acquis: a regulation, a directive, and a decision. It challenges the long-held assumption that legal discourse is devoid of figurative language by demonstrating that conceptual metaphors are an inherent and functional element of legal texts. The study is grounded in Conceptual Metaphor Theory, as introduced by Lakoff and Johnson (2003), which classifies metaphors into three main types – structural, orientational and ontological metaphors – and the extent to which each of these types is present in the corpus is evaluated. To identify metaphorical expressions and their underlying mappings, the research employs two complementary methods: the Metaphor Identification Procedure (MIP), which is developed by Pragglejaz Group (2007), and Steen’s five-step method (1999), which reveals conceptual mappings following the TARGET DOMAIN IS SOURCE DOMAIN model. An individual analysis of a selected group of examples is presented according to the format which is also proposed by Pragglejaz Group (2007). The findings confirm that all three metaphor types permeate the legal texts analyzed. Ontological metaphors are the most prevalent, dominated by recurring CONTAINER and POSSESSION metaphors, along with a multitude of metaphors arising from personification. Structural metaphors are also widely used in all three acts, with PASSING A LAW IS A JOURNEY being the most common mapping. Orientational metaphors appear less frequently, primarily as SUBORDINATE IS DOWN and MORE IS UP mappings. Many metaphorical expressions occur repeatedly across legal acts, with varied source domains mapped on a range of target domain concepts. In total, 35 mappings are identified in the corpus, most of which instantiate conventional metaphors. The word “under” is the most frequent metaphorically used word in the corpus. This analysis affirms that legal language abounds in metaphorically used expressions, bringing about a diverse range of conceptual metaphors of all three types, which play a significant role in structuring legal meaning and conceptualizing abstract legal principles within the EU legislative framework.