Oleanna: A Cognitive Poetic reading

Abstract

A relatively new discipline, Cognitive Poetics is concerned with the process through which meaning is shaped and analyzed. What is known as the American model of Cognitive Poetics makes use of the theories of Cognitive Linguistics to provide a fresh outlook for reading literary texts. One of the concerns of this model is with studying metaphor as an important means of meaning-making. In proposing the Conceptual Metaphor Theory (CMT), George Lakoff and Mark Johnson assert that metaphor is not just a matter of words, rather it is inherently conceptual. They claim that our conceptual system is metaphorically shaped and the conceptual metaphors which shape our understanding affect not only our language but also our behavior as well as how we make sense of the world around us. Lakoff and Johnson define conceptual metaphors as our means of understanding one concept in terms of another. They argue that conceptual metaphors help us comprehend abstract concepts in terms of more concrete ones. Using CMT, this article attempts to read David Mamet's Oleanna in terms of two of the most common conceptual metaphors, namely LIFE IS A PLAY and ARGUMENT IS WAR. It intends to explain how these conceptual metaphors become the underlying structure of the characters' interaction throughout the play; a play which takes place in an academic setting. The article demonstrates how words become weapons in the hand of characters to obtain power over one another. They are entrapped in a language which does not allow them to behave beyond the confines of a performance or a verbal battle.