Abstract
This chapter proposes a cognitive-oriented account for the construal of generic structure components. Importantly, these components are instantiated by conceptualisation, and hence their appearances vary depending on how the author conceptualises research. The way in which the author conceptualises research depends on the shared knowledge of the discourse community. This chapter draws on Lakoff and Johnson’s (Metaphors we live by. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1980) conceptual metaphor to explain the conceptualisation processes of generic structure components. Discursively construed lack-ICM is identified as a mainstream conceptualisation of academic writing. When a new instance of genre emerges, some of the conceptualisations of genre shared by the community are maintained, and such overlapping of shared images of genre can take into account the processing of new instances of genre.
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Notes
- 1.
The concept ‘basic’ level is not free from controversies. See Rosch et al. (1976) for their discussion that individuals’ cultural backgrounds and expertise can impact on variations in the conception of basic-level categories. Mervis (1987) and Mervis and Mervis (1982) found discrepancies between child basic and adult basic levels, which make the concept of basic-level categories problematic. Mandler and Bauer (1988) showed that, contrary to the common belief in prototype theory, children’s early conceptual categories should be basic-level categories. Children don’t seem to acquire the adult’s basic level first, which questions the validity of the concept of basic-level categories.
- 2.
Lakoff and Johnson (1999) maintained that all causal logic is different: ‘There is neither a single, literal concept of causation nor a single literal logic of causation, no matter how we conceptualize them’ (p. 170). It is not, however, that Lakoff and Johnson (1999) are claiming that what is presented as causes are not causes but suggesting that the logic behind causation links can vary because of the speaker’s/writer’s conceptualisation patterns.
- 3.
The entire introduction section of the article is lengthy and hence is not displayed as an excerpt in this book, but the full article is available online: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Dieter_Wolke/publication/265297147_Aggression_between_siblings_Associations_with_the_home_environment_and_peer_bullying/links/543796160cf2590375c52e30.pdf.
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Sawaki, T. (2016). Conceptualisation of Generic Structure Components. In: Analysing Structure in Academic Writing. Postdisciplinary Studies in Discourse. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-54239-7_5
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