Chapter Nine
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metaphorical linguistic expressions are lexical units used (proto)typically
to refer to elements of a source domain (literal meaning), but in a certain
linguistic or non-linguistic environment, their context-dependent,
metaphorical meaning is activated, and they refer to elements of the target
domain (Kऺvecses 2010: 4-5).
The search for linguistic metaphorical expressions testifying to the
existence of the conceptual metaphor PLANES ARE BIRDS began with
the analysis of entries in available lexicographic works which were
classified as aviation English dictionaries.^5 These are: Dictionary of
Aeronautical Terms (DoAT), Dictionary of Aviation (DA), Sáownik
angielsko-polski slangu lotniczego (E-P SSL, (lit.) English-Polish
Dictionary of Aviation Slang). Additionally, the Historical Thesaurus of
the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) was consulted, and, more precisely,
its section: “travel by air or in space.” It was assumed that these
lexicographic sources contain entries for vocabulary items which may be
considered to belong to aviation LSP. In more detail, the title as well as the
information provided in the preface indicate that DoAT, including many
(...) officially recognized definitions for [...] aviation terms, contains
vocabulary items belonging mainly to the first subgroup of aviation
vocabulary as distinguished in the previous section. The DA, whose
intended addressees include (...) pilots, cabin staff, maintenance crews,
ground staff and travellers worldwide, may be assumed to include words
from all of the groups. In turn, the E-P SSL, with the word ‘slang’ in its
title, is clearly a source of lexemes belonging to the second group of
aviation vocabulary. Last but not least, the OED, being the most
comprehensive dictionary of the English language, includes vocabulary
items from the third subgroup above; however, sometimes more
specialized terms, also jargon words, appear in it as well. Sporadically,
some other lexicographic sources, as well as websites were consulted.
As regards the first group of aviation vocabulary distinguished in the
previous section, no lexemes were identified as being motivated by the
conceptual metaphor PLANES ARE BIRDS. This seems to confirm the
generally accepted opinion that with the principal stylistic goals of
technical writing [being] clarity, concision and correctness (Herman
(1993: 1), metaphorical language is highly unwelcome. More specifically,
this search seems to indicate that within the core vocabulary of aviation
English, i.e. among words used by highly specialized professionals in
official communication connected with the area of their specialization,
(^5) Lexicographic works with the words aviation or aeronautics in the title were
taken into consideration.