Studying Spatial Metaphors in Four Works by Male and Female Writers from a Cognitive Semantics Perspective

Metaphor has a long history and a high position in Persian literature. Literature is a social phenomenon and the connection between literature and society is undeniable. The present research has tried to investigate the difference in the use of upper and lower spatial metaphors in four different works by male and female authors in four decades. In order to show how spatial metaphors are used in these works and whether the influence of society's conditions in the emergence and the application of spatial metaphors is concrete. For this purpose, novels from the 60s Nakhlhaye Bisar, 70s Roye Mahe Khodavand ra Bebos, 80s Cheraghha ra Man Khamosh Mikonam and 90s Paeiz Fasle Akhare sal Ast were selected and were analyzed in a descriptive-analytical way according to Lakoff & Johnson (1980) and in the framework of cognitive semantics. The body of the research is the sentences from all four novels, which were analyzed. The findings showed that the amount of high metaphors is used more in the works of female authors, lived experiences play a role in the use of metaphors and high metaphors do not always have a happy meaning and low metaphors do not always have a sad meaning.
Introduction
In the present study, an attempt has been made to examine high spatial metaphors that express hope and low spatial metaphors that express despair, based on the views of Lakoff and Johnson (1980) within the framework of cognitive semantics. Metaphor studies have been extensive, but spatial metaphors in novels and literature and their analysis considering the social situation have been less studied. The books of Lakoff and Johnson in the 1980s and 1990s, namely "Metaphors We Live By" and "Philosophy in the Flesh: The Embodied Mind and its Challenge to Western Thought", revolutionized understanding. The mentioned metaphors are also drawn from four popular Iranian novels of the 1960s ("Nakhlhaye Bisar"), 1970s ("Roye Mahe Khodavand ra Bebos"), 1980s ("Cheraghha ra Man Khamosh Mikonam"), and 1990s ("Paeiz Fasle Akhare Sal Ast"). For this purpose, the current research aims to address the following questions by analyzing novels written by male and female authors within the given framework:

How do the top metaphors always have a positive and happy meaning while the bottom metaphors always have a negative and sad meaning?
Based on lived experiences, in which novel is the frequency of high metaphors higher than low metaphors?
What is the frequency of metaphors in the works of female authors compared to male authors?

Methodology
 The research was conducted using a descriptive-analytical method, and descriptive statistics were employed. The text corpus was selected from popular works that have been reprinted numerous times and address social issues. To investigate spatial metaphors expressing happiness and sadness, novels authored by both men and women from the 1960s to the 1990s were chosen to determine the influence of societal conditions on metaphor usage across decades and gender. The selected novels include "Nakhlhaye Bisar" by Qasim Ali Frosat (1960s), "Roye Mahe Khodavand ra Bebos" by Mustafa Mastour (1970s), "Cheraghha ra Man Khamoosh Mikonam" by Zoya Pirzad (1980s), and "Paeiz Fasle Akhare Sal Ast" by Nasim Marashi (1990s). Metaphors were cataloged systematically, and data from the beginning, middle, and end of each novel were analyzed based on the framework proposed by Lakoff and Johnson (1980), categorized as metaphors of high and low division, and metaphors of despair and hope.
Discussion and Conclusions
 According to the analysis conducted, a significant finding in this research concerning the first question is how the top spatial metaphors consistently convey happiness while the bottom metaphors consistently signify sadness. However, it is noteworthy that not all top metaphors carry positive meanings, nor do all bottom metaphors convey negativity. For instance, in the novel "Nakhlhaye Bisar," sentence (4) "Our hearts are raised," the verb "raised" constitutes a top metaphor, but within cognitive semantics, the overall meaning of the sentence does not necessarily imply positivity or happiness; the verb "raised" is associated with heartbreak, rendering the meaning negative. In response to the second question regarding the prevalence of high metaphors relative to low metaphors based on lived experiences, it was confirmed that there is a significant relationship between metaphors and the influence of social atmosphere and lived experiences. In the aforementioned four decades, specific metaphors were more prevalent, reflecting social changes influenced by events such as war, revolution, and economic fluctuations. In conclusion, the hypothesis concerning the third question, regarding the frequency of metaphor usage in works by female authors compared to male authors, was confirmed based on the data; the frequency of high metaphors in works by female authors is 35%, whereas low metaphors comprise 65%. In works by male authors, high metaphors constitute 33%, while low metaphors make up 67%.