Reducing Ideational Metaphor To The Transcategorisation Of Elements

Martin (1992: 410, 411):

Metaphorical qualities and actions are illustrated in the following clauses from [6:23]. Their function there is mainly to package experiential meaning for realisation as New.

[6:23]	m.	The war had also revealed inadequacies in Australia’s scientific and research capabilities.
	n.	After the war strenuous efforts were made to improve these.
	o.	The Australian National University was established with an emphasis on research.
	p.	The government gave its support to the advancement of science in many areas, including agricultural production.

Table 6.18. Unpacking experiential metaphors in text [6:23:m-p]
	metaphorical	congruent
quality	inadequacies	inadequate
	capabilities	capable
process	efforts	try to do
	emphasis	emphasise
	research	research
	support	support
	advancement	advance
	production	produce
participant	scientific	science
	agricultural	agriculture
	strenuous	strain

Blogger Comments:

[1] The grammatical metaphor in (m), involves a semantic figure being incongruently realised as a nominal group (inadequacies in Australia’s scientific and research capabilities) instead of congruently as an attributive clause (Australia’s scientific and research capabilities are inadequate) — whose Carrier also involves the metaphorical realisation of a figure as a nominal group (Australia’s scientific and research capabilities).

The grammatical metaphor in (n) involves a semantic process being incongruently realised grammatically as the Thing (efforts) of a nominal group, thereby giving the 'process thing' modal responsibility by serving as Subject.  The word strenuous is not metaphorical, since it is a quality realised congruently as an adjective.

The grammatical metaphor in (o), involves a semantic figure being incongruently realised grammatically as a prepositional phrase (with an emphasis on research) instead of congruently as a clause (emphasising research).

The grammatical metaphor in (p) involves a semantic process being incongruently realised grammatically as the Thing (support) of a nominal group, and semantic figures being incongruently realised as nominal groups (the advancement of science, agricultural production).

[2] Neither of the 'process thing' metaphors (effort, support) are packaged as New information here; the unmarked New in the respective information units is improve and in many areas. Halliday & Matthiessen (1999: 401) explain the discourse function of ideational metaphor as follows:

But ideational grammatical metaphors typically have a discourse function of this kind; they are as it were pressed into service by the textual metafunction, to provide alternative groupings of quanta of information.

[3] As the table illustrates, ideational metaphor is viewed here only from the perspective of elemental metaphors arising from transcategorisation; see Halliday & Matthiessen (1999: 242ff).