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How Languages Construct Time Lera Boroditsky Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, USA

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How Languages Construct Time Lera Boroditsky Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, USA CHAPTER 20 How Languages Construct Time Lera Boroditsky Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, USA Summary (OW DO PEOPLE CONSTRUCT THEIR MENTAL REPRESENTATIONS OF TIME ) FOCUS ON WORK EXAMIN ING THE ROLE THAT SPATIAL METAPHORS AND BASIC SPATIAL REPRESENTATIONS PLAY IN CONSTRUCTING REP RESENTATIONS OF TIME ACROSS LANGUAGES 4HE RESULTS REVEAL THAT THE METAPHORS WE USE TO TALK ABOUT TIME HAVE BOTH IMMEDIATE AND LONG TERM CONSEQUENCES FOR HOW WE CONCEPTUALIZE AND REASON ABOUT THIS FUNDAMENTAL DOMAIN OF EXPERIENCE (OW PEOPLE CONCEPTUALIZE TIME APPEARS TO DEPEND ON HOW THE LANGUAGES THEY SPEAK TEND TO TALK ABOUT TIME THE CURRENT LINGUISTIC CONTEXT WHAT LANGUAGE IS BEING SPOKEN AND ALSO ON THE PARTICULAR METAPHORS BEING USED TO TALK ABOUT TIME IN THE MOMENT &URTHER PEOPLE WHO CONCEPTUALIZE SPACE DIFFERENTLY ALSO CON CEPTUALIZE TIME DIFFERENTLY SUGGESTING THAT PEOPLE CO OPT REPRESENTATIONS OF THE PHYSICAL WORLD EG SPACE IN ORDER TO MENTALLY REPRESENT MORE ABSTRACT OR INTANGIBLE ENTITIES EG TIME 4AKEN ALL TOGETHER THESE lNDINGS SHOW THAT CONCEPTIONS OF EVEN SUCH FUNDAMENTAL DOMAINS AS TIME DIFFER DRAMATICALLY ACROSS CULTURES AND GROUPS 4HE RESULTS REVEAL SOME OF THE MECHA NISMS THROUGH WHICH LANGUAGES AND CULTURES HELP CONSTRUCT OUR BASIC NOTIONS OF TIME /NE OF THE GREAT MYSTERIES OF THE MIND IS HOW WE ARE ABLE TO THINK ABOUT THINGS WE CAN NEVER SEE OR TOUCH (OW DO WE COME TO REPRESENT AND REASON ABOUT ABSTRACT DOMAINS LIKE TIME JUSTICE OR IDEAS !LL OF OUR EXPERIENCE OF THE WORLD IS PHYSICAL ACCOMPLISHED THROUGH SENSORY PERCEPTION AND MOTOR ACTION !ND YET OUR INTERNAL MENTAL LIVES GO FAR BEYOND THOSE THINGS OBSERVABLE THROUGH PHYSICAL EXPERIENCE WE INVENT SOPHISTICATED NOTIONS OF NUMBER AND TIME WE THEORIZE ABOUT ATOMS AND INVISIBLE FORCES AND WE WORRY ABOUT LOVE JUSTICE IDEAS GOALS AND PRINCIPLES 4HE ABILITY TO COGNITIVELY TRANSCEND THE PHYSICAL IS ONE OF THE VERY HALLMARKS OF HUMAN INTELLIGENCE 3O HOW IS IT POSSIBLE THAT PHYSICAL ORGANISMS WHO COLLECT PHOTONS THROUGH THEIR EYES RESPOND TO PHYSICAL PRESSURE IN THEIR EARS AND BEND THEIR KNEES AND mEX THEIR TOES IN JUST THE RIGHT AMOUNT TO DEFY GRAVITY ARE ABLE TO INVENT AND Space, Time and Number in the Brain. DOI: 10.1016/B978-0-12-385948-8.00020-7 333 © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. 334 20. HOW LANGUAGES CONSTRUCT TIME REASON ABOUT THE UNPERCEIVABLE AND ABSTRACT 4HE MYSTERY OF ABSTRACT THOUGHT HAS VEXED SCHOLARS FROM 0LATO TO $ARWIN /NE PROPOSED SOLUTION TO THIS MYSTERY IS THAT REPRESENTATIONS OF THE ABSTRACT MIGHT BE CONSTRUCTED THROUGH ANALOGICAL EXTENSIONS FROM MORE EXPERIENCE BASED DOMAINS EG ; = 4HAT IS IN ORDER TO CONSTRUCT MENTAL REPRESENTATIONS OF ABSTRACT OR INTANGIBLE ENTITIES WE CO OPT THE REPRESENTATIONS WE HAVE DEVELOPED FOR MORE TANGIBLE AND CONCRETE DOMAINS )N THIS PAPER ) WILL FOCUS ON THE DOMAIN OF TIME AND THE ROLE THAT REPRESENTATIONS OF SPACE PLAY IN CONSTRUCTING REPRESENTATIONS OF TIME 4IME IS A TOPIC OF CENTRAL INTEREST IN OUR CULTURE 4HE WORD hTIMEv IS THE MOST FREQUENT NOUN IN THE %NGLISH LANGUAGE WITH OTHER TEMPORAL WORDS LIKE hDAYv AND hYEARv ALSO RANK ING IN THE TOP ; = 4IME IS UBIQUITOUS YET EPHEMERAL )T FORMS THE VERY FABRIC OF OUR EXPERIENCE AND YET IT IS UNPERCEIVABLE WE CANNOT SEE TOUCH OR SMELL TIME 3O HOW DO WE MENTALLY REPRESENT AND ORGANIZE THIS FUNDAMENTAL DOMAIN OF EXPERIENCE 4O REPRESENT TIME PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD RELY ON SPACE 7E SPATIALIZE TIME IN CULTURAL ARTIFACTS LIKE GRAPHS TIME LINES ORTHOGRAPHY CLOCKS SUNDIALS HOURGLASSES AND CALENDARS WE GESTURE TEMPORAL RELATIONS AND RELY HEAVILY ON SPATIAL WORDS EG FORWARD BACK LONG SHORT TO TALK ABOUT THE ORDER AND DURATION OF EVENTS EG ;n= 0EOPLES PRIVATE MENTAL REP RESENTATIONS OF TIME ALSO APPEAR TO BE BASED IN SPACE IRRELEVANT SPATIAL INFORMATION READILY AFFECTS PEOPLES JUDGMENTS OF TEMPORAL ORDER AND DURATION ;n= AND PEOPLE SEEM TO IMPLIC ITLY AND AUTOMATICALLY GENERATE SPATIAL REPRESENTATIONS WHEN THINKING ABOUT TIME ;n= (OWEVER THE PARTICULAR WAYS THAT TIME IS SPATIALIZED DIFFER ACROSS LANGUAGES AND CUL TURES 2ESEARCH DONE AROUND THE WORLD HAS UNCOVERED DRAMATIC VARIABILITY IN REPRESENTA TIONS OF TIME ACROSS CULTURES AND GROUPS 3EVERAL ASPECTS OF LINGUISTIC CULTURAL AND PERSONAL EXPERIENCE APPEAR TO SHAPE PEOPLES TEMPORAL REASONING 1. 4HE PATTERN OF SPATIAL METAPHORS THAT PEOPLE USE TO TALK ABOUT TIME ;n= 2. 4HE SET OF SPATIAL REPRESENTATIONS AND REFERENCE FRAMES THAT ARE AVAILABLE FOR CO OPTING FOR THINKING ABOUT TIME EITHER IN THE LINGUISTIC OR CULTURAL ENVIRONMENT MORE GENERALLY OR IN THE IMMEDIATE CONTEXT MORE SPECIlCALLY ;n= 3. /RGANIZATIONAL PATTERNS IN CULTURAL ARTIFACTS EG WRITING DIRECTION ; n= 4. !SPECTS OF CULTURAL OR INDIVIDUAL DISPOSITION AGE AND EXPERIENCE ;n= )N THE FOLLOWING SECTIONS ) FOCUS ON WORK REVEALING THE ROLE THAT SPATIAL METAPHORS AND BASIC SPATIAL REPRESENTATIONS PLAY IN CONSTRUCTING REPRESENTATIONS OF TIME ACROSS LANGUAGES ,ANGUAGES AROUND THE WORLD RELY ON SPATIAL TERMS TO TALK ABOUT TIME )N SOME CASES IT IS DIFlCULT OR IMPOSSIBLE TO TALK ABOUT TIME WITHOUT INVOKING SPATIAL LANGUAGE (OWEVER LANGUAGES DIFFER IN THE SPATIAL TERMS THAT ARE MOST COMMONLY USED TO TALK ABOUT TIME &OR EXAMPLE DEPENDING ON THE LANGUAGE WE ARE SPEAKING WE MIGHT TALK ABOUT THE FUTURE AS IF IT LIES AHEAD OF US IN %NGLISH BEHIND US IN !YMARA OR BELOW US IN -ANDARIN #HINESE $O SUCH DIFFERENCES IN METAPHORS MATTER FOR HOW PEOPLE MENTALLY ORGANIZE THE DOMAIN OF TIME THE AXES OF TIME /NE PROMINENT EXAMPLE OF HOW SPATIOTEMPORAL METAPHORS SHAPE TEMPORAL THINKING COMES FROM COMPARISONS OF %NGLISH AND -ANDARIN -ANDARIN SPEAKERS ARE MORE LIKELY TO THE AXES OF TIME 335 TALK ABOUT TIME USING VERTICAL METAPHORS THAN ARE %NGLISH SPEAKERS ;n= !RE -ANDARIN SPEAKERS ALSO MORE LIKELY TO THINK ABOUT TIME VERTICALLY THAN ARE %NGLISH SPEAKERS 4O TEST THIS "ORODITSKY ;= COMPARED %NGLISH AND -ANDARIN SPEAKERS REPRESENTATIONS OF TIME )N THE STUDIES %NGLISH AND -ANDARIN SPEAKERS MADE TEMPORAL JUDGMENTS FOLLOW ING HORIZONTAL OR VERTICAL SPATIAL PRIMES 0ARTICIPANTS RESPONSE TIMES TO THE TARGET QUESTIONS ABOUT TIME FOLLOWING EITHER THE HORIZONTAL OR VERTICAL PRIMES WERE THE MEASURE OF INTER EST 4HE RESULTS REVEALED A BEHAVIORAL PATTERN CONSISTENT WITH THE LINGUISTIC OBSERVATION -ANDARIN SPEAKERS APPEARED MORE LIKELY TO THINK ABOUT TIME VERTICALLY THAN DID %NGLISH SPEAKERS "EYOND COMPARING %NGLISH AND -ANDARIN SPEAKERS THE STUDIES ALSO COMPARED THE RESULTS OF -ANDARIN SPEAKERS WHO HAD LEARNED %NGLISH AT DIFFERENT STAGES OF LIFE AND FUR THER COMPARED THE RESULTS OF %NGLISH SPEAKERS TESTED WITH AND WITHOUT TRAINING TO TALK ABOUT TIME VERTICALLY )N EACH CASE MORE EXPERIENCE WITH TALKING ABOUT TIME VERTICALLY LEAD TO MORE VERTICAL REPRESENTATIONS OF TIME 2ESULTS USING THIS PARADIGM HAVE BEEN CHALLENGED SEE ;n= BUT MORE RECENT WORK USING A VARIETY OF METHODS HAS CONlRMED THESE CROSS LINGUISTIC DIFFERENCES ; = &OR EXAMPLE WHEN NATIVE %NGLISH AND NATIVE -ANDARIN SPEAKERS WERE ASKED TO SPATIALLY ARRANGE TEMPORAL SEQUENCES SHOWN IN PICTURES -ANDARIN SPEAKERS ARRANGED THE PIC TURES IN VERTICAL ARRAYS OF THE TIME n DEPENDING ON GROUP WHEREAS %NGLISH SPEAKERS NEVER DID SO ;= )N A $ VARIANT OF THIS TASK "ORODITSKY ;= ASKED %NGLISH AND -ANDARIN SPEAKERS TO ARRANGE TIME BY POINTING IN $ SPACE AROUND THEM -ANDARIN SPEAKERS TESTED IN -ANDARIN ARRANGED TIME ON THE VERTICAL AXIS OF THE TIME WHEREAS %NGLISH SPEAKERS DID SO ONLY OF THE TIME &URTHER THE STUDIES FOUND THAT THE MORE PROlCIENT THE PARTICIPANTS WERE IN -ANDARIN THE MORE LIKELY THEY WERE TO ARRANGE TIME VERTICALLY -ANDARINn%NGLISH -% BILINGUALS WHO WERE TESTED IN -ANDARIN WERE MORE LIKELY TO ARRANGE TIME VERTICALLY WHEN THEY WERE TESTED IN -ANDARIN AS OPPOSED TO IN %NGLISH ,AI AND "ORODITSKY ;= EXAMINED WHETHER METAPHOR USE PLAYS A CAUSAL IN THE MOMENT ROLE IN HOW PEOPLE CONSTRUCT REPRESENTATIONS OF TIME 4HE RESULTS REVEALED THAT -ANDARIN SPEAKERS ARE MORE LIKELY TO CONSTRUCT FRONTnBACK REPRESENTATIONS OF TIME WHEN UNDERSTAND ING FRONTnBACK METAPHORS AND MORE LIKELY TO CONSTRUCT VERTICAL REPRESENTATIONS OF TIME WHEN UNDERSTANDING VERTICAL METAPHORS )T APPEARS THAT -ANDARIN SPEAKERS mEXIBLY REOR GANIZE TIME ALONG THE FRONTnBACK OR UPnDOWN AXIS DEPENDING ON WHETHER THEY ARE PROCESS ING FRONTnBACK OR UPnDOWN METAPHORS FOR TIME &INALLY SEVERAL STUDIES HAVE USED A NON LINGUISTIC IMPLICIT SPACEnTIME ASSOCIATION TASK TO MEASURE HOW %NGLISH AND -ANDARIN SPEAKERS SPATIALIZE TIME ; = 4HE STUDIES CONSISTENTLY lND DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE TWO LANGUAGE GROUPS ALONG THE VERTICAL AXIS -ANDARIN SPEAKERS SHOW AN IMPLICIT VERTICAL PATTERN OF SPACEnTIME ASSOCIATION CONSIST ENT WITH VERTICAL SPACEnTIME METAPHORS IN -ANDARIN WITH EARLIER EVENTS ABOVE AND LATER EVENTS BELOW %NGLISH SPEAKERS DO NOT SHOW EVIDENCE OF THIS VERTICAL SPACEnTIME ASSOCIA TION 4HE lNDINGS ARE CONSISTENT WITH OTHER WORK SHOWING THAT EXPERIENCE WITH SPEAKING -ANDARIN ;= AND PROCESSING VERTICAL TIME METAPHORS IN PARTICULAR ; = HELPS CRE ATE AND MAINTAIN -ANDARIN SPEAKERS REPRESENTATIONS OF TIME ON THE VERTICAL AXIS 4HESE RESULTS REVEAL THAT PEOPLE AUTOMATICALLY INSTANTIATE SPATIAL REPRESENTATIONS OF TIME THAT ARE CONSISTENT WITH THE SET OF SPATIOTEMPORAL METAPHORS IN THEIR LINGUISTIC ENVIRONMENT EVEN IN NONLINGUISTIC TASKS 336 20. HOW LANGUAGES CONSTRUCT TIME MOTION IN TIME ,INGUISTIC ANALYSES HAVE SUGGESTED THAT -ANDARIN RELIES MORE HEAVILY ON TIME MOVING AS OPPOSED TO EGO MOVING METAPHORS THAN DOES %NGLISH 4HAT IS IN -ANDARIN METAPHORS THAT SUPPOSE AN OBSERVER MOVING ALONG A STATIONARY TIMELINE ARE LESS LIKELY THAN THOSE THAT SUPPOSE A STATIONARY OBSERVER AND A MOVING TIME LINE $O
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