Analogical Dialectics in Religious Language
Beyond Literal/Metaphorical Reductionism
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 3122648 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Javad Taheri (0000-0002-3584-4524, University of Groningen, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2024 |
| Volume | 15 |
| Issue | 11 |
| Pages | 1343 |
| Publication date | 2024-11-03 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Religions (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2077-1444 • E-ISSN: 2077-1444 |
| Publisher | MDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT) |
| DOI | 10.3390/rel15111343 |
| OpenAlex | W4404047085 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 34 |
This paper investigates the developmental trajectory of the debate concerning the nature of religious language, particularly the contrast between its literal and metaphorical dimensions, situating it within the broader context of linguistic, philosophical, and theological scholarship. Drawing on contemporary research, it offers a critical evaluation of three major approaches, with a detailed analysis of one in particular. The first two approaches, literalism and metaphoricism, are critiqued for their reductionist frameworks, which fundamentally erode the multifaceted nature of this discourse. The third approach, while avoiding these reductionist pitfalls, still calls for further clarification of the mechanisms underlying the interplay between these elements. Through conceptual analysis and grammatical examination, it demonstrates that this proposal, which posits a dynamic interaction-where neither dimension is subordinate to the other, but rather, they paradoxically coexist-yields a more accurate account. The findings suggest that this dialectical approach surpasses the conventional treatment of the literal-metaphorical nexus, proposing that religious language is not only communicative and comprehensible but also an evolving process in which grammatical perplexity fosters semantic depth and intellectual insight
Cognitive science · Dialectic · Epistemology · Linguistics · Reductionism · Biblical Studies and Interpretation · Medieval and Classical Philosophy · Philosophy · Psychology · Study and Philosophy of Religion
Literal Meaning
More than Cool Reason
The Cambridge Handbook of Metaphor and Thought
Context and Logical Form
XII.—Metaphor
Metaphors, religious language and linguistic expressibility
Literal and metaphorical meaning
The Analogy of Being
The pre-linguistic basis of grammaticalisation
The Meanings of Literal
Coupling of metaphoric cognition and communication
You Don't Say
On What Is Strictly Speaking True
Metaphors as Knowledge in Mystical Writings
Where the Spirit Meets the Bone
Seeing and Believing
The Metaphorical Process as Cognition, Imagination, and Feeling
What Metaphors Mean
Speech Acts
| Highly cited | No |
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