CFP

[Rene Dirven]

Dear Chris,
Here is a version tha will cause no degrading.
Could you have the former replaced by this one? Many thanks,
Rene


Call for Papers for a Theme Session at ICLC 2003

 by Roslyn Frank, Brigitte Nerlich, Javier Valenzuela, Rene Dirven

 Shifting Paradigms: Embodiment, Metaphor and the 'Third Wave'

 (with the proviso that the theme session is accepted by the organizers)

 Given our own belief that cognitive linguistics needs to develop a broader
 and more transdisciplinary focus, we think that ICLC 2003 could provide us
 with an opportunity to pull together researchers who are working on these
 issues in different fields but with common concerns centering around
notions
 of 'embodiment/enactment/situatedness' and the role that metaphor and
 entrenched cognitive integration networks play in science. At the same
time,
 at this juncture in the development of the field of cognitive linguistics
we
 believe it is important to open things up by bringing in meta-theoretical
 concerns, that is, the way that cognitive linguistics is defining itself
and
 constituting its limits or boundaries as a discipline. We
 already see
 that those working in cognitive linguistics regularly cross the limits
 between different disciplines and scientific methods and therefore have
 supported the development of interdisciplinary approaches and views. Yet,
as
 a discipline we still do not recognize the place that cognitive linguistics
 occupies in terms of its interdependence on the ideological, scientific and
 social trends in adjoining fields. To slightly paraphrase the words of
 Othmar Ploeckmeyer, this makes it obvious that cognitive linguistics is not
 growing out of itself, but is interwoven with several other areas and
 disciplines. And finally, we believe that this theme session could
 contribute to a kind of increased creativity within cognitive linguistics
 which is important for the development of a new discipline. Furthermore:
 "Creativity is only productive for the discipline, if it enters into a
 relationship of tension with its methodological management and control,
 which includes - and by no means lastly - the formation of
 professional
 traditions (training of the next generation)" (Maas, 1996, p. 109).
 Certainly the ICLC conferences are one of the major forums for exchange of
 ideas that in turn contribute to the formation of the next generation of
 cognitive linguists.
 Our own experience has been that historians and philosophers of science who
 are working on the role of metaphor in scientific thought are familiar with
 older research, e.g., by Lakoff and Johnson, but do not show any
familiarity
 with more recent research in our field. On the other hand, there appears to
 be little flow of information in the opposite direction: very few people in
 cognitive linguistics seem to be aware of the excellent research that is
 being done on metaphor by these historians of science. At the same time, it
 is important for us to make a concerted effort to reach out to these people
 in the sciences who have already rejected the 'cognitivist' paradigm (by
 which they mean Chomskyan and informational/ computer-like models of the
 mind, etc.) and are moving ahead with the new 'cognitive-linguistic'
 synthesis. We are convinced that these people who are working in the
 so-called hard sciences would embrace our interest in their attempts to
 utilize concepts from cognitive linguistics in redesigning their
theoretical
 paradigm. The following subsessions are planned:

 Session 1. Introduction: Current theoretical discussions of embodiment
 /enaction /grounding /situatedness across disciplines
 Session 2. Metaphor and the History of Science
 Session 3. Metaphor and Embodiment: Interfaces between Cybernetics and  CL
 Session 4. Embodiment and Metaphor: Molecular Biology and Cognitive Science
 Session 5. Cognitive Linguistics meets Evolutionary Biology
 Session 6. Final Round Table

 All those that wish to contribute to this endeavour are kindly invited to
 send a one-page abstract to rene.dirven at pandora.be by the 15th September
 2002, indicating the subsession they want to address. Upon request you will
 regularly be sent a growing bibliography on "embodiment" until a website is
available by mid November 2002.