Introduction
This thesis is aimed at investigating the grammatical metaphorical distribution patterns ,the operating mechanism of grammatical metaphor (hereafter abbreviated as GM) in literarycritical essays (hereafter abbreviated as LCEs), and the stylistic value of the GM distributionpattern. A corpus-based analysis of the distribution of GM in literary critical essays will beconducted to find out what the operating mechanism of GM in those chosen articles is;whether the investigation of the incongruent distribution lexicogrammatical resources can beutilized to reveal a significant means of foregrounding, thus constituting an important aspectof style markers; what the implications of the current study is to have a better understandingand composition of LCEs for those intended readers and would-be writers. Metaphor has long been a fascinating and controversial issue in linguistic study. Intraditional rhetoric study, metaphor is approached as a figure of speech which is parallel tosimile, synecdoche and metonymy, exploiting the substitution of the expression of one thingfor a similar notion. From the point view of modern linguistics, however, metaphor is notmerely treated as a lexical matter, a shifting and displacement of words; rather, it ismechanism of human thought involving the attribution of certain features from one thing (i.e.vehicle) to another (i.e. tenor). Some linguists, take Lakoff&Johnson(1980) for example,define metaphor as an essential mechanism with which human beings conceptualize theirexperience of the world.Generally speaking, traditional approaches to metaphor are more or less confined to theperspective of lexical level. Halliday, believes that metaphorical variation can not only occurat lexical level, but at lexicogrammatical level as well. Halliday (1985, 321) first proposes thenotion of grammatical metaphor to designate that metaphorical expressions involvelexicogrammatical transferences from one kind to another. He (2004:233) also holds the viewthat lexical and grammatical metaphors are not two different phenomena but are “ bothaspects of the same general metaphorical strategy by which we expand our semantic resources for construing experience.”In his series of articles concerning Language of Science, Halliday (1966, 1987, 1988,1989, 1993, 1995, 1997, 1998 and 1999) expounds the process of how common language hasbeen transformed into science language. A great many basic category words have beentransformed into scientific English words through which the characteristics of abstractness,objectivity and high lexical density have been embodied.The breakthroughs in science and technology in the early 20thsoon exerted greatinfluences over humanity research and study, and scientism once became a fashion in literarystudy. It is a kind of philosophy through which research and study are carried out from theperspective of natural science, principles and methodology, which emphasizes objectivity,accuracy and scientificness.In contemporary literary criticism, “ linguistic turn” first appeared in literary essays fromthe perspective of scientism. From Russian Formalism, Prague school, new criticism, tostructuralism, semiotics and to deconstructionism, though their specific theories and views aredifferent from each other, they all put linguistic view in the centre of their study and research.Zhu Gang (2006:8) states that the methods prevalent in scientific discourse have exerted greatinfluence over western literary criticism characterized by diversified studies, systematicresearch and specialization, and that the breakthroughs in science have spread in literary studyand scientism has soon found its way in literary criticism. Scientific discourse which fullyemploys grammatical metaphor to achieve its goal must have an effect on essays on westernliterary criticism in the ideational expression, construction of interpersonal meanings andtextual organization.Since the introduction of the notion of grammatical metaphor, l
