Acknowledgments One of the greatest joys during the writing of this thesis is discussing with people who have given not just their time and attention, but their hearts and souls as well. I would like to thank the following people for their dedication and contribution, without which the path to the finishing line would have been a whole lot more bumpy.
My profound gratitude first goes to Associate Prof. Yan Ming, my supervisor, who has generously shared her inspirational and provocative ideas during many of our face-to-face discussion sessions. Only with her generous assistance and skilled guidance can I finally complete my thesis. I would also express my sincere thanks to Ms. Wang Linlin, the teacher from school-enterprise cooperation program, who has made instructive suggestions to my final revision.
Besides, my heartfelt thanks should also be extended to all the teachers in Shanghai Institute of Technology, who have imparted great knowledge to me and assist me in my academic research.
Last but not least, my special thanks should be given to my family, friends and classmates who have given me encouragement, support and confidence to accomplish my thesis.
Abstract
Neologism is the mirror of the society. The flexible morphological structures of English facilitate novel combinations. Recently, numerous blending words came into being based on one type of word formation, blending, are concise in form, rich in meaning, attractive and novel in nature, which reflect the powerfulness and vitality of neologism. Previous studies of English novel blending words focused largely on the classification, feature and prevalence. These studies have their own merits, whereas some questions still remain unanswered, especially how the creative cognitive process of a language user is used in the compression of complex meaning into a single or compound word.
Based on the systemic analysis of the existing research and theories, this dissertation mainly integrates Conceptual Metaphor Theory, Conceptual Blending Theory and Prototype Theory in Cognitive Linguistics as a whole to interpret the construction of novel blending words from a multiple-theoretical perspective. Finally, a tentative cognitive model is put forward in search of establishing a unique perspective and comprehensive theoretical system in annotating neologism. The study and analysis of English neologism and the establishment of the model in the dissertation are not only to reflect the meaning, formation and feature of novel blending words but also to uncover in an integrated view the cognitive mechanism of human beings.
Key Words: English neologism, novel blending words, Conceptual Metaphor Theory, Conceptual Blending Theory, Prototype Theory