Hi Jerry, Terry
With regard to the issue of encyclopedic knowledge, I completely agree
about the merits of apprehending a range of different scenarios that
could potentially be evoked by a single design such as your example
(Jerry) of the wall. This might just be an issue of language between
us, but I think this is precisely what encyclopedic knowledge allows,
unlike dictionary-like knowledge which limits our thinking to
relatively few fixed meanings. The danger is that as designers we
might only consider a limited number of conceptual frames (in the
sense described by Filmore) when users/audiences are actively
constructing meanings using a much broader range of frames, or that we
miss opportunities for our design-outcomes by our thinking being
restricted to one frame only. Your point is also well-made in that,
conversely, it may be desirable to "sharpen" experience. Using
Filmore's terminology this could be achieved by eliciting user
responses that focus on fewer, more concrete, frames.
Jerry, forgive my obtuseness, and there is no way I can match the wit
of "what's a meta for" but I am still stuck on the question of whether
seeing x as y (a wall as a seat, a bin liner as a raincoat) is
metaphorical, a question of affordance, or both of the above? Seeing a
man as a wolf uses a source domain to help us understand a target
domain, using a bin liner as a raincoat projects the role of
waterproof clothing onto the concept of a disposable container for
rubbish, this does little to deepen my understanding of bin liners. Do
you see a difference here, or is it just me? There is undoubtably
conceptual blending taking place my only question is to the extent
that this is metaphorical.
In regard to complexity and metaphor, I feel a little out of my depth
and need a deeper understanding of the complex systems to which you
refer (Terry). Designers are used to consciously utilizing metaphors
in their designs but I think we need to take account of how metaphor
works cognitively, at the unconscious level. If, as Lakoff and Johnson
suggest, conceptual metaphors are pervasive, how do they participate
in our thinking within these "new complex design arenas"?
best
Phil Jones
Senior Lecturer
MA and BA(Hons) Graphic Design
The Arts University College at Bournemouth
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