The Construction of Conceptual Meaning in Print Footwear Advertisements

Abstract

The aim of this study is to shed some light on how print footwear ads are created and interpreted from a cognitive linguistic perspective. With this purpose in mind we will analyse the various ways in which metaphor, metonymy and image schemas together with color are exploited by advertisers in this type of products to persuade the audience and influence their choices. Hence, a cognitive linguistic approach has been used to analyze nine advertisements that were released between the year 2006 and 2013 in an online corpus, “Adsoftheworld”, from its footwear section. The analysis is structured according to the theory of cognitive linguistics outlined over the last decades (amongst others see, for instance, Johnson, 1987; Lakoff, 1987 & 1990; Lakoff & Johnson, 1980 & 1999; Forceville, 1996, 2006, 2009 & 2012; Ruiz de Mendoza, 2000; Ungerer, 2000).