George Lakoff facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
George Lakoff
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Lakoff, 2012
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George Philip Lakoff
May 24, 1941 Bayonne, New Jersey, U.S.
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Robin Lakoff
(divorced)
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| Institutions | University of California, Berkeley |
| Doctoral advisor | Fred Householder |
George Lakoff is an American linguist and philosopher. He is famous for his idea that the way people think and act is greatly shaped by the metaphors they use. Metaphors are ways we understand one thing by thinking of it as something else.
Lakoff's main idea, called the conceptual metaphor theory, was introduced in his 1980 book Metaphors We Live By, which he wrote with Mark Johnson. This idea has been used in many different subjects, like politics, literature, and even math.
For example, Lakoff looked at how people talk about politics. In his 1996 book Moral Politics, he suggested that people who are more conservative often think of the government like a "strict father." This father expects people to be responsible and disciplined. On the other hand, people who are more liberal might think of the government like a "nurturing parent." This parent focuses on helping and protecting everyone. Lakoff believes that the words and ideas we use (our "frames") can really change how we see political issues.
He also studied how metaphors were used to explain the Persian Gulf War in 1991. He argued that the way the war was talked about by the government used metaphors that made it seem more acceptable. From 2003 to 2008, Lakoff worked with a group called the Rockridge Institute, which helped people understand how language affects politics. Lakoff was a professor of linguistics at the University of California, Berkeley, from 1972 until he retired in 2016.
Contents
Understanding Metaphors and Thought
How Metaphors Shape Our Thinking
George Lakoff is well-known for his ideas about how metaphors work. Traditionally, people thought metaphors were just a way of using language to make writing more interesting. But Lakoff argues that metaphors are much more important. He believes they are a basic part of how we think and understand the world.
Lakoff says that our everyday thoughts and actions are deeply connected to metaphors. He explains that we can only think without metaphors when we are talking about very simple, physical things. The more complex or abstract an idea is, the more we rely on metaphors to understand it.
Often, we don't even notice these metaphors because they are so common. For example, when we talk about an argument, we often use words that come from the idea of "argument is war" or "argument is struggle."
- Someone might say, "He won the argument."
- Or, "Your ideas are indefensible."
- Another example is, "He shot down all my points."
- Or, "His criticisms were right on target."
Lakoff suggests that as human thought has developed, we have created better and better metaphors. He also points out that using ideas from one area to understand another can lead to new insights.
The Embodied Mind Idea
When Lakoff talks about the mind being "embodied," he means that our thinking is deeply connected to our bodies. This includes our senses, how we move, and our feelings. He believes that even our most complex thoughts depend on these basic body functions.
So, the idea of an "embodied mind" means that we can't fully understand how humans reason without looking at how our bodies work. Lakoff gives a few reasons for this:
- First, he uses ideas from brain science to show that some concepts, like colors or understanding "over" or "under," are understood through how our senses and movements work.
- Second, he argues that the way we think about big topics like war or fairness is connected to how we think about simple things like space. This is where his idea of conceptual metaphor comes in.
- Third, he says that most of the ways humans group things into categories are not simple "yes" or "no" types. Instead, they are more complex, just like our bodies. Lakoff says, "We are neural beings. Our brains take their input from the rest of our bodies. What our bodies are like and how they function in the world thus structures the very concepts we can use to think."
Lakoff believes that our consciousness is connected to our brains and bodies. He suggests that if a "soul" couldn't feel, think, or be conscious, then what would be the purpose of an afterlife? He also explains that ideas built with complex metaphors are hard to prove wrong directly. Instead, they are often judged based on how people interpret things, which is also guided by other metaphors.
Lakoff, along with Mark Johnson and Rafael E. Núñez, is a main supporter of the "embodied mind" idea. Many other thinkers have also explored this concept, linking it to older philosophical ideas about how our bodies and experiences shape our understanding.
Mathematics and Our Minds
Lakoff also believes that even mathematics is shaped by human minds and cultures. He argues that we can't really know if math exists "out there" in the universe independently of us. This is because the way we understand math comes from the way our brains and bodies work.
Lakoff and Rafael E. Núñez wrote a book called Where Mathematics Comes From: How the Embodied Mind Brings Mathematics into Being. In it, they argue that mathematical ideas are best understood by looking at how our embodied minds create them. They suggest that the study of math should consider how the human body works as a basic starting point.
Lakoff has said that we should not assume that mathematics is somehow built into the universe itself. He explained that the structures of scientific knowledge are in our brains, based on our bodies. So, we can't "tell" that math is "out there" without using ideas that come from our own biology.
Lakoff's Political Ideas
Understanding Political Thinking
George Lakoff has shared his ideas about how our thinking shapes politics. In his book Moral Politics (first published in 1996 and updated in 2001 and 2016), he looks at the main metaphors that he believes are in the minds of American liberals and conservatives.
Lakoff argues that the differences in political opinions come from two main ideas about how the government relates to its citizens. He says both groups often think of government using family metaphors.
- The Strict Father Model: Conservatives, Lakoff suggests, often lean more towards a "strict father model." In this view, the government is like a strong father who expects "children" (citizens) to be disciplined and responsible. Once people are "adults" (responsible), the "father" (government) should not interfere in their lives.
- The Nurturing Parent Model: In contrast, Lakoff says liberals often support a "nurturing parent model." Here, both parents (government) work to protect the "children" (citizens) from bad influences like pollution or poverty.
Lakoff believes that most people use a mix of both ideas at different times. He says that political discussions often work by bringing up these metaphors and trying to get people to favor one over the other.
How Language Shapes Politics
Lakoff also argues that liberals have sometimes struggled because they haven't been as aware of their own guiding metaphors. He says they have sometimes used words and phrases that conservatives created, which actually support the "strict father" idea.
For example, Lakoff says that using terms like "tax relief" can be problematic. This phrase suggests that taxes are a burden that people need "relief" from. By using such terms, people might unknowingly support a different way of thinking. Lakoff believes that liberals need to be more careful with their language and create their own ways of talking about issues.
Lakoff offers advice on how to respond to misleading statements from politicians. He suggests that simply saying a lie is false can sometimes make the lie stronger because it repeats the way the lie was first presented. Instead, he recommends what he calls a "truth sandwich":
- Start with the truth.
- Briefly mention the lie, but try not to repeat its exact words.
- Return to the truth, repeating it more often than the lie.
This method aims to make sure the truth is heard first and last, helping people remember it better.
From 2003 to 2008, Lakoff was involved with the Rockridge Institute, a group that focused on helping liberal politicians and candidates understand how to use language effectively. He gave many talks and wrote about his ideas from Moral Politics. In 2008, Lakoff joined Fenton Communications, a large firm that helps public interest groups. His book Don't Think of an Elephant! Know Your Values and Frame the Debate (2004) is a guide for progressives on these topics.
Disagreement with Steven Pinker
In 2006, another well-known scientist, Steven Pinker, wrote a review of Lakoff's book Whose Freedom?. Pinker argued that Lakoff's ideas were not well supported and that his advice for politics might not work. Pinker also said that Lakoff was unfair in how he described other beliefs.
Lakoff wrote a response, saying that Pinker misunderstood his views. Lakoff stated that he is a "realist" about how the mind and the world work. He explained that even though our minds use frames and metaphors, the goal is to use our minds to understand the world accurately.
Books by George Lakoff
- 2016. Moral Politics: How Liberals and Conservatives Think (3rd ed.).
- 2012 with Elisabeth Wehling. The Little Blue Book: The Essential Guide to Thinking and Talking Democratic.
- 2008. The Political Mind: Why You Can't Understand 21st-Century American Politics with an 18th-Century Brain.
- 2006. Whose Freedom?: The Battle over America's Most Important Idea.
- 2006. Thinking Points: Communicating Our American Values and Vision.
- 2004. Don't Think of an Elephant: Know Your Values and Frame the Debate.
- 2003 with Mark Johnson. Metaphors We Live By (2nd ed.).
- 2001. Moral Politics: How Liberals and Conservatives Think (2nd ed.).
- 2000 with Rafael Núñez. Where Mathematics Comes From: How the Embodied Mind Brings Mathematics into Being.
- 1999 with Mark Johnson. Philosophy in the Flesh: The Embodied Mind and Its Challenge to Western Thought.
- 1996. Moral Politics: What Conservatives Know That Liberals Don't.
- 1989 with Mark Turner. More Than Cool Reason: A Field Guide to Poetic Metaphor.
- 1987. Women, Fire, and Dangerous Things: What Categories Reveal About the Mind.
- 1980 with Mark Johnson. Metaphors We Live By.
- 1970. Irregularity in Syntax.
Images for kids
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Lakoff, 2012
See also
In Spanish: George Lakoff para niños
- Cognitive linguistics
- Conceptual metaphor
- Embodied philosophy
- Framing (social sciences)
- Language and thought
- Metaphor
