Patterns & Metaphors
Spatial orientation
Template:
Experience of the physical environment and efforts to coordinate any response to it tend to be made in terms of a spatial frame of reference. This involves polar opposition such as up-down, right-left, in-out, front-back, on-off or centre-periphery. For any given polar opposition, a higher value may be attached to one of the poles.
Metaphor:
Experience of the pycho-cultural environment and efforts to coordinate any response to it may be made in terms of an orientational frame of reference expressed in terms of spatial polarities. For any give polar opposition, a higher value may be attached to one of the poles.
[Features] The organization of a whole system of concepts with respect to one another.
[Contrast] Many positive experiences, whether individual or collective, are associated with 'upward' or 'forward', whilst corresponding negative value is attached to 'downward' or 'backward'. This is the case with regard to feelings, company performance, status, level of debate, standards, development and values in general (e.g. 'good' is 'up'; 'bad' is 'down'). Policy issues are frequently associated with 'right' or 'left', 'centre' or 'periphery'. Value is attached to being 'in' on 'out' of some activity or movement, or to being switched 'on' or 'off'. Most fundamental concepts are effectively organized in terms of one or more spatialization metaphors which provide both an internal systematicity and coherence and an external systemacity amongst such spatial metaphors. But whilst the relationships within a particular polar dimension (up-down) tends to be explicit, the relationships with other such dimensions remains implicit and unexplored.
[Keys] Systematic approaches to organization of space and to orientation within it. Types of discontinuity between frames of reference.<
