Attractor’s Trajectories in the Discursive Emergence of Systematic Metaphor: Reflections from a Reading Practice

Resumo

This paper investigates the nature of systematic metaphor as it emerges in the discourse produced after a silent reading activity, from a point of view that considers it as embodied and socioculturally situated, as well as the flow of attractors during the emergence of such metaphor. In this investigation, we are particularly interested in explaining the attractor concept in line with Complex Adaptive System (CAS) theory applied to discourse and in understanding how its movements direct and instruct the discursive flow. Our investigation, linked to the studies of systematic metaphors and language from the perspective of systems dynamics, springs from research developed by the Study Group on Language and Thought – GELP-COLIN, of the Federal University of Ceará, and is based on recent research related to CAS theory (Larsen-Freeman; Cameron, 2008; Cameron; Maslen, 2010; Almeida Júnior, 2016; Almeida Júnior; Pelosi; Bessa, 2019; Pelosi; Almeida Júnior, 2022). Analyses are based on the figurative language that emerged from the speech produced in a focus group interaction, after the silent reading of an opinion article. Results with focus on primary and secondary level attractors point to the emergence of several metaphors that translate attitudes, concerns and anxieties of the interaction participants.