Metaphors of a Bodily Mind

Abstract

Patients' metaphors in analysis may allow access to ineffable experiences. This is understandable, since the mind is a bodily mind, and language is a fully embodied function of this mind. That is, both are dependent for their existence upon the physical body. The ontogenic accumulation of perceived sensory impressions and affective processes far exceeds what can be put into words. Research in cognitive psychology suggests that the active mind functions in such a manner that later perceptions are organized by means of earlier ones. However, since the mind can know only its own representations, it inhabits two ever unknown realms: the external world itself, and the domain of internal unconscious processes that sustain the mind's functions. As a result, the world and the self we know are constructed by the mediation of our bodies. In language also, the active mode by which we perceive, process, and feel makes our understanding of words dependent on previous experience. The fact that the limbic system is activated immediately in the moment of processing experience means that all modalities of representation include an affective valuation. This inevitable processing of information through the mediation of affectively valued bodily perceptions gives the metaphorical function-the human capacity to organize experience and life in metaphoric ways-the ability to create linguistic metaphors that can capture and express otherwise inexpressible psychic experiences. This manner of understanding metaphor has implications for psychoanalytic technique.

In their Own Words: Understanding Student Conceptions of Writing Through their Spontaneous Metaphors in the Science Classroom

“…Metaphors are an essential mechanism of the mind (Martinez et al, 2001), whose power, according to Rizzuto (2001), stems from their ability to commingle affect, history and story. Thus, a metaphor is a source of cognitive priming, which elicits semantic, behavioral, and affective responses (Blair & Banaji, 1996).…”

“…When we construct a metaphor we intuitively reach into parts of ourselves that may be beyond our awareness. Metaphors express the ineffable and refer directly or indirectly not only to us, but also to other significant happenings, psychic events, or interpersonal experiences (Rizzuto, 2001). Thus, metaphors are deep, personal structures in language that are far more meaningful than is commonly thought, the idea being that they are not chosen at random (Inbar, 1997).…”

Dream screen phenomenon in psychotherapy and artistic work

“…The experiences of such a fusion are gradually internalized to form a stable ego nucleus and the dream screen phenomenon reflects the internalized result of this process. Rizzuto (30) points out that internal unconscious processes sustain the mind's functions. According to her, the processing of information through the mediation of affectively valued bodily perceptions gives the possibility to create linguistic metaphors that can express otherwise inexpressible psychic experiences.…”

“…Such dreams are comforting and happy. Some perceptions of actual physical reality may come up against the limitation of language, such as the presence of the beloved or the beauty of a sunset (30). According to Rizzuto, we understand these experiences to be ineffable, and that only poetry may at times succeed in expressing them in words*/metaphors of a bodily mind.…”

The Unconscious

“…The "psychoanalytic" additions in the definitions are my own. However, lately, these schemes have been taken into considerations in the analytic literature (Enckell, 2002a;Melnick, 1997;Rizzuto, 2000).…”