ABSTRACT
In Chapter 7, in relation to schema theory, we explored one early solution to the problem of specifying how our contextual and background knowledge can be brought to bear on any single literary encounter. In Chapter 8, on Conceptual Metaphor Theory, we considered how different domains of knowledge can be mapped to produce figurative meaning. Bringing both of these areas together, we can start to think about some key issues for dealing with literary context in reading. Given that we have large domains of knowledge associated with particular words or phrases, how can we understand the mechanism by which the specifically most useful knowledge is identified and used? How is the information stored when we deploy it in literary reading? And how can we explain the commonly agreed fact that we can generate new concepts and experiences on the basis of old and familiar meanings?
