Experiences Made of Wool: Visual and Verbal Metaphorical Reconceptualization in Adoption and Foster Care Narratives

Abstract

This paper aims at exploring adoption and foster care discourse (AFD) so as to uncover the role of multimodal novel metaphor, and the resulting ad hoc concepts, in (re)addressing (AF) narratives. It specifically focuses on the picture book 'Speranza’s Sweater' (Pusey and Mello, 2018), and the extended conceptual metaphor A LIFE STORY (OF A CHILD [IN ADOPTION AND FOSTER CARE]) IS A SWEATER, as well as the net of minor related metaphors. These are analysed following Romero and Soria’s (1997, 2005a, 2007, 2014 and 2016) as well as Forceville (1994, 2008)’s frameworks on, respectively, novel and multimodal metaphors. Dictionaries, thesauri, corpus-assisted tools, as well as close reading/viewing will inform the delineation of source and target domains. The paper illustrates and concludes the cognitive power of multimodal creative choices in relation to (AFD) to integrate children’s past, present, and future experiences, while strengthening their sense of identity and belonging.