The role of memory and metaphors in literature is the subject of a new book by Nicolae
Babuts, French professor emeritus at Syracuse University. "Memory, Metaphors, and
Meaning: Reading Literary Texts" (Transaction Publishers, 2009) is an original study of
the human condition through the twin lenses of cognitive science and literature. The
book marks the culmination of decades of study, drawing on Babuts's knowledge of
19th-century French language and culture, as well as his familiarity with the English,
Italian and Romanian literatures.
"Memory, Metaphors, and Meaning" is based on the premise that people process texts
the same way they explain the physical world-in small segments that Babuts calls
dynamic patterns, or metaphors. "Metaphors are not only rhetorical constructs, but also
instruments of discovery and paths to knowledge," he explains. The Syracuse resident
says that when people read, they integrate stimulus sequences with corresponding
patterns in memory to recognize and interpret segments of text. Memory, in turn,
produces meaning from these patterns. Central to this process are metaphors, which are
words, clauses or sentences transferred from one context to another in the form of
figurative echoes. "Meaning is dependent on mnemonic initiatives," he adds. "Without
metaphors and, ultimately, memory, the world would be meaningless. Meaning lives
through the collision of language and sensory data."
This is not the first time that Babuts, who taught at SU for 30 years, has swum in
cognitive waters. His two other books-"The Dynamics of the Metaphoric Field: A
Cognitive View of Literature" and "Baudelaire: At the Limits and Beyond," published
by the University of Delaware Press in 1992 and 1997, respectively-demonstrate the
scientific power of metaphors and narratives. "Literature explores the human
condition, the mystery of the world, life and death, as well as our relations with
others," he continues. "Like science, it aims for an authentic version of the truth."
Babuts thinks that "Memory, Metaphors, and Meaning" will especially intrigue lovers
of literature and cognitive science alike.
The French program is part of the Department of Languages, Literatures and
Linguistics in SU's College of Arts and Sciences. More information about the college is
available at http://thecollege.syr.edu.
Information about Babuts' book and Transaction Publishers is at
http://www.transactionpub.com/cgi-bin/transactionpublishers
.storefront/en/product/1-
4128-1022-1.
