Resumen

FAJARDO URIBE, Luz Amparo. A THEORETICAL APPROACH TO THE UNDERSTANDING-INTERPRETATION OF FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE OF LATE L2 LEARNERS. Forma funcion, Santaf, de Bogot, D.C. [online]. 2013, vol.26, n.1, pp.165-181. ISSN 0120-338X.

Abstract The article starts out from the assumption that late L2 learners develop strategies for the interpretation of figurative language that are different from those of monolingual speakers. Those strategies vary depending on the type of figurative language the speakers are faced with as well as on the situation they find themselves in. The paper first characterizes figurative and non-figurative language, and the n goes on to present examples of different types of figurative language in the two object languages in order to contrast them and determine what type of difficulties L2 learners might face when trying to understand-interpret each one of those expressions. Finally, it discusses the explanations of understanding-interpretation processes in order to conclude that late L2 learners first opt for the non-figurative interpretation and move to the figurative one when they do not understand what is being said contextually, while monolingual speakers opt automatically for the figurative or the literal interpretation.

Palabras clave : non-figurative language; figurative language; idiomatic expressions; metaphors; understanding-interpretation; socio-cultural context; communicative intention.

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