Corpus Fractum: Metaphors we hurt by

This study examines how differences in the salience of the concept of self in Chinese and American cultural contexts influence metaphorical expressions related to the “broken body” in Chinese and English. The metaphors analyzed in this paper draw on the concept of bodily disintegration, associated with the verbs 破 ( pò )/ break and 碎 ( suì )/ shatter , as the source domain. Data were collected from authoritative dictionaries and two large corpora: the Center for Chinese Linguistics (CCL) and the Corpus of Contemporary American English (COCA). Preliminary quantitative and qualitative analyses indicate that “broken body” metaphors are more frequent and diverse in the Chinese data than in the English data. Notably, Chinese metaphors involving 碎 ( su ì , ‘shatter’) often imply self-sacrifice for the collective good—an implication that is rarely observed in the English data. These metaphorical patterns appear to reflect broader cultural differences. In Chinese culture, where the concept of self is more relational and less individually centered, self-realization is understood as attainable only within the context of social harmony and collective integrity. Consequently, damage to bodily wholeness is perceived as especially destructive, symbolizing a rupture in this interconnectedness. In contrast, Western culture tends to conceptualize the self as autonomous and independent, which may contribute to a diminished emphasis on the metaphorical significance of bodily integrity. This orientation is reflected in the relatively limited use of “broken body” metaphors in the English data.