Map And Language / A Metaphor Extended

Abstract
Interpreted as a metaphor rather than a hypothesis, the analogy between map and language is incapable of being conclusively refuted by logical argument, and its weaknesses cannot be proved to outweigh its strengths. The weaknesses have been explained by Robinson and others, but justice has not yet been done to the strengths. This paper offers cartographic parallels for the sentence and the phrase together with nearly all the parts of speech of traditional grammar. The possibility of a cartographic equivalent for comparative linguistics is considered, and maps are used to illustrate the philosophical distinction between object languages and metalanguages.

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