Re-Framing Reality: Lacanian Psychoanalysis and Cognitive Allegory in James Thurber’s Fables

This study elevates the theory of allegory from a static, decorative literary trope into a dynamic cognitive and discursive framework that directly structures human thought and governs social action. Synthesizing Jacques Lacan’s psychoanalytic account of the subject within the Symbolic Order, the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis of linguistic relativity, and contemporary cognitive metaphor theory, this paper demonstrates that human beings interpret reality through inherited chains of allegorical signifiers and conceptual schemas. Focusing on the modern fables of James Thurber, the research applies a purposive theoretical sampling model to conduct an in-depth qualitative analysis of ۱۵ paradigmatic fables—texts that explicitly subvert classical fairy-tale expectations, expose the fatal consequences of flawed analogical mapping, and lay bare the structural violence of political framing. Furthermore, a macro-level thematic analysis synthesizes the remaining corpus into thematic clusters addressing epistemic hubris and bureaucratic absurdity. Expanding textuality to encompass caricatures, proverbs, and institutional discourses, this study proves that Thurber’s satirical fables do not replace old dogmas with new rules; rather, they disrupt automatic cognitive processing, forcing readers to recognize the arbitrariness of dominant signifiers and opening space for alternative conceptual modes. Ultimately, this inquiry confirms that a critical shift in how we deconstruct and read allegories can fundamentally transform behavioral structures and cultural discourses.

کلیدواژه ها:

Cognitive Allegory ، James Thurber ، Lacanian Subject ، Discursive Framing