NATURE AS A METAPHORICAL DOMINANT IN TED HUGHES’ POETRY

В. В. Кос, Бибігүл Жұмабекова

2026

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DOI 10.48081/btouph3.2026/459-472
Data confidence 70 medium
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Abstract

This article examines metaphorical modeling in Ted Hughes’ poetic works, with a focus on figurative language and symbolism. The article presents a study of historical, comparative, and typological linguistics. The purpose of the study is to classify the conceptual metaphors of Ted Hughes and build a structure of his poetic world. The function of metaphor as a cognitive mechanism is presented in the study to understand human emotions, philosophical concepts, and natural phenomena deeper. The research involves analyzing the animalistic and natural imagery that structures metaphorical modeling. The study of metaphorical modelling in Ted Hughes’ poetic texts focuses on figurative language and symbolism and draws on typological, historical, and comparative linguistics. The purpose of the study is the classification of Ted Hughes`s conceptual metaphors in the symbolic structure of his poetic world. The article explains how metaphors compose a cognitive mechanism and help to understand natural phenomena, human emotions, and philosophical ideas. In Hughes’s poetic vision, nature is a prominent source of inspiration for the spiritual, unexamined, and mythic external world and for internal mental processes. A complex interaction between the outer world and internal psychological mechanisms is also explored in the research through animal and landscape depictions, as well as through natural forces. By presenting nature as a strong, conflicting force, Hughes modifies the lines separating people from the natural world, presenting an existential and metaphysical viewpoint that challenges popular romantic representations. The study connects Hughes’s poetic approach with his poetic imagination. The research acknowledges that nature serves as a symbolic language that conveys a deeper philosophical life exploration, death, and the unconscious for Hughes, rather than merely providing a backdrop. This article provides a mature interpretation of Hughes’ poetic imagination as his views are placed in line with contemporary ecological and psychological viewpoints.