Temporal and Spatial Cognitive Orientations in English and Chinese: Syntax, Discourse, and Cultural–Semiotic Manifestations

Abstract

Language functions not only as a communicative system but also as a culturally mediated cognitive tool through which speakers organize experience and construct meaning. Drawing on cognitive linguistics, discourse analysis, and cultural semiotics, this paper investigates contrastive patterns between English and Chinese through the analytical lens of temporal and spatial cognitive orientations. Adopting a qualitative, theory-driven approach, the study examines syntactic organization, discourse progression to demonstrate how English discourse tends to privilege linear, temporally sequenced coherence, whereas Chinese discourse often exhibits spatially organized, context-dependent meaning construction. Extending beyond language, the paper further explores how comparable cognitive orientations are reflected in art, architecture, and aesthetic traditions, thereby underscoring the pervasiveness of cognitive–cultural patterns across semiotic domains. The study argues that these cognitive tendencies, while functional within their respective cultural systems, may contribute to pragmatic misalignment and communicative difficulty in intercultural interaction. Therefore, cultivating learners’ awareness of such cognitive differences can enhance intercultural communicative competence and facilitate the development of a flexible “third cultural identity” in EFL education.