Metaphor as Microcosm – Metaphor in and through Maximus the Confessor’s Mystagogy

Abstract

In this thesis, I aim to cross-fertilize a composite theory of metaphor with the theology of Maximus the Confessor. The theory is primarily based on Conceptual Metaphor Theory, complemented by the perspectives of Paul Ricoeur and Hans Blumenberg. In the first part of the analysis, I apply the theory to Maximus’ Mystagogy, with the goal of elucidating what is at play in the symbols of the text. I argue that the theory reveals a coherent metaphorical structure behind the symbols, anchored in bodily reality while also offering theological relevance. In the second part, I reevaluate the theory both in light of the results of the first part, as well as through Maximus theology more broadly. I argue that Maximus’ Christology both aligns with and redefines an embodied realism; that metaphor is realistic because it refers to movement; that symbolic structures are fractal by nature; and that metaphorical relations are reciprocal through being embedded in the Logos.