Why aren’t we Saving the Planet: A Psycholotist’s Perspective (26 page)

In this second sequence from Clara, she is trying to find a suitable metaphor to show that change is possible starting with small beginnings. The metaphor she seizes on is that of battery farming and the way that word spread about the unacceptability of this type of farming. Of particular note here is the extent and size of the accompanying gestures. When talking about ‘millions of chains of people’ the gesture represents these layers and layers of people who are involved. Similarly, gesture 13, used to represent how knowledge and action against battery hens became a ‘widespread thing’, spreads right out across the gestural space from the centre of the body, extending the left arm as far as it will go, indicating just how widespread and encompassing this issue became. The nature and the scope of her gestures reinforce the content of what she is saying, but add a new dimension through their all-encompassing nature. She believes passionately that such change is possible, and such change is in complete accordance with her explicit as well as her implicit attitude.

Yeah [but then like you said like th:e :: battery he-battery]
₍₈₎
[hen stuff and the eggs and stuff]
₍₉₎
[well who started that]
₍₁₀₎
:::: [that was just word of mouth and like]
₍₁₁₎
: [millions of ::: chains of people]
₍₁₂₎
and then it just became like : [a w:i:despread]
₍₁₃₎
thing didn’t it

In the gestural sequence below, Gemma is talking about how carbon labelling can guide consumers to the right choice. When talking about the size of carbon footprint labels, she says ‘it’s just a little thing so that people can see it’, but notice the span of the gesture (gesture 15) accompanying ‘little thing’. The gesture does not seem to mirror the physical dimensions of the carbon labels available on commercial products. To slightly modify McNeill’s description of a growth point example to make the point, ‘The gesture and sentence … reflected the speaker’s conceptualizing of the carbon label as much as the objective carbon label content’
(McNeill 2005:121). Thus, this speaker through her gestural exaggeration in gesture 15 appears to indicate that the carbon labels should be much more perceptually salient and significant to other people as they are to her with both her explicit and implicit attitudes positive and convergent.

[If it’s like what : y’know like in the corner]
₍₁₄₎
[like just a little thi:n:g]
₍₁₅₎
:: [probably so that people]
₍₁₆₎
can ::: [see it]
₍₁₇₎
: [if they’re gonna]
₍₁₈₎
:: but :: not : so it’s : that’s : all you notice