The Figurative Core of Social Representations and Figures of Thought

This paper proposes reflections on the ‘figurative core’ of social representation by highlighting the roles of figures of thought. The starting point is the expression ‘figurative model’ in the seminal work of Serge Moscovici, Psychoanalysis: Its Image and Its Public, and later theoretical proposals of the ‘core’, such as Jean Claude Abric’s Central Core Theory and, more recently, Pascal Moliner’s Matrix Nucleus Theory. The notion of ‘image’ runs through these reflections. Starting from these referential concepts, Tarso Mazzotti’s studies on the relationship between ‘figurative core’ and figures of thought are prioritized, especially when the author proposes an ‘argumentative core’ for analysing speeches. An example of some research in which analysis uses rhetorical devices is presented. Overall, the work highlights the presence of a core in social representations which approximates to the approach of rhetorical social representations, and seeks ways to both identify and analyse it.