
#REDIRECT Metaphor
In language, a metaphor is a rhetorical trope where a comparison is made between two seemingly unrelated subjects. Typically, a first object is described as being a second object. In this way, the first object can be economically described because implicit and explicit attributes from the second object can be used to fill in the description of the first. Some (particularly in cognitive linguistics) see metaphor as a basic cognitive function, while others prefer the term analogy for conceptual metaphor. However, metaphor is not always used for practical description and understanding; sometimes it is used for purely aesthetic reasons. Metaphors are commonly confused with similes. ==History== Metaphor is present in written language back to the earliest surviving writings. From the Epic of Gilgamesh: :''My friend, the swift mule, fleet wild ass of the mountain, panther of the wilderness, after we joined together and went up into the mountain, fought the Bull of Heaven and killed it, and overwhelmed Humbaba, who lived in the Cedar Forest, now what is this sleep that has seized you?'' - (Trans. Kovacs, 1989) In this example, the friend is compared to a mule, a wild donkey, and a panther to indicate that the speaker sees traits from these animals in his friend. Even before this example, it is arguable that the stylized cave paintings in the Chauvet-pont-d'arc caves in southern France are a form of visual metaphor. Their highly stylized animal shapes evoke hierarchical relationships and human connections that are not part of the literal depiction. The first writers to discuss metaphor were the Greek philosophers. :''The greatest thing by far is to be a master of metaphor. It is the one thing that cannot be learned from others; it is also a sign of genius, since a good metaphor implies an eye for resemblance.'' - Aristotle, De Poetica, 322 BCE. While this might arguably be an exaggeration, there is evidence that fundamental aspects of human intelligence, pattern recognition and inference drive the human use of metaphor. ==Parts of a metaphor== A metaphor, according to I.A. Richards in ''The Philosophy of Rhetoric'' (1936), consists of two parts: the tenor and vehicle. The tenor is the subject to which attributes are ascribed. The vehicle is the subject from which the attributes are derived. :''All the world's a stage,'' :''And all the men and women merely players'' :''They have their exits and their entrances;'' - William Shakespeare (from ''As you like it'' 2/7) This well known quote is a good example of a metaphor. In this example, "the world" is compared to a stage, the aim being to describe the world by taking well-known attributes from the stage. In this case, the world is the tenor and the stage is the vehicle. "Men and women" are a secondary tenor and "players" is the vehicle for this secondary tenor. The third line begins selecting the attributes to ascribe from the vehicle onto the tenor. The selection of similar attributes is called the ''ground''. In the play, Jaques continues this metaphor for another twenty lines beyond what is shown here - making it a good example of an extended metaphor. ==Types of metaphor== * An extended metaphor is one that sets up a principal subject with several subsidiary subjects or comparisons. The above quote from ''As you like it'' is a good example. The world is described as a stage and then men and women are subsidiary subjects that are further described in the same context. * A mixed metaphor is one that leaps, in the course of a figure, to a second identification inconsistent with the first one. Example: "Clinton stepped up to the plate and grabbed the bull by the horn". Here, the baseball and the activities of a cowboy are implied. Other examples include: "That wet blanket is a loose cannon"; "Strike while the iron is in the fire"; or (said by an administrator whose government-department's budget was slashed) "Now we can just kiss that program right down the drain". * A dead metaphor is one in which the sense of a transferred image is not present. Example: "money", so called because it was first minted at the temple of Juno Moneta. To most people though, "money" does not evoke thoughts of the temple at Juno Moneta. Dead metaphors, by definition, normally go unnoticed; people are typically unaware of the origin of words. For instance, ''consideration'' is a metaphor meaning "take the stars into account", ''mantel'' means "cloak or hood (headgear) to catch smoke", ''gorge'' means throat, and so forth for thousands more. Linguists have identified other types of metaphor too, though the nomenclatures are not universally accepted: * An active metaphor is one which by contrast to a dead metaphor, is not part of daily language and is noticeable as a metaphor. Example: "You are my sun." * An absolute or paralogical metaphor (sometimes called an antimetaphor) is one in which there is no discernible point of resemblance between the idea and the image. Example: "The couch is the autobahn of the living room." * A complex metaphor is one which mounts one identification on another. Example: "That throws some light on the question." Throwing light is a metaphor and there is no actual light. * A compound or loose metaphor is one that catches the mind with several points of similarity. Example: "He has the wild stag's foot." This phrase suggests grace and speed as well as daring. * A dormant metaphor is one in which its contact with the initial idea it denoted has been lost. Example: "He was carried away by his passions." Here, it is not known by what the man was carried away. * An implicit metaphor is one in which the tenor is not specified but implied. Example: "Shut your trap!" Here, the mouth of the listener is the unspecified tenor. * A submerged metaphor is one in which the vehicle is implied, or indicated by one aspect. Example: "my winged thought". Here, the audience must supply the image of the bird. * A simple or tight metaphor is one in which there is but one point of resemblance between the tenor and the vehicle. Example: "Cool it". In this example, the vehicle, "cool", is a temperature and nothing else, so the tenor, "it", can only be grounded to the tenor by one attribute. * A root metaphor is the underlying personal attachments that shape an individual's understanding of a situation. It is different to the previous types of metaphor in that it is not an explicit device in language but merely a part of comprehension. Religion is considered the most common root metaphor since birth, marriage, death and other life experiences can convey a very different meaning to different people based on their level or type of religious adherence. An individual's political affiliations are another root metaphor that may affect the message conveyed by such terms as conservatism and liberal. In the example: "He is a very conservative politician", "conservatism" is the vehicle, "he" is the tenor and the attributes conveyed are dependent on the root metaphor: is it a good or a bad thing to be considered conservative? ==Relationship to other figures of speech== A simile is like a metaphor, in that both compare one object with another, but while a metaphor is implicit, a simile makes the comparison explicit with a word such as "like," "as," or "than." In this respect, a metaphor is a more concrete assertion of identity, and may result in a confusion if taken literally, whereas a simile is clearly just a comparison. Metonymy is the substitution of a closely related word for the intended subject. Unlike a metaphor, a metonymy does not transfer qualities from one word to another; rather, it uses an existing association to draw a link between words. Allegory is an extended section of prose or verse which carries a meaning or message about something other than its literal subject. This can be described as an implicit metaphor. Metaphor taken to its extreme may be called a hyperbole (in cases where a metaphor is exaggerated) or catachresis (in cases where a metaphor borders on nonsense). ==Etymology== Originally, ''metaphor'' was a Greek language word meaning "transfer". The Greek etymology is from ''meta'', implying "a change" and ''pherein'' meaning "to bear, or carry". Thus, the word ''metaphor'' itself has a metaphorical meaning in English language, "a transfer of meaning from one thing to another". In modern Greek the word ''metaphor'' also means ''transport'' or ''transfer''. There are broad categories of figurative language which are classified as metaphorical (see Literal and figurative language). The more common meaning of metaphor is a figure of speech that is used to paint one concept with the attributes normally associated with another. ==See also== *[http://knowgramming.com/metaphors/metaphor_chapters/examples.htm Metaphor Examples] *Tertium comparationis *Conceptual metaphor *list of political metaphors *[http://www.info-metaphore.com Metaphor and transdisciplinarity] ==External links== *[http://www.colorwize.com/MetaphorColorwize.html Examples of metaphors and similes.] == References == *[http://www.lcc.gatech.edu/gallery/rhetoric/terms/metaphor.html ''Rhetoric Terms: Metaphor''] *[http://tscp.open.ac.uk/t185/html/resources/r2history.htm ''A short history of metaphor''] *Ortney, A., Ed. (1993). Metaphor and Thought. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press. *Lakoff, George and Mark Johnson. (1980). Metaphors We Live By. Chicago, Chicago University Press. *Lakoff, G. (1990). Women, Fire, and Dangerous Things: What Categories Reveal about the Mind. Chicago, Chicago University Press. *Aristotle. Poetics. Trans. I. Bywater. In The Complete Works of Aristotle: The Revised Oxford Translation. (1984). 2 Vols. Ed. Jonathan Barnes. Princeton, Princeton University Press. *Black, Max. (1962). Models and Metaphor. Ithaca, Cornell University Press. *Davidson, Donald. (1978). "What Metaphors Mean." Reprinted in Inquiries Into Truth and Interpretation. (1984). Oxford, Oxford University Press. *Derrida, Jacques. (1982). "White Mythology: Metaphor in the Text of Philosophy." In Margins of Philosophy. Trans. Alan Bass. Chicago, University of Chicago Press. *Richards, I.A. (1936). The Philosophy of Rhetoric. Oxford, Oxford University Press. *Ricoeur, Paul. (1977). The Rule of Metaphor. Trans. Robert Czerny. Toronto, University of Toronto Press. Figures of speech Rhetoric Metaphors bn:রূপক simple:Metaphor
Can I add an funky comment at the end to the effect that today in Greece, the large lorries with "Metafora" written on the side belong to moving companies? i love wikipedia...its hot User:csg ---- Neither Stevie Wonder nor Elton John coined the phrases with which they were credited. I also tried to standardize the examples in the form of "figure given" = "thing meant." Rewrote "ship of state" example. User:Jstanley01 ---- The expression "(something) is like pulling hen's teeth" is factually incorrect. The correct expression was coined during the days when people lived on farms and were more familiar with hens that were still alive and wearing feathers. The correct expression is that "(something) is as rare as hens' teeth." The force of this quaint Simile derives from the fact that hens have no teeth. User:Jstanley01 ---- The first sentence read: "Broadly speaking, all figurative language can be called metaphorical" Certainly, all figurative language "can be called metaphorical." The question is, should all of it be called metaphorical. In point of fact, this statement is not true, and here is an example for you, Alliteration is no figure new, but calling it "metaphorical" will not do (Hey, don't I know it! I ain't no gosh darn poet! ô¿ô) Other not-at-all-metaphorical figures include Polyptoton, Asyndeton, Antanaclasis, Pleonasm, Hyperbole, Parembole, and perhaps even Heterosis, Antimereia, Antiptosis, Hypallage, and Hediadys. And how "metaphorical" figures such as Synecdoche and Metonymy may be is debatable. I've rearranged things a bit, and replaced this sentence with: "There are broad categories of figurative language which are classified as metaphorical" User:Jstanley01 ---- From the article: :'' Those interested in further exploration might consider Julian Jaynes, "The Origins of Consciousness and the Bicameral Mind."'' Oh no, they shouldn't. ---- The line about metaphor being "dangerous to understanding" seems a bit off to me -- at least not NPOV. Metaphor is at the root (both etymologically and literally) of understanding, IMHO. What do other people think? I didn't want to remove something without any concensus or discussion -- perhaps we could rephrase? :Well, there are some people who think we should never use the word ''is'' because it implies that one thing can be identical to another. :That said, the point here seems to have been carefully made. All figures of speech are falsifications at some level and the questioned sentence underlines that. If I say that the universe is a balloon being constantly inflated, that all the points on it keep their relative positions while the whole is being vastly expanded, how can I stop someone from thinking that the universe might pop someday? User:Ortolan88 :: Well, it might pop... ;-) I'm with User:Thomas Mills Hinkle on this one: metaphors are a very important part of language. (BTW, you can sign your name on these pages with a sequence of 3 "~" characters). Whether the mistake of taking a metaphor literally is the fault of the listener or the speaker would be an interesting debate. Other European languages tend to use metaphor much more in everyday speech -- I've often noticed that speakers of French and Italian use more metaphorical expressions even when speaking in English. -- User:Tarquin Yes, metaphors are basic to much understanding, but most basic to all understanding via language is the much-maligned concept of literality. When I point at something and tell a two-year-old "that is a car," I don't mean that the word "car" is identical with what I am pointing at. Rather, I am educating the two-year-old about the word the English language uses to symbolize the thing I am pointing at. Mark my words, developmental psychology, one of these days, is going to kick revisionist linguistics right in its arse. User:Jstanley01 ---- For now, I've removed this from the article: :''Metaphor'' literally means ''to bring across'', to transfer attributes of one thing to another. As a claim about "literal meaning" (a very debatable notion, which should probably be avoided in the first paragraph), I think this is complete hogwash. It may be plausible as a claim about the word's ''etymology'', but, if so, it must be stated as such, ideally indicating the languages from which it is derived. I'm not sure this makes for an accurate etymological claim either, however; I just checked the OED, and though does list "to transfer" as the meaning of one of the Greek verbs that "metaphor" originated from, it does not mention transferring "across", nor does it specify that "attributes" are what are to be transfered. If anyone is comfortable with etymological issues, I'd love to get ''something'' like this put back into the article. --User:Ryguasu 07:16 Dec 23, 2002 (UTC) :Well, the ''OED'' and ''Webster's Third'' simply say that ''metaphor'' is from a Greek word meaning "transfer". ''Origins'' by Eric Partridge says the two components mean "carry beyond" and Skeat's ''Dictionary of English Etymology'' says the two components mean "change" and "bear". Fowler's ''Concise Oxford Dictionary'' says ''meta'' means "with, after, with implication of 'change'". I would write something like this: ::Originally, ''metaphor'' was a Greek language word meaning "transfer". The Greek etymology is from ''meta'', implying "a change" and ''pherein'' meaning "to bear, or carry". Thus, the word ''metaphor'' itself has a metaphorical meaning in English language, "a transfer of meaning from one thing to another". ::: BTW, I think it was likely I who originally wrote metaphor was to "bring across." I'm guessing this came from the "transfer" meaning -- transfer coming from bringing (fer) across (trans). User:Thomas Mills Hinkle :Hearing no objection, I will put this in the article. :The whole bit about metaphors being false, etc., while perhaps philosophically true, is linguistically meaningless, as many, many etymologies reveal that common words are indeed figures of speech in their origin, as with ''metaphor'' itself. For the consideration of the rabble, the word ''consideration'' comes from words meaning "with the stars", and ''rabble'' means "to make a noise". User:Ortolan88 Just because the meanings of words evolve does not erase the difference between the literal and the figurative in the way human beings use language. An original metaphor makes an unexpected and fresh connection, perhaps a connection never seen before, by playing the literal understanding of something off against something else that must be understood, not literally, but figuratively, thereby giving new insight into the literal. If the once-original metaphor then becomes so ubiquitous that, by common usage, it becomes a word in its own right, with the formerly-figurative meaning now being attributed as literal -- well, that's one of the ways languages develop. It happens a lot. That's why "many, many etymologies reveal that common words are indeed figures of speech in their origin." Usages change. Languages evolve. Fresh insights become so appropos in so many ways, that they come to be thought of as literal. The example in the article of the word "understanding" is a case in point. I doubt, however, that "sunshine" will ever be redefined as "girlfriend." User:Jstanley01 ---- I'm removing the following, rather empty editorial remark: :As a subject, metaphor is as complex and deep as one likes. Also, I've rephrased this passage :In metaphor, one thing is treated as if it were another, "Life is but a dream". By contrast, a simile compares one thing to another, "Getting money from him is like pulling hen's teeth". I think the implication that metaphors are never "comparisons" is faulty. I don't know if the opposite claim that metaphors are ''always'' comparisons is perfect either, though. --User:Ryguasu 07:52 Feb 24, 2003 (UTC) :A metaphor is an assertion of similarity predicated on difference, as such I would say it is always a comparison. If one this is ''(mis)taken'' for another then that is not a metaphor. User:Hyacinth 01:13, 27 Sep 2004 (UTC) ::"A metaphor is an assertion of similarity predicated on difference..." INTERESTING! ::Metaphors definitely make comparisons. Remember, metaphor is a figure of speech. Hence, by definition, no metaphor is meant to be taken literally. Metaphor is a rhetorical device which is purposefully counter-to-fact in order to draw a comparison between disparate things in the reader or listener's mind. ::Similes and metaphors both make such comparisons, but a metaphor's comparison is the stronger of the two. A third, rarely recognized figure of speech, hypocatastasis, is stronger yet. (See E.W. Bullinger's [http://www.fetchbook.info/compare.do?search=0801005590 Figures of Speech Used in the Bible].) ::SIMILE: "He eats like a dog." ::METAPHOR: "He is a dog, the way he eats." ::HYPOCATASTASIS: "Look at the dog eat." ::Technically speaking, simile makes a comparison by resemblance, metaphor makes a comparison by (counter-to-fact) representation, and hypocatastasis makes a comparison by (counter-to-fact) identification. User:Jstanley01 02:48, 27 Sep 2004 (UTC) ---- Thanks for the tips (and changes) on style. RKeller ---- It has been mentioned that the word "''literally''" is now widely used to mean "''metaphorically''", which is the exact opposite of its real meaning. For example, someone might say "''I literally died when I saw him.''" Well, if they literally died, how come they're still around to say that? Am I the only one annoyed by this decline of language? User:193.167.132.66 13:59, 10 Feb 2005 (UTC)
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Words begining with Metaphor:
MetaphoR
Metaphor
Metaphor
Metaphorical
Metaphorically
Metaphorical_language
Metaphorical_realism
Metaphorman
Metaphorman
Metaphors
Metaphors
MetaphoR
#REDIRECT Metaphor
Metaphor
In language, a metaphor is a rhetorical trope where a comparison is made between two seemingly unrelated subjects. Typically, a first object is described as being a second object. In this way, the first object can be economically described because implicit and explicit attributes from the second object can be used to fill in the description of the first. Some (particularly in cognitive linguistics) see metaphor as a basic cognitive function, while others prefer the term analogy for conceptual metaphor. However, metaphor is not always used for practical description and understanding; sometimes it is used for purely aesthetic reasons. Metaphors are commonly confused with similes. ==History== Metaphor is present in written language back to the earliest surviving writings. From the Epic of Gilgamesh: :''My friend, the swift mule, fleet wild ass of the mountain, panther of the wilderness, after we joined together and went up into the mountain, fought the Bull of Heaven and killed it, and overwhelmed Humbaba, who lived in the Cedar Forest, now what is this sleep that has seized you?'' - (Trans. Kovacs, 1989) In this example, the friend is compared to a mule, a wild donkey, and a panther to indicate that the speaker sees traits from these animals in his friend. Even before this example, it is arguable that the stylized cave paintings in the Chauvet-pont-d'arc caves in southern France are a form of visual metaphor. Their highly stylized animal shapes evoke hierarchical relationships and human connections that are not part of the literal depiction. The first writers to discuss metaphor were the Greek philosophers. :''The greatest thing by far is to be a master of metaphor. It is the one thing that cannot be learned from others; it is also a sign of genius, since a good metaphor implies an eye for resemblance.'' - Aristotle, De Poetica, 322 BCE. While this might arguably be an exaggeration, there is evidence that fundamental aspects of human intelligence, pattern recognition and inference drive the human use of metaphor. ==Parts of a metaphor== A metaphor, according to I.A. Richards in ''The Philosophy of Rhetoric'' (1936), consists of two parts: the tenor and vehicle. The tenor is the subject to which attributes are ascribed. The vehicle is the subject from which the attributes are derived. :''All the world's a stage,'' :''And all the men and women merely players'' :''They have their exits and their entrances;'' - William Shakespeare (from ''As you like it'' 2/7) This well known quote is a good example of a metaphor. In this example, "the world" is compared to a stage, the aim being to describe the world by taking well-known attributes from the stage. In this case, the world is the tenor and the stage is the vehicle. "Men and women" are a secondary tenor and "players" is the vehicle for this secondary tenor. The third line begins selecting the attributes to ascribe from the vehicle onto the tenor. The selection of similar attributes is called the ''ground''. In the play, Jaques continues this metaphor for another twenty lines beyond what is shown here - making it a good example of an extended metaphor. ==Types of metaphor== * An extended metaphor is one that sets up a principal subject with several subsidiary subjects or comparisons. The above quote from ''As you like it'' is a good example. The world is described as a stage and then men and women are subsidiary subjects that are further described in the same context. * A mixed metaphor is one that leaps, in the course of a figure, to a second identification inconsistent with the first one. Example: "Clinton stepped up to the plate and grabbed the bull by the horn". Here, the baseball and the activities of a cowboy are implied. Other examples include: "That wet blanket is a loose cannon"; "Strike while the iron is in the fire"; or (said by an administrator whose government-department's budget was slashed) "Now we can just kiss that program right down the drain". * A dead metaphor is one in which the sense of a transferred image is not present. Example: "money", so called because it was first minted at the temple of Juno Moneta. To most people though, "money" does not evoke thoughts of the temple at Juno Moneta. Dead metaphors, by definition, normally go unnoticed; people are typically unaware of the origin of words. For instance, ''consideration'' is a metaphor meaning "take the stars into account", ''mantel'' means "cloak or hood (headgear) to catch smoke", ''gorge'' means throat, and so forth for thousands more. Linguists have identified other types of metaphor too, though the nomenclatures are not universally accepted: * An active metaphor is one which by contrast to a dead metaphor, is not part of daily language and is noticeable as a metaphor. Example: "You are my sun." * An absolute or paralogical metaphor (sometimes called an antimetaphor) is one in which there is no discernible point of resemblance between the idea and the image. Example: "The couch is the autobahn of the living room." * A complex metaphor is one which mounts one identification on another. Example: "That throws some light on the question." Throwing light is a metaphor and there is no actual light. * A compound or loose metaphor is one that catches the mind with several points of similarity. Example: "He has the wild stag's foot." This phrase suggests grace and speed as well as daring. * A dormant metaphor is one in which its contact with the initial idea it denoted has been lost. Example: "He was carried away by his passions." Here, it is not known by what the man was carried away. * An implicit metaphor is one in which the tenor is not specified but implied. Example: "Shut your trap!" Here, the mouth of the listener is the unspecified tenor. * A submerged metaphor is one in which the vehicle is implied, or indicated by one aspect. Example: "my winged thought". Here, the audience must supply the image of the bird. * A simple or tight metaphor is one in which there is but one point of resemblance between the tenor and the vehicle. Example: "Cool it". In this example, the vehicle, "cool", is a temperature and nothing else, so the tenor, "it", can only be grounded to the tenor by one attribute. * A root metaphor is the underlying personal attachments that shape an individual's understanding of a situation. It is different to the previous types of metaphor in that it is not an explicit device in language but merely a part of comprehension. Religion is considered the most common root metaphor since birth, marriage, death and other life experiences can convey a very different meaning to different people based on their level or type of religious adherence. An individual's political affiliations are another root metaphor that may affect the message conveyed by such terms as conservatism and liberal. In the example: "He is a very conservative politician", "conservatism" is the vehicle, "he" is the tenor and the attributes conveyed are dependent on the root metaphor: is it a good or a bad thing to be considered conservative? ==Relationship to other figures of speech== A simile is like a metaphor, in that both compare one object with another, but while a metaphor is implicit, a simile makes the comparison explicit with a word such as "like," "as," or "than." In this respect, a metaphor is a more concrete assertion of identity, and may result in a confusion if taken literally, whereas a simile is clearly just a comparison. Metonymy is the substitution of a closely related word for the intended subject. Unlike a metaphor, a metonymy does not transfer qualities from one word to another; rather, it uses an existing association to draw a link between words. Allegory is an extended section of prose or verse which carries a meaning or message about something other than its literal subject. This can be described as an implicit metaphor. Metaphor taken to its extreme may be called a hyperbole (in cases where a metaphor is exaggerated) or catachresis (in cases where a metaphor borders on nonsense). ==Etymology== Originally, ''metaphor'' was a Greek language word meaning "transfer". The Greek etymology is from ''meta'', implying "a change" and ''pherein'' meaning "to bear, or carry". Thus, the word ''metaphor'' itself has a metaphorical meaning in English language, "a transfer of meaning from one thing to another". In modern Greek the word ''metaphor'' also means ''transport'' or ''transfer''. There are broad categories of figurative language which are classified as metaphorical (see Literal and figurative language). The more common meaning of metaphor is a figure of speech that is used to paint one concept with the attributes normally associated with another. ==See also== *[http://knowgramming.com/metaphors/metaphor_chapters/examples.htm Metaphor Examples] *Tertium comparationis *Conceptual metaphor *list of political metaphors *[http://www.info-metaphore.com Metaphor and transdisciplinarity] ==External links== *[http://www.colorwize.com/MetaphorColorwize.html Examples of metaphors and similes.] == References == *[http://www.lcc.gatech.edu/gallery/rhetoric/terms/metaphor.html ''Rhetoric Terms: Metaphor''] *[http://tscp.open.ac.uk/t185/html/resources/r2history.htm ''A short history of metaphor''] *Ortney, A., Ed. (1993). Metaphor and Thought. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press. *Lakoff, George and Mark Johnson. (1980). Metaphors We Live By. Chicago, Chicago University Press. *Lakoff, G. (1990). Women, Fire, and Dangerous Things: What Categories Reveal about the Mind. Chicago, Chicago University Press. *Aristotle. Poetics. Trans. I. Bywater. In The Complete Works of Aristotle: The Revised Oxford Translation. (1984). 2 Vols. Ed. Jonathan Barnes. Princeton, Princeton University Press. *Black, Max. (1962). Models and Metaphor. Ithaca, Cornell University Press. *Davidson, Donald. (1978). "What Metaphors Mean." Reprinted in Inquiries Into Truth and Interpretation. (1984). Oxford, Oxford University Press. *Derrida, Jacques. (1982). "White Mythology: Metaphor in the Text of Philosophy." In Margins of Philosophy. Trans. Alan Bass. Chicago, University of Chicago Press. *Richards, I.A. (1936). The Philosophy of Rhetoric. Oxford, Oxford University Press. *Ricoeur, Paul. (1977). The Rule of Metaphor. Trans. Robert Czerny. Toronto, University of Toronto Press. Figures of speech Rhetoric Metaphors bn:রূপক simple:Metaphor
Metaphor
Can I add an funky comment at the end to the effect that today in Greece, the large lorries with "Metafora" written on the side belong to moving companies? i love wikipedia...its hot User:csg ---- Neither Stevie Wonder nor Elton John coined the phrases with which they were credited. I also tried to standardize the examples in the form of "figure given" = "thing meant." Rewrote "ship of state" example. User:Jstanley01 ---- The expression "(something) is like pulling hen's teeth" is factually incorrect. The correct expression was coined during the days when people lived on farms and were more familiar with hens that were still alive and wearing feathers. The correct expression is that "(something) is as rare as hens' teeth." The force of this quaint Simile derives from the fact that hens have no teeth. User:Jstanley01 ---- The first sentence read: "Broadly speaking, all figurative language can be called metaphorical" Certainly, all figurative language "can be called metaphorical." The question is, should all of it be called metaphorical. In point of fact, this statement is not true, and here is an example for you, Alliteration is no figure new, but calling it "metaphorical" will not do (Hey, don't I know it! I ain't no gosh darn poet! ô¿ô) Other not-at-all-metaphorical figures include Polyptoton, Asyndeton, Antanaclasis, Pleonasm, Hyperbole, Parembole, and perhaps even Heterosis, Antimereia, Antiptosis, Hypallage, and Hediadys. And how "metaphorical" figures such as Synecdoche and Metonymy may be is debatable. I've rearranged things a bit, and replaced this sentence with: "There are broad categories of figurative language which are classified as metaphorical" User:Jstanley01 ---- From the article: :'' Those interested in further exploration might consider Julian Jaynes, "The Origins of Consciousness and the Bicameral Mind."'' Oh no, they shouldn't. ---- The line about metaphor being "dangerous to understanding" seems a bit off to me -- at least not NPOV. Metaphor is at the root (both etymologically and literally) of understanding, IMHO. What do other people think? I didn't want to remove something without any concensus or discussion -- perhaps we could rephrase? :Well, there are some people who think we should never use the word ''is'' because it implies that one thing can be identical to another. :That said, the point here seems to have been carefully made. All figures of speech are falsifications at some level and the questioned sentence underlines that. If I say that the universe is a balloon being constantly inflated, that all the points on it keep their relative positions while the whole is being vastly expanded, how can I stop someone from thinking that the universe might pop someday? User:Ortolan88 :: Well, it might pop... ;-) I'm with User:Thomas Mills Hinkle on this one: metaphors are a very important part of language. (BTW, you can sign your name on these pages with a sequence of 3 "~" characters). Whether the mistake of taking a metaphor literally is the fault of the listener or the speaker would be an interesting debate. Other European languages tend to use metaphor much more in everyday speech -- I've often noticed that speakers of French and Italian use more metaphorical expressions even when speaking in English. -- User:Tarquin Yes, metaphors are basic to much understanding, but most basic to all understanding via language is the much-maligned concept of literality. When I point at something and tell a two-year-old "that is a car," I don't mean that the word "car" is identical with what I am pointing at. Rather, I am educating the two-year-old about the word the English language uses to symbolize the thing I am pointing at. Mark my words, developmental psychology, one of these days, is going to kick revisionist linguistics right in its arse. User:Jstanley01 ---- For now, I've removed this from the article: :''Metaphor'' literally means ''to bring across'', to transfer attributes of one thing to another. As a claim about "literal meaning" (a very debatable notion, which should probably be avoided in the first paragraph), I think this is complete hogwash. It may be plausible as a claim about the word's ''etymology'', but, if so, it must be stated as such, ideally indicating the languages from which it is derived. I'm not sure this makes for an accurate etymological claim either, however; I just checked the OED, and though does list "to transfer" as the meaning of one of the Greek verbs that "metaphor" originated from, it does not mention transferring "across", nor does it specify that "attributes" are what are to be transfered. If anyone is comfortable with etymological issues, I'd love to get ''something'' like this put back into the article. --User:Ryguasu 07:16 Dec 23, 2002 (UTC) :Well, the ''OED'' and ''Webster's Third'' simply say that ''metaphor'' is from a Greek word meaning "transfer". ''Origins'' by Eric Partridge says the two components mean "carry beyond" and Skeat's ''Dictionary of English Etymology'' says the two components mean "change" and "bear". Fowler's ''Concise Oxford Dictionary'' says ''meta'' means "with, after, with implication of 'change'". I would write something like this: ::Originally, ''metaphor'' was a Greek language word meaning "transfer". The Greek etymology is from ''meta'', implying "a change" and ''pherein'' meaning "to bear, or carry". Thus, the word ''metaphor'' itself has a metaphorical meaning in English language, "a transfer of meaning from one thing to another". ::: BTW, I think it was likely I who originally wrote metaphor was to "bring across." I'm guessing this came from the "transfer" meaning -- transfer coming from bringing (fer) across (trans). User:Thomas Mills Hinkle :Hearing no objection, I will put this in the article. :The whole bit about metaphors being false, etc., while perhaps philosophically true, is linguistically meaningless, as many, many etymologies reveal that common words are indeed figures of speech in their origin, as with ''metaphor'' itself. For the consideration of the rabble, the word ''consideration'' comes from words meaning "with the stars", and ''rabble'' means "to make a noise". User:Ortolan88 Just because the meanings of words evolve does not erase the difference between the literal and the figurative in the way human beings use language. An original metaphor makes an unexpected and fresh connection, perhaps a connection never seen before, by playing the literal understanding of something off against something else that must be understood, not literally, but figuratively, thereby giving new insight into the literal. If the once-original metaphor then becomes so ubiquitous that, by common usage, it becomes a word in its own right, with the formerly-figurative meaning now being attributed as literal -- well, that's one of the ways languages develop. It happens a lot. That's why "many, many etymologies reveal that common words are indeed figures of speech in their origin." Usages change. Languages evolve. Fresh insights become so appropos in so many ways, that they come to be thought of as literal. The example in the article of the word "understanding" is a case in point. I doubt, however, that "sunshine" will ever be redefined as "girlfriend." User:Jstanley01 ---- I'm removing the following, rather empty editorial remark: :As a subject, metaphor is as complex and deep as one likes. Also, I've rephrased this passage :In metaphor, one thing is treated as if it were another, "Life is but a dream". By contrast, a simile compares one thing to another, "Getting money from him is like pulling hen's teeth". I think the implication that metaphors are never "comparisons" is faulty. I don't know if the opposite claim that metaphors are ''always'' comparisons is perfect either, though. --User:Ryguasu 07:52 Feb 24, 2003 (UTC) :A metaphor is an assertion of similarity predicated on difference, as such I would say it is always a comparison. If one this is ''(mis)taken'' for another then that is not a metaphor. User:Hyacinth 01:13, 27 Sep 2004 (UTC) ::"A metaphor is an assertion of similarity predicated on difference..." INTERESTING! ::Metaphors definitely make comparisons. Remember, metaphor is a figure of speech. Hence, by definition, no metaphor is meant to be taken literally. Metaphor is a rhetorical device which is purposefully counter-to-fact in order to draw a comparison between disparate things in the reader or listener's mind. ::Similes and metaphors both make such comparisons, but a metaphor's comparison is the stronger of the two. A third, rarely recognized figure of speech, hypocatastasis, is stronger yet. (See E.W. Bullinger's [http://www.fetchbook.info/compare.do?search=0801005590 Figures of Speech Used in the Bible].) ::SIMILE: "He eats like a dog." ::METAPHOR: "He is a dog, the way he eats." ::HYPOCATASTASIS: "Look at the dog eat." ::Technically speaking, simile makes a comparison by resemblance, metaphor makes a comparison by (counter-to-fact) representation, and hypocatastasis makes a comparison by (counter-to-fact) identification. User:Jstanley01 02:48, 27 Sep 2004 (UTC) ---- Thanks for the tips (and changes) on style. RKeller ---- It has been mentioned that the word "''literally''" is now widely used to mean "''metaphorically''", which is the exact opposite of its real meaning. For example, someone might say "''I literally died when I saw him.''" Well, if they literally died, how come they're still around to say that? Am I the only one annoyed by this decline of language? User:193.167.132.66 13:59, 10 Feb 2005 (UTC)
See other meanings of words starting from letter:
M
MA | MB | MC | MD | ME | MF | MG | MH | MI | MJ | MK | ML | MN | MO | MP | MR | MS | MT | MU | MW | MX | MY | MZ |Words begining with Metaphor:
MetaphoR
Metaphor
Metaphor
Metaphorical
Metaphorically
Metaphorical_language
Metaphorical_realism
Metaphorman
Metaphorman
Metaphors
Metaphors
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