Все о метафорах

Мартынова Р.А.,Пивоварова Е.В.

All about metaphors

Martynova R.A., Pivovarova E.V.

Аннотация: Что такое метафора? Для чего и где ее применяют? Данная статья поможет разобраться в поставленных вопросах. Мы рассмотрим и познакомимся с видами метафор, подробно затронув каждый вид в отдельности. Проведем сравнительный анализ между метафорой и аналогией.

Abstract: What is a metaphor? Why and where is it used? This article will help you understand the questions. We will consider and get acquainted with the types of metaphors, touching in detail on each type separately. Let's make a comparative analysis between metaphor and analogy.

Ключевые слова: метафора, переносное значение, идея, язык, литературные приёмы.

Keywords: metaphor, figurative meaning, idea, language, literary devices.

4.1. Absolute metaphor.

4.2. Dead metaphors.

4.3. Extended metaphors.

4.4. Mixed Metaphors.

4.5. Root Metaphors.

Introduction.

We use metaphors dozens of times a day, but what is it, how are they built and how are they different from other figures of speech? Let's first deal with its definition. In ancient Greek, metapherō means to carry over. A metaphor is a word or expression used in a figurative meaning based on the comparison of an object or phenomenon with some other on the basis of their common features.

Why do we use metaphors?

There are plenty of reasons to use metaphors in your work! Firstly to Add Creativity Writers want to express ideas creatively. They want to draw readers into experiences or emotions. They want to describe characters or scenes or events with originality to keep their readers engaged. Sometimes, literal language just isn’t enough to get those jobs done. Or, maybe it can, but metaphor can do it better, with more intensity and vibrancy. Secondly to bring emotional intensity. What statement conveys more feeling? I love you very much and my love for you is a raging fire. Okay, perhaps my metaphor example is corny. But it is also more intense. Raging fire emphasizes the passion and heat and “out-of-controlness” that comes with being in love. It easily out-intensifies very much. Thirdly, to use the power of imagery. Each of the examples of metaphor used so far in this post have probably activated your senses. You can picture and perhaps even feel that cold heart of stone, or the pure, shining beauty of the heart of gold. You might have felt the heat of the fire and pictured its wild, red-hot flames .Fifthly to create atmosphere. Sometimes, the sensory images or emotions evoked through metaphor can help set an atmosphere or mood for a scene or event, drawing audiences more deeply into the experience. The wedding was a fairytale.

The metaphor makes it easy to imagine a picture-perfect, enchanting celebration, full of happily-ever-after vibes. Metaphors are a literary device that add imagery, color, symbolism, or humor to language to make comparisons, objects, and ideas more memorable Metaphor claims that one phenomenon or object is equal to another, it equates these things for comparison and not because they are actually the same Metaphors are used in poetry, literature and at any time when someone wants to add color to their language. Let's look at examples: Her home was a prison. Her house was a prison. (It is clear that she did not live in prison, but the house looked like a prison. In other words, she lived in solitude and imprisonment). (Implying he is always happy to hear her voice.) He was a walking encyclopedia ( a knowledgeable person). Metaphors can be used both in spoken language and in writing.

What is the purpose of metaphor and why is it needed at all?

Firstly, impact readers and audience members. Second, help people vividly visualize unfamiliar concepts. Third, create strong images and leave lasting impressions. Metaphors can be used both in spoken language and in writing. English metaphors can be very short, in one word, made up of two or more. As a common figure of speech, metaphors turn up everywhere from novels and films to presidential speeches and even popular songs. When they're especially good, they're hard to miss.

The types of metaphors.

Now that we have slowly figured out the definition and looked at a few examples, we can slowly move on to the types of metaphors. You might be surprised that metaphors are more than what you were taught in elementary school. There is a wide range of different types, and some of them are almost essential for communicating in our language.

The first type of metaphor is absolute metaphor. These metaphors compare two things that have no obvious connection to draw a startling conclusion. For example: I am the dog at the end of day(the last and least pleasing part of something). In a non-absolute metaphor, the basic idea and the metaphor have some resemblance, for example using 'box' as a metaphor for 'house' or 'tube' for 'train'. The value of an absolute metaphor is in the way that it can confuse and hence make people think hard about the meaning of something. We always seek to find some meaning and hence some learning may arise.

The second are dead metaphors - like clichés, these metaphors have lost their punch through over-usage. Can’t hold a candle: Today, if you say that you can’t hold a candle to someone, you’re saying that you are vastly inferior to that person in terms of skill or talent.

The next metaphors are extended metaphors is a metaphor in a literary work, such as a novel or poem, that isn't just used in one line but is extended over multiple lines or throughout the work. For instance: You’re a snake! Everything you hiss out of your mouth is a lie. You frighten children, and you have no spine. ”Else one is a type of metaphor that compares two things that are not alike without actually mentioning one of those things. For example, “A woman barked a warning at her child.” Here, the implied metaphor compares a woman to a dog, without actually mentioning the dog.

Mixed Metaphors. These metaphors jumble comparisons together, often without any logic. "Mr. Speaker, I smell a rat. I see him floating in the air. But mark me, sir, I will nip him in the bud. "This sort of mixed metaphor may occur when a speaker is so familiar with the figurative sense of a phrase ("smell a rat," "nip in the bud") that he fails to recognize the absurdity that results from a literal reading.

Root Metaphors. These metaphors are so rooted in everyday language and assumptions, we hardly even recognize them as metaphors. The phrase "Life is a journey" is an example. Primary Metaphor - combine abstract and concrete things to create an analogy. They are some of the most basic metaphors in our language and are often used as the basis for complex metaphors.

The difference between metaphor and analogy.

Metaphors are used everywhere and always. The problem is when metaphor is confused with analogy.

They really do have something in common. Both metaphor and analogy draw a parallel between the phenomenon in question and some other. However, this is where the similarity ends. Metaphor is a beautiful literary device, it can illustrate a thought, but it does not have evidentiary power. For example, comparing the eyes of a girl with the bottomless sky, we emphasize their beauty, but do not claim that they have the same physical properties as the atmosphere. Analogy is a scientific method in which the knowledge of a certain phenomenon or object is carried out with the help of existing knowledge about another phenomenon or object, which is similar to the one being studied in certain essential features. For example, considering a state with a certain political system, we have the right to reasonably assume that “behind the scenes” there can be approximately the same processes as in another state with a similar political system.

The use of metaphor as an analogy is commonplace. Especially in discussions, from political to purely personal. Recall, for example, the famous "you can not jump over the abyss in two jumps." As a beautiful illustration of a convincing proof of the impossibility of step-by-step transformations - excellent. As proof, it is no good: a beautiful crackling phrase that crumbles to dust at the first attempt at logical comprehension.

"I can't fix the faucet faster than a woman can give birth to a baby in a month!" And on what basis do I compare the repair of the tap with pregnancy? What do they have in common? How does the comparison with a pregnant woman justify my reluctance to do household chores?

These are all deliberately crude examples - as a rule, in a real dispute, objects often have more similarities, and the analogy looks more correct. But on closer examination, it often turns out that the similarity does not extend to the area that is the subject of the dispute.

Of course, beautiful and not entirely accurate metaphors have the right to exist. But only if they play the role of illustration, not evidence. For example, if a historian says "states are born, develop, and then fall into decay in the same way as a person is born, grows, and then becomes old and feeble" - he, as a rule, simply illustrates his thesis with a simple and intelligible metaphor. If, however, he mechanically transfers knowledge about the processes occurring in the human body to the life of states, as disputants often do on the Internet, he is, to put it mildly, not very professional. Because between the state and the human body there are much more differences than similarities. The main mistake of the debaters (free or involuntary) is precisely the use of an incorrect analogy as evidence, while it can only be an illustration (metaphor, literary device).

Conclusion.

Summarizing the above, we can make the following conclusions about the interpretation of metaphor. Metaphor is not just a linguistic means to embellish speech and make an image more understandable, it is a form of thinking.

Metaphors allow writers to create images for readers that are limited only by description . In other words, effective metaphor eliminates the need for excessive explanation or description on the part of the writer. Instead, by implicitly comparing two different things for the reader, an image is created that allows for better understanding and comprehension. This imagery is a powerful result of using metaphor as a literary device.

Literature.