How To Revive Dying Metaphors

The right metaphor can convey your ideas vividly and memorably. A metaphor is a non-literal use of language. A metaphor says that one thing is another, quite different sort of thing. To be a metaphor, it must literally not be true. Paradoxically, in its non-literal-truth, metaphor is the most effective way to communicate deeper truths. We use metaphors to make the abstract seem concrete; to make the unknown seem familiar; to help us to feel that we understand mysterious things, to feel that we can reason about them, to feel comfortable with them. Public speakers use metaphor to craft a “phrase that pays”–the message their audience will take with them. Comedians use metaphor for one-liners. Politicians use metaphor for applause lines.

Shakespeare is remembered for his metaphors: “In me thou seest the glowing of such fire that on the ashes of his youth lie, as the deathbed whereon it must expire, consumed with that which it was nourished by” “Death lies upon her like an untimely frost.” “That time of year thou mayst in me behold when yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang upon those boughs which shake against the cold” Not all metaphors are powerful. With use, a metaphor can become stale. With extensive use, it can die as a metaphor and take on a literal meaning, as the word “star” in “she is a star.” It is possible to refresh stale metaphors and revive dying ones by simply asking, “What kind of?” To show how that’s done, I devoted about a half an hour while stretched out in my recliner to finding interesting ways to use the metaphor, LIFE IS A STORY. First I asked, “What kind of story?” and I got “a work of fiction” and “a play.” From these I also got “a book,” which isn’t built on LIFE IS A STORY, but I’m not going to turn down metaphors because they were not precisely what I was seeking. Those, however, didn’t go far enough. I had to ask again, “What kind of…?”: “What kind of a work of fiction?”, “What kind of a play?”, “What kind of a book?” I got somewhere around two dozen metaphors. Here I’ll share six of them just as I wrote them. They can all use refinement and editing. “The story of my life remains unpublished, while other people have best sellers.” “My autobiography needs a subject.” “Life is a mystery. I’m the detective, and I’m clueless.” “Some lives are tragedies. Some are comedies. I’m auditioning for a bedroom farce.” (I’ve put this one on T-shirts.) “My life is a play. We’re still trying to cast the other lead.” “If childhood is a rehearsal for life, I dread opening night.” There you have it: by asking, “What kind of…?” you can quickly find an abundance of fresh metaphors to choose among. Not all will be winners, of course, but the odds of finding a winner in two dozen is much greater than finding it in a single stale metaphor. THOMAS CHRISTOPHER offers information on how to be a wit on the web page, How To Create Witty Sayings. He created a web T-shirt shop, WittySelfExpression.com, as a place to apply rhetorical techniques.

Related Articles –
metaphor, rhetoric, effective communication, memorable words,

Email this Article to a Friend!
Receive Articles like this one direct to your email box!Subscribe for free today!