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Metaphor In King Kong Vs. Godzilla

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Metaphor, the comparison of two entities, is quite evident throughout Ishirō Honda 1962 movie King Kong vs. Godzilla. Incorporating two of the most iconic monsters within cinematic history, Honda integrated these monsters to represent his message showing how Japan was shifting from their traditional society towards a society that was technologically advanced. Furthermore, Honda was able to incorporate subliminal messages throughout the film in order to highlight certain characteristics between Godzilla and King Kong that represented traditional and modern culture. By employing metaphors, Honda was able to show how King Kong is a representation of Japan’s technological advancements while Godzilla symbolizes traditional Japanese culture. Emerging from its years of slumber within its frozen sarcophagus, Honda was able to depict Godzilla as a representation of traditional Japan. When first introduced to Godzilla, the imagery of it breaking out of a iceberg can draw similarities to an ancient creatures that was frozen in ice during the Ice Age. Utilizing this scene, Honda showed how Godzilla was a creature frozen from the past. While this does not accurately represent the age of Godzilla, the parallelism between the prehistoric nature of Godzilla and the traditional customs that were upheld for generations, can be clearly connected. Similarly, when observing Godzilla’s destruction of Japan’s most recent technological advancements, such as a military base as well as the bullet

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