Rhetoric is debatably the foundation of every society, relationship, and piece of writing, but the branches which extend off of rhetoric are usually not analyzed with the same depth. One figure of speech in particular intertwines a level of complexity that allows for a drastic amount of interpretation: metaphors. A metaphor is nearly always within one’s speech, intentional or unintentional; a metaphor allows a reader to dive deeper into a text and allows more creativity to be shown. The protege of Plato, Greek philosopher, scientist and debatably one of the most influential thinkers in the history of Western thought, Aristotle, produced the books Rhetoric I, II, and III, where he plays with the concept and necessity of metaphors. Continuously Aristotle refutes himself, but throughout the rigorous interpretation and analyzation one may see he leans towards the usage of metaphors and the beneficial properties it bestows. Aristotle describes a metaphor within book III, Poetics as, “…the application of an alien name by transference either from genus to species, or from species to genus, or from species to species, or by analogy, that is, proportion.” The usage of metaphors is a critical way for a reader to grasp deep understanding of a topic that without there would not be a correct explanation for, while allowing the author to steer them into the correct interpretation of the text. Like food is pleasing to the tongue, a metaphor is pleasing to the ear. Aristotle believes
When people talk to each other, they make widespread use of metaphor. In talk, metaphor is a shifting, dynamic phenomenon that spreads, connects, and disconnects with other thoughts and other speakers, starts and restarts, flows through talk developing, extending, and changing. Metaphor in talk both shapes the ongoing talk and is shaped by it. The creativity of metaphor in talk appears less in the novelty of connected domains and more in the use of metaphor to shape a discourse event and the adaptation of metaphor in the flow of talk. People use metaphor to think with, to explain themselves to others, to organize their talk, and their choice of metaphor often reveals- not only their conceptualizations- but also, and perhaps
For example, the story “The Sirens” in The Odyssey, on lines 690-691 Odysseus says “or know what death we baffle if we can. Sirens weaving a haunting song over the sea.” This metaphor is comparing death to the Sirens, this helps to identify that this is a dangerous route that Odysseus knows of and how he is still pursuing it. This metaphor helps describe the thought that Odysseus needs to
Fourth, students must realize how much metaphors are used in the english language. Not only are metaphors used so commonly, they also greatly influence the way we think about things. All subjects are based on metaphors. Education is currently seen as a business with the students as the clients. Language is a tree with deep roots. Metaphors are a cornerstone to how we grasp concepts and understand the knowledge we have. We really only know things in relation to other things, often by a metaphor
Formative and summative assessments over the past two years indicate that metaphor was routinely the figurative language technique that student most struggled to grasp conceptually when it was presented to them in the traditional sixth-grade poetry cannon, but introducing The Crossover at the end of last year caused a significant shift in this area. Alexander introduces students to the concept of metaphor through conversation between father and son. “The court is my kitchen,” Josh’s dad tells him when Josh tries to dissuade his father from taking a coaching job due to his dad’s declining health, “Son, I miss being the top chef (Alexander, 166, 167).” Here, Alexander not only illustrates the correct use of metaphor, but also highlights the power of continuing figurative language to a logical end point. The original metaphor simply compares the court to a kitchen in the eyes of the father, but the continuation with the father comparing himself to the top chef in the kitchen both crystallizes the metaphor as a kitchen in a restaurant rather than a house. This also completes the meaning of the metaphor by demonstrating the father’s desire to once again be the best. Here again, the metaphors used by Alexander are relatable and powerful, which allowed students to gain a firmer grasp of the
Metaphors can be defined as those concepts where a term is used to portray a different meaning in a phrase than what it literary means. Additionally, metaphors are also used to make rhetorical statements where one is speaking of something else but by the use of words that do not have the same meaning. Moreover, metaphors can be used when one is trying to compare two different items with different meanings to portray the same meaning in describing something (Arduini 83). The book “Their eyes were watching God” has several metaphors, which have different analyses.
Metaphors help readers visualize and develop a greater understanding of the text, which in this case, is neuroscience. In conclusion, Elizabeth Kolbert's use of metaphorical expressions stimulates imagery and connections, which in turn, appears to strengthen the thesis of her essay to the
It's actually simple to explain how it works, for a long time long before it had been given the name special philosophers worn it; it works by using philosophy and rhetoric as did Socrates for his teachings. To use this combination take effort examining and wonder, if you were someone trying to explain why you disagree with someone else and you want to get your point across very clearly, then knowing the correct ethics is important for this method. It takes some time for this to complete, there is more than one step to making perfection; which is so interesting to know that Socrates took a bunch of steps to create his wonderful writing. Generally the end of the line comes to a lot of help for the reader and as well for the one writing. Information
An Aristotelian Rhetorical Analysis of the Pathos and Logos of “Trouble Relating to Women” by Barak Obama
22. A metaphor is a literary term used to depict words within a sentence that are being compared, but are two completely different concepts.
Many writers use several diverse ways to persuade readers into believing them. Some writers may tell a story, provide facts and information, or other ideas to encourage his or her reader to agree with the argument. Aristotle’s rhetorical triangle describes three diverse appeals: logos, pathos, and ethos. Logos is based on facts and reasons explaining logical arguments that rely on information and evidence. Logos is built with enough evidence, data, statistics, and reliable information. Another type of appeal is pathos, which attracts the reader’s emotions and feelings into the work. Many writers who use pathos tend to write about their personal experience and by diction and tone. In addition to logos and pathos, ethos corresponds with
The Greek teacher Aristotle first introduced a system comprised of three rhetorical elements known as per the art of presenting an argument. These three elements are broken down into nine cognate strategies that are essential part of public speech as well as how to improve good writing by promoting understanding.
The five canons are extracted from all three books of the rhetoric and include invention,
"The greatest thing by far is to be a master of metaphor." [It is] "a sign of real genius, since a good metaphor implies an intuitive perception of the similarity in dissimilars." Aristotle in Poetics.
The terms “metaphor” and “metonymy” made a regular appearance in our survey of modern literary theory. Discuss the significance that these terms assumed in the various schools of thought, and comment on both continuities and changes within the various contexts. Do you still find the terms useful for literary studies today?
Some of his areas of interest are metaphors, cognitive science, philosophy of language, American philosophy, and moral theory. The two authors strive to inform the readers that metaphors are not mere figures of speech only used as extraordinary language, but are one of the main role players in fundamentally structuring human thought. The combination of perspectives of a linguistic and a philosopher produce an interesting perspective, of which is balanced between its philosophical aspects and technicalities. The authors present a compelling argument of how metaphors structure our very thought without us realizing it.