Metaphors in Daily Life

Term Paper # 102353

Communication > Language and Speech
Language > English: Linguistics

A paper describing the meaning and use of metaphors in all forms of communications.

3,255 words () | 8 sources | MLA | 2008 United States

Paper Summary:

This paper looks at definitions of metaphors, their usefulness or lack thereof, and the basics of communication theory and how metaphors work in conjunction with that theory. While acknowledging that metaphors are good in that they describe a feeling that might not be communicated in another fashion, the paper also looks at whether it might be possible to educate the receiver of these metaphores that it might be prudent to implement some basic communication theories before swallowing metaphors "as true fact'.

From the Paper:

"Metaphors go through every form of communication in daily life. Since everything from politics, to science, to internet based research, entertainment, to speaking day to day with friends, neighbors and academic professionals involve spoken or written communication, metaphors permeate every facet of our lives.
"With that being the case, we need to understand them, and that is the purpose behind this paper, Metaphors in Daily Life. This paper looks at definitions of metaphors, if any exist, their usefulness or lack thereof, and the basic of communication theory and how metaphors work in conjunction with that theory. Do they have a relevance when the recipient of the conversation does not share the same experiences as the deliverer of those messages, or are they lost with no relevance because there is not enough literal meaning in which to extract meaningful interpretation?"

Sample of Sources Used:

Billig, Michael and MacMillan, Katie. Metaphor, Idiom and Ideology: The Search For "No Smoking Guns" Across Time. London, Thousand Oaks, CA., and New Delhi, Sage Publications, 2005.
Cohen, .., Metaphor Feeling & Narrative, John Hopkins University Press, 1997.
Ehomsky, Noam. Necessary Illusions: Thought Control in Democratic Societies, 1989. http://www.zmag.org/Chomsky/ni/ni-preface.html.
Johnson, Mark. The Body in the Mind, Chicago: University of Chicago Press,1987.
Lakoff, G., Metaphor in Politics, An open letter to the Internet from George Lakoff 1991, http://zakros.ucsd.edu/~trohrer/metaphor/lakoff-l.htm