WRITING WITH ELOQUENCE
Why Metaphors Matter for Creative Writers in the Know
And similar similes to smile about
Everyone knows a metaphor is a figure of speech, a rhetorical device, that refers to one thing by mentioning another.
They are a way of creating comparisons that, while not literally true, provide a powerful symbolic meaning.
They make your writing more interesting.
Countless scholars have enthusiastically proclaimed that metaphors possess wondrous, persuasive powers. Metaphors can succinctly express value judgments, they can feel like a nudge in the back.
Metaphors can be so alarmingly compelling that they dangle you upside down over the edge of your beliefs, principles, opinions, ethics, and morals.
But you knew that already — didn’t you?
First
Let’s get similes out of the way.
A simile and a metaphor walk into a party, but they have different ways of making friends.
Similes are teenage party animals who love using the words ‘as’ or ‘like’ to compare two things.
- Hey, you’re as cool as a baby crocodile.
- That music makes me buzz like a bee.
Metaphors are the adults in the room who refuse to use ‘as’ or ‘like’ in their comparisons. They get straight to the point, saying ‘A is M,’ even though A and M are half an alphabet away from each other.
- Metaphors are cryptic crosswords.
- Cryptic crosswords are the thinking person’s Wordle.
There is more of a riddle. Metaphors invite the reader to unravel the implied connection.
So, what’s the bottom line?
Well, all similes are metaphors, but not all metaphors are similes. It’s like saying every simile gets to be a metaphor, but some metaphors prefer to go solo.
Then everyone gets drunk and mixes them up — Also, he’s unquestionably not the brightest bulb in the knife drawer.
The Elephant-Sized Problem
Metaphors can be boring.
- Her laughter was music to his ears.
- The stormy ocean of emotions crashed upon her fragile heart.
- The classroom was a zoo.
We’ve heard all these before. Or at least variations of them.
Crafting metaphors can be as easy as you like. Gardens are rich soil for metaphors —
- Teachers are gardeners, nurturing the seeds of our loins and cultivating flourishing adults.
These are easy to bastardize. Take one you have heard before and adapt it to suit your needs.
- Bloggers are gardeners, nurturing the seeds of thoughts and cultivating flourishing posts.
We see alchemic metaphors and cooking metaphors for, well, just about anything —
- Copywriters are alchemists, transforming ordinary words into captivating gold.
- Poets are chefs, blending words and flavours to create mouthwatering content.
I went with a writing theme, but I could just as easily have adapted these metaphors for just about anything — have a go yourself.
Metaphors Are Magnolia
It’s difficult to have an interchange without using metaphors. They float from every breath of conversation. And similes are as common as swear words from a salty sailor.
When there’s a chill in the air, we say, I’m freezing. When the sun splits the sky, we’re not just hot, we’re boiling. A 300lb tub of lard can walk into McDonald’s, eat three Big Macs and tell you he’s still starving.
Metaphors are at the foundation of human concepts, reasoning, and imagination. Life is a journey from which we create a road map of metaphorical insights from our personal experiences.
Organisations can be identified by the language they use.
Phrases such as turbocharge the process, turn the cogs, and grease the wheels might identify an engineering firm. Whereas unsung heroes, caring hands, and a heartbeat of compassion will be more likely to be said in a hospital setting.
If the dominant metaphors in your workplace couldn’t organise a piss-up in a brewery, running around like a headless chicken, or Hitler has just left the building — maybe it’s time to look for another job.
Have you identified the dominant metaphor at play within your own workplace or even your home environment? They might tell you a lot about yourself.
Metaphors Have a Home
You wouldn’t have your travelling salesman character in your contemporary thriller say something like, “Death, that hath suck’d the honey of thy breath,” — That’s Romeo’s line. (Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare).
He might say something pithy like —
Every city is a door to a world of opportunities.
The works of William Shakespeare contain thousands of metaphors, many of which are in common usage today —
“Wild-goose chase” (from Romeo and Juliet). “Break the ice” (from The Taming of the Shrew). “Green-eyed monster” (from Othello). “All that glitters is not gold” (from The Merchant of Venice). “The world is my oyster” (from The Merry Wives of Windsor).
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if you came up with a metaphor that became common usage hundreds of years from now?
Something simple, perhaps —
“Conscience is a man’s compass.” — Vincent Van Gogh.
Or something deeply personal —
“Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.” — Pablo Picasso.
Or profound —
“But why bother about the end of the world? It’s the end of the world every day, for someone. Time rises and rises, and when it reaches the level of your eyes you drown.” — Margaret Atwood from The Blind Assassin.
Don’t Turn Your Nose Up
Metaphors have been around since the time of Aesop and they won’t stick a luggage label on themselves and take a vacation.
Literary dudes, those creative writers in the know, keep their eyes open for metaphorical persuasions that tickle their fancy. Gleefully capturing the mesmerising mechanisms that spin enchanting threads.
We need more maestros of metaphors. Writers who can transport evaluative ideas to the unsuspecting target. We need insightful metaphor creators to clash the cymbals inside their readers’ heads.
That is my challenge for you.
Oh! While you are here, have you had a look at my Writing With Eloquence series and discovered the Beast of Rhetoric? Catachresis is like your mischievous younger brother who sneaks into your language toolbox and starts playing with metaphors and comparisons.
