To be specified published in:
Metaphor and the Social World
Vol. 7:2 (2017) ► pp. 291–299
Squib

A note about meta-metaphors

Considering the theoretical implications of terms used to discuss metaphor

| Portland State University

Although it is difficult to avoid metaphorical language in discussing and theorizing about communication, language, and metaphor itself, the metaphors we use have entailments that may not be consistent with the analyses they are intended to support. This essay discusses and compares the implications of some of the most common ‘meta-metaphors,’ metaphors used in discussions of metaphor.

Keywords: metaphor, meta-metaphor, terminology
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Argument and data
    • The word or phrase used metaphorically (“exit,” “heart of stone” “stonewall”)
    • The word, phrase, concept, or entity to which the metaphor is applied
    • What the metaphor is about, the idea that it expresses
    • The overarching concept or set of concepts from which a metaphor is drawn
    • Establishing, discerning, or explaining a relationship between a metaphorical phrase and what it refers to
    • Effects of metaphors on public discourse
  • 3.Conclusion
  • Acknowledgements
  • Note
  • References


This article is currently available as a sample article.

Published online: 20 November 2017
https://doi.org/10.1075/msw.7.2.07rit
References
Chiappe, D. L., & Kennedy, J. M.
(2001) Literal bases for metaphor and simile. Metaphor and Symbol, 16 1, 249–276. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Dorst, A. G., & Kaal, A. A.
(2012) Metaphor in discourse: Beyond the boundaries of MIP. In F. MacArthur, J. L. Oncins-Martinez, M. Sanchez-Garcia, & A. M. Piquer-Piriz, (Eds.), Metaphor in use: Context, culture, and communication (pp. 51–68). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.Google Scholar
Dylan, Bob
(1965) “Like a Rolling Stone.” Originally issued on Highway 61 Revisited. Warner Brothers Records.Google Scholar
Fauconnier, G., & Turner, M.
(2002) The way we think: Conceptual blending and the mind’s hidden complexities. New York: Basic Books.Google Scholar
Iyengar, S.
(1991) Is anyone responsible? How television frames political issues. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Merriam-Webster dictionary online
Retrieved from, www​.merriam​-webster​.com​/dictionary.
Ortony, A.
(1993) The role of similarity in similes and metaphors. In A. Ortony (Ed.), Metaphor and thought, (2nd ed.) (pp. 342–356). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Oxford dictionaries online
Retrieved from, http://​www​.oxforddictionaries​.com.
Reddy, M. J.
(1993) The conduit metaphor: A case of frame conflict in our language about language. In A. Ortony (Ed.), Metaphor and thought (2nd ed.) (pp. 164–201). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Ritchie, L. D.
(2004) Lost in “Conceptual Space”: Metaphors of conceptual integration. Metaphor and Symbol, 19 1, 31–50. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
(2016) “ The canary died,” so “kick it down the road”: Story metaphors in visual communication. Presented to the 2016 conference of Researching and Applying Metaphor (RaAM), Berlin, Germany.
(2017) Metaphorical stories in discourse. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Ritchie, L. D., & Cameron, L.
(2014) Open hearts or smoke and mirrors: Metaphorical framing and frame conflicts in a public meeting. Metaphor and Symbol, 29 1, 204–223. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Rolling Stones
(1965) “Heart of stone.” Rolling Stones Now. London Records.Google Scholar
Schön, D. A.
(1993) Generative metaphor: A perspective on problem-setting in social policy. In A. Ortony (Ed.), Metaphor and thought (2nd ed.) (pp. 137–163). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Thibodeau, P. H., & Boroditsky, L.
(2011) Metaphors we think with: The role of metaphor in reasoning. PLoS ONE, 6 (2), Feb 2011, ArtID e16782. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Tracy, K.
(1997) Interactional trouble in emergency service requests: A problem of frames. Research on Language and Social Interaction, 30 1, 315–343. CrossrefGoogle Scholar

Full-text

A note about meta-metaphors
Cited by

Cited by 2 other publications

Bogetić, Ksenija
2019. Discursive metaphorical frames in newspaper texts on language change. Metaphor and the Social World 9:1 ► pp. 1 ff. Crossref logo
Ritchie, L. David
2021. The “thinking meme” meme. Metaphor and the Social World 11:1 ► pp. 121 ff. Crossref logo

This list is based on CrossRef data as of 10 april 2022. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.