Go Cubs Go

Ch 3. – This chapter introduces the “Conduit Metaphor.” This is a metaphor that is described like a package. Ideas are packed up into words and then sent to the reader where the reader unpacks the words to get out the idea.

Ch 4. - This chapter introduces the “orientational metaphor.” This is a metaphor that has subliminal connections to direction attached to it. For instance the idea that Happy is “up” where sad is considered “down.” I did not realize that so many words are metaphors and this was the first chapter to really “blow my mind.”

Ch 5. – This chapter connects cultural values to metaphor. For instance, the metaphor, “more is better” is only understood in a culture with that set of cultural values. Also the cultural values could change which would change how the metaphor is interpreted.

Ch 6. – This chapter presents the “ontological metaphor.” This is a metaphor that uses our experience of physical objects to provide understanding on intangible ideas. After reading this, I realized how common metaphors are. It also suggests that metaphors are containers. We are able to walk into things and put stuff into them. For instance, “a ship is coming into view” where view is not a tangible thing but an idea therefore it is impossible to physically put something into it.

Ch 7. – This chapter focuses on personification metaphors. This is the most apparent metaphor in my opinion. It is explained by attaching human traits to a nonhuman object. For example, “Life has cheated me.”

Ch 8. – This chapter differentiates metonymy and metaphor. I could be completely wrong but I believe the difference to be that a metonymy takes the place of something where a metaphor does not. Honestly, I don’t really know.

Ch 9. – This chapter focuses on the metaphorical contradictions to the findings that Lakoff and Johnson found. For example, the idea that the future is ahead while the past is behind follows the normal idea of metaphors. There are contradictions such as “following weeks” but this is because it is following a different stream of thought.

Ch 10. – This chapter focuses on just giving examples to back up the previously mentioned claims. Many of these examples continued to surprise me and the amount of metaphors in our everyday language is astounding.

Ch 11. – This chapter gives insight into how metaphors are able to describe theories. They are able to do so because the metaphor allows us to attach other metaphors to it, thereby giving more depth to a difficult concept.

Ch 12. – This chapter talks about how we conceptually understand ideas. This book suggests that we do so using metaphors. It also raises the question if anything is understood fully without the use of metaphor. This book concludes that we generally conceptualize nonphysical things in terms of physical things in order to understand them better.

Ch 13. – This chapter talks about the weakness of metaphors based on physical concepts and the strength of spatialization metaphors. Through these strong metaphors we can elaborate and create more specific terms. The example, “argument is war” is used and then from there we are able to examine just exactly how arguments are carried out in terms of war. This is significantly more interesting than the basic “up” and “down” metaphors.

Baseball Themed Metaphors

Baseball season's underway
So come on down to Wrigley Field
Baseball time is here again
You can catch it all on WGN
Chicago Cubs got the greatest fans.
Hey, Chicago, what do you say
-Courtesy of Go Cubs Go by Steve Goodman
Soriano crushed that homerun.
"I'm in Wrigley watching the cubs win"
The Cubs are on fire!
I'm going down to wrigley to watch the cubs win.
The cubs weakness is their middle relief.
The cubs are going to kill any team they play in the playoffs.

Need I continue? Go Cubs!