Questions tagged [metaphor]

This tag should be used for questions about the usage of metaphors, a type of figure of speech that refers to one thing by mentioning another thing to for example show similarities between the two things and thereby helps the reader understand the idea that the author wants to express.

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A metaphor for doing something in a hostile environment

I am new to creative writing, and have been trying to come up with a metaphor to illustrate the difficulty of doing in an environment where everyone is acting against you. So far, I have come up with ...
Megalo1's user avatar
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Is the story deeper if the characters are not aware of the symbolism?

https://youtu.be/f2QWxqNOtJg?t=218 In Game of Thrones 2, the king is made aware of the white stag, which is a symbol, and I was wondering if this kind of symbolism is there to have a completely ...
Sayaman's user avatar
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Thesaurus for metaphors?

I have been managing with only thesaurus dot com when yearning to add layers in my work, but it and all the other thesauri(?) I have tried exhibit a fatal flaw: they lack quality metaphorical synonyms ...
etcetcetc's user avatar
-2 votes
1 answer
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Can specific metaphors be interpreted or meant to be interpreted in a vaguer and more general way?

A boat of heaven shed roses. A boat of heaven is a symbol of the female genitalia. Shedding roses means she bled and lost her virginity, but can we still use the phrase to simply mean "loss of ...
Sayaman's user avatar
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-3 votes
1 answer
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Is using a strained metaphor bad style, when would it be justified?

Found across some resource talking about strained metaphor: Strained Metaphor A metaphor becomes strained, when the comparison becomes far fetched, or when the figure is dragged into irrelevant ...
Sayaman's user avatar
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13 votes
1 answer
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Translating analogies in a 100 year old fairy tale

I am having a hard time translating analogies and descriptions in a fairy tale written a century ago. My fear is today's children will not understand the analogy at all or misunderstand it, and as ...
Ivana's user avatar
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1 answer
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What do you call a metaphor that describes the opposite of what a thing is?

What do you call a metaphor that describes the opposite of what a thing is? Let's say you describe metaphorically the stagnant air in the room as a colorful festival brimming with sounds and laughter, ...
Sayaman's user avatar
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Possible metaphors for the sky

What are things that are compared to the sky? The only element I can think of is ceiling, or dome, so I am wondering if there's any other word aside those two that can be used as a metaphor for the ...
Sayaman's user avatar
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2 answers
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What are other ways of using metaphors aside using it to describe something visually similar? [closed]

What are other ways of using metaphors aside using it to describe something visually similar? For example, we use the metaphor "a city of stars" to say that the sky at night looks like a ...
Sayaman's user avatar
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What do you call the act of "misusing" metaphors?

What do you call the act of "misusing" metaphors or using it in a way that's not accepted or considered wrong by most authors. I am trying to find the word, because there are no clear rules ...
Sayaman's user avatar
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Can we use personification this way?

Can we use personification this way? Say His bold eyes swam through the forest. Instead of saying: He boldly ran through the forest. I am wondering if this type of metaphorical language is ...
Sayaman's user avatar
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Tense-inadequate but Meaningful

I was writing the conclusion to one of my short stories in which the main character has to endure a bit of humiliation so that everyone else gets to have a good time. The closing sentence is: They ...
Hardik Rajpal's user avatar
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When does figurative language go too far?

I like using figurative language to lighten up my writing. However, I'm not sure how far you can take some stylistic devices, such as personification. Please take a look at this example: “XYZ is a ...
ALE's user avatar
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Using colors as words

He was clad with white and silver bracelets. Can we use colors such as white and use them as a substitute for other words like "white clothes"? He was clad with white linen and silver bracelets. ...
Sayaman's user avatar
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Are illogical comparisons permitted?

"Clouds soared high into the sky like raging horses." Horses don't soar, but is it ok to use "like raging horses" after "soar high into the sky"? I am wondering if this kind of comparison is ...
Sayaman's user avatar
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6 answers
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How can we distinguish good metaphors from bad ones?

How can we distinguish good metaphors from bad ones? I feel like a lot of figurative languages can border nonsense, but how much nonsense is too much nonsense? Are there rules or standards that ...
puffofsmoke's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
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Is having elaborate metaphors ever a bad thing?

Is having elaborate metaphors a bad thing in a short story (for the purposes of the story being accepted by a magazine)? How can I know if my metaphors are too elaborate?
Yukang Jiang's user avatar
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1 answer
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Is this 'complex' metaphor an oxymoron? [closed]

This is from the lyrics "The Edge of Dawn" from Fire Emblem Three Houses: Yet still I hide Behind this mask that I have become My blackened heart Scorched by flames of a force I can'...
Sayaman's user avatar
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1 vote
1 answer
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Should we avoid "nonsensical" or "unclear" metaphors?

Should we avoid "nonsensical" or "unclear" metaphors? I am not sure if this is a case of "nonsensical" or "unclear" metaphor, but sometimes you have certain phrases that doesn't seem to be suited for ...
Sayaman's user avatar
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2 votes
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What kind of metaphor is "trees in the wind"? [closed]

What kind of metaphor is "trees in the wind"? I saw God in the Forest Teachin' Tai Chi To the trees in the wind Bowing to the sea Excerpt from http://www.bensollee.com/panning-for-...
Sayaman's user avatar
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How to find different meanings behind metaphors used in speech writing?

I'm looking for ways to discover what others might think when they hear or see a metaphor used in a speech. I tend to think a certain way. I have certain prejudices. I think we all do. If I use a ...
Michael Riley - AKA Gunny's user avatar
3 votes
2 answers
125 views

Is writing literary devices in a narrative essay (reflective) always good?

In narrative essays, writing literary devices almost always makes the reader feel more of what is in the story. However, sometimes I like writing reflective narratives, where thoughts of the character ...
Osprey's user avatar
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3 answers
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When is using a simile better than giving a literal description?

Definition of simile : a figure of speech comparing two unlike things that is often introduced by like or as (as in cheeks like roses) Similes are nice tools that every narrator has (even if I'...
Liquid's user avatar
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2 votes
5 answers
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Can metaphors be used for other purposes than for stylistic effect and to form an allegory?

I was wondering if there were other uses for metaphors other than forming an allegory and for stylistic effect, that is, adding more flair to a description that would be otherwise dull. I've done some ...
puffofsmoke's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
52 views

How to use metaphors and similes in a good dose?

If you know me well, you will know that I use too many metaphors and similes. Everybody, keeps telling me to tone it down, but when I try, I tone it down too much. Is there a way to use metaphors and ...
xilpex's user avatar
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12 votes
4 answers
5k views

Is using an 'empty' metaphor considered bad style?

I just had this sentence off my head: A crown of fire spread through the country consuming everything on its way. What I mean by empty metaphor is a metaphor that doesn't really have any meaning ...
Sayaman's user avatar
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2 votes
3 answers
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Can we have 2 parallel allegories inside a story?

I have heard there can be an allegory inside another allegory (mise en abyme), but what about 2 concurrent allegories (at the same time) and how do you insure that people don't get confused by the ...
Sayaman's user avatar
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0 votes
2 answers
249 views

Is there a way to know if a metaphor is bad or not?

The rolling blades sank the ship. Here, in this example, blades is a metaphor for dangerous waves. Above the noose I saw the sun. Here, noose means water. The water is slowly suffocating the ...
Sayaman's user avatar
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2 votes
2 answers
117 views

Is there such a thing as a "cinematographic metaphor" in novels?

What I mean by "cinematographic metaphor" is that, instead of expressing metaphors using words, you use images that are imprinted in your mind through descriptions in a novel. Here's what I mean: We ...
Sayaman's user avatar
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16 votes
3 answers
2k views

How to Write a Good Metaphor

I struggle with metaphors. My attempts are either so wild that no-one understands them, so lame that they break down really easily or so normal that they are indistinguishable from cliché. I read the ...
robertcday's user avatar
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4 votes
1 answer
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Tech-limited metaphors?

In my native language, we sometimes use the expression "to be shot by (Someone)'s eyes", meaning that Someone is staring at you very intently and in an examining, measuring manner, most often trying ...
FFN's user avatar
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2 answers
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Are metaphors superior to similes in the following cases? [closed]

Here are the examples. The first version is the simile and the second the metaphor (I'm not sure, though, what kind it is). We faced away from each other awkwardly, as if we were on the first ...
alex's user avatar
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2 votes
3 answers
6k views

Highly metaphorical writers

I was looking for some writers who are famous for their rich in metaphors, poetic style (to study and learn from them). Surprisingly, Google had failed me, locating only one page with a relevant ...
Ury Marshak's user avatar
4 votes
4 answers
532 views

How can I learn to think and interpret things more critically?

As a freelance journalist, I spend a lot of time reading the media. Often I'll come across an article that I admire, and feel is leaps and bounds above my own work. Naturally, I want to learn from ...
Bob Tway's user avatar
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3 answers
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How do you make a vague metaphor more easy to understand?

I am a fairly avid songwriter, and although I like writing meaningful lyrics, I am not particularly good at it. I tend to use a lot of metaphors in my lyrics, but they're always quite easy to ...
Lee White's user avatar
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1 vote
2 answers
3k views

The Yellow Wallpaper - What does *Smooch* imply? [closed]

I was reading a brilliant piece of Feminist Literature : The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman and had the following specific doubt : The author , multiple times , uses the word Smooch ...
pranav's user avatar
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5 votes
5 answers
27k views

Metaphor or Personification

Recently, on a school test, I was given a poem comprehension. One of the questions was : What is the figure of speech in "...the trees start whispering among themselves? (A) Metaphor (B) ...
Yashbhatt's user avatar
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1 vote
1 answer
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Do word lists indexed by domain exist?

Are there any compilations of lists of words by domain? For example, there could be a domain 'Literature' and it would include the words writer, reader, critic, book, essay, novel, publisher, ...
komark's user avatar
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2 votes
1 answer
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Is repeating the action/verb in a metaphor a sign that is a bad one?

Example: She didn’t reply; just stared at us vacantly. She might as well have been observing two squirrels that had invaded her yard. As you can see, the action stare/observe has so be ...
wyc's user avatar
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2 votes
1 answer
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Usage of metaphors

I wrote the following for a poem In the candid sky of hope, A glittering light was shown, Darkest of the clouds danced along, In a beastly hourly moan. Here, there is the usage of metaphors. ...
Deepak R Shankar's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
4k views

Is there such a thing as a "reverse analogy"?

Some analogies tend to be very common, becoming almost idiomatic. For example: He entered the doctor's office at 4:59 PM on a Friday. The secretary's stare was icy cold. Is reversing those kind of ...
Cristol.GdM's user avatar
3 votes
3 answers
2k views

Is the following extended metaphor/group of metaphors too overwhelming?

I bought a box of sushi, and sat at the round table beside me. Opening the plastic container made me feel as though I was unlocking a treasure chest. I peeked inside to admired its content. ...
wyc's user avatar
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5 votes
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Is the following analogy effective and clear?

"Why you so sure the stone doesn't exist?" Yuki asked. I took a sip from my glass, then raised my eyes. A moth was hovering around the wall lamp. Yuki was right: why I was so certain about it? ...
wyc's user avatar
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8 votes
6 answers
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What's the significance of ancient mythology in literature?

Whenever I see a movie critic praise Ridley Scott's Prometheus, they seem to be drooling over all the mythological references, although most don't necessarily complement gaps in the story or enrich ...
Sedat Kapanoglu's user avatar
8 votes
3 answers
6k views

What qualities should a good metaphor have?

What makes an individual metaphor a good illustration of a complex idea as opposed to a "bad" metaphor that doesn't do the job of painting a picture with alternate words?
Nathan C. Tresch's user avatar
4 votes
4 answers
2k views

Creating metaphors in poetry

When writing poetry, is there a known method of some kind that exists that makes it easy to turn a concept I'd like to illustrate into a metaphor? If so, please elaborate as much as possible. EDIT:...
Nathan C. Tresch's user avatar