{"id":26426,"date":"2021-04-18T06:21:48","date_gmt":"2021-04-18T10:21:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wyliecomm.com\/?p=26426"},"modified":"2021-05-02T12:12:49","modified_gmt":"2021-05-02T16:12:49","slug":"why-is-a-metaphor-effective","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wyliecomm.com\/2021\/04\/why-is-a-metaphor-effective\/","title":{"rendered":"Why is a metaphor effective?"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>People learn through metaphor<\/h2>\n<p>When my grandfather first saw a car, he didn\u2019t think \u201cautomobile.\u201d He thought, \u201cThat\u2019s a carriage that moves without a horse \u2014 it\u2019s a horseless carriage.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_26427\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-26427\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"26427\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.wyliecomm.com\/2021\/04\/why-is-a-metaphor-effective\/why-is-a-metaphor-effective\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/www.wyliecomm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/why-is-a-metaphor-effective.png\" data-orig-size=\"470,300\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"why-is-a-metaphor-effective\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Baby, you can drive my car&lt;\/strong&gt; Grandpa didn\u2019t know from automobiles; he called this a horseless carriage. Analogies help people understand new ideas by linking them to familiar ones. &lt;a href=&quot;https:\/\/www.shutterstock.com\/image-photo\/1910-style-antique-car-39066751&quot; rel=&quot;noopener&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Image by James Steidl&lt;\/em&gt;&lt;\/a&gt;&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/www.wyliecomm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/why-is-a-metaphor-effective-300x191.png\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/www.wyliecomm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/why-is-a-metaphor-effective.png\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.wyliecomm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/why-is-a-metaphor-effective.png\" alt=\"Why is a metaphor effective?\" title=\"Why is a metaphor effective?\" width=\"470\" height=\"300\" class=\"size-full wp-image-26427 lazyload\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wyliecomm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/why-is-a-metaphor-effective.png 470w, https:\/\/www.wyliecomm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/why-is-a-metaphor-effective-300x191.png 300w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 470px) 100vw, 470px\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 470px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 470\/300;\" \/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"26427\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.wyliecomm.com\/2021\/04\/why-is-a-metaphor-effective\/why-is-a-metaphor-effective\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/www.wyliecomm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/why-is-a-metaphor-effective.png\" data-orig-size=\"470,300\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"why-is-a-metaphor-effective\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Baby, you can drive my car&lt;\/strong&gt; Grandpa didn\u2019t know from automobiles; he called this a horseless carriage. Analogies help people understand new ideas by linking them to familiar ones. &lt;a href=&quot;https:\/\/www.shutterstock.com\/image-photo\/1910-style-antique-car-39066751&quot; rel=&quot;noopener&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Image by James Steidl&lt;\/em&gt;&lt;\/a&gt;&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/www.wyliecomm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/why-is-a-metaphor-effective-300x191.png\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/www.wyliecomm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/why-is-a-metaphor-effective.png\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wyliecomm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/why-is-a-metaphor-effective.png\" alt=\"Why is a metaphor effective?\" title=\"Why is a metaphor effective?\" width=\"470\" height=\"300\" class=\"size-full wp-image-26427\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wyliecomm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/why-is-a-metaphor-effective.png 470w, https:\/\/www.wyliecomm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/why-is-a-metaphor-effective-300x191.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 470px) 100vw, 470px\" \/><\/noscript><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-26427\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><strong>Baby, you can drive my car<\/strong> Grandpa didn\u2019t know from automobiles; he called this a horseless carriage. Analogies help people understand new ideas by linking them to familiar ones. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shutterstock.com\/image-photo\/1910-style-antique-car-39066751\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><em>Image by James Steidl<\/em><\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>He added to his knowledge by comparing the new concept to something he already understood. In other words, he learned through metaphor.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMetaphor is for most people a device of the poetic imagination and the rhetorical flourish \u2014 a matter of extraordinary rather than ordinary language,\u201d write George Lakoff and Mark Johnson in Metaphors We Live By.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOn the contrary \u2026 metaphor is pervasive in everyday life, not just in language but in thought and action. Our ordinary conceptual system, in terms of which we both think and act, is fundamentally metaphorical in nature.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Metaphor, in other words, is how we think.<\/p>\n<h3>Your brain on metaphor<\/h3>\n<p>Metaphors work because they compare the concept to something more familiar: cars to horse-drawn carriages, for instance. That helps people understand new, complex or conceptual information \u2014 computers, the internet, love \u2014 by means of something they already understand.<\/p>\n<p>That makes metaphors shortcuts to understanding.<\/p>\n<p>We use metaphor all the time:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>We use 50 metaphors per thousand words when we speak<\/strong>, estimates L. Cameron in <em>The Cambridge Handbook of Metaphor and Thought<\/em> (1980).<\/li>\n<li><strong>TV presenters use even more: one in every 25 words<\/strong>, according to Brian F. Bowdle, in <em>The Career of Metaphor<\/em> (2005).<\/li>\n<li><strong>Over a 60-year life span<\/strong>, hypothesizes S. Glucksberg (\u201cMetaphors in conversation,\u201d 1989), <strong>one person uses millions of metaphors<\/strong> and other figures of speech.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>As Lakoff and Johnson point out, we compare:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Arguments to war<\/strong> (Attack your position. Claims are indefensible. Criticisms were right on target. Shoot down arguments.)<\/li>\n<li><strong>Time to money<\/strong> (spending time, wasting time, saving time, investing time, costing time)<\/li>\n<li><strong>Computers to offices<\/strong> (desktops, files, folders, documents, notepads)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>In our brains, love is a journey, problems are puzzles and the internet is a city.<\/p>\n<h3>Compare complex concepts<\/h3>\n<p>If <a href=\"https:\/\/revvingupreadership.com\/2021\/04\/why-do-writers-use-metaphors-and-similes\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">metaphor, simile and analogy<\/a> is how we think, then writers can help people think through metaphor.<\/p>\n<h5>\u201cThe greatest thing by far is to be a master of metaphor. It is the one thing that cannot be learnt from others; and it is also a sign of genius.\u201d<\/h5>\n<h6>\u2014 Aristotle, in the <em>Poetics<\/em><\/h6>\n<p>That\u2019s the approach Richard Preston used in this extended metaphor in <em>The Demon in the Freezer<\/em>. The metaphor helps people wrap their brains around the science of smallpox:<\/p>\n<div class=\"excerptbox\" style=\"border:1px solid black;\">Variola particles are built to survive in the air. They are rounded-off rectangles that have a knobby, patterned surface \u2014 a gnarly hand-grenade look. Some experts call the particles bricks. \u2026 Pox bricks are the largest viruses.<\/p>\n<p>If a smallpox brick were the size of a real brick, then a cold-virus particle would be a blueberry on the brick. But smallpox particles are still extremely small; about three million smallpox bricks laid down in rows would pave the period at the end of this sentence.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Steve Martin used the same approach to bring home a conceptual idea \u2014 an art movement \u2014 in his novel <em>An Object of Beauty<\/em>:<\/p>\n<div class=\"excerptbox\" style=\"border:1px solid black;\">This was art that maintained the irony that began in the sixties, and irony provided an escape valve in case the visuals became too pretty. It was as if a pitcher had decided it was gauche to throw fastballs but still threw fastballs in a mockery of throwing fastballs.<\/div>\n<p>\u201cHuman thought processes are largely metaphorical,\u201d write Lakoff and Johnson. \u201cThe human conceptual system is metaphorically structured and defined. \u2026 Metaphor is as much a part of our functioning as our sense of touch, and as precious.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3>Why is a metaphor effective?<\/h3>\n<p>Theorists from Aristotle to contemporary academic researchers agree: There is power in metaphor. Metaphor makes messages more:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Understandable<\/strong>. Our conceptual system is metaphorical, say researchers George Lakoff and Mark Johnson. That means we can help people think \u2014 we can <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wyliecomm.com\/writing-tips\/how-to-write-creative-content\/how-to-write-a-metaphor\/how-to-use-metaphors\/\">clarify complex concepts<\/a> \u2014 through analogy.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Persuasive<\/strong>. Study after study shows that metaphoric language is more persuasive than literal language.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Believable<\/strong>. Ads with metaphors were 21% more credible than ads without them, according to a study by Mark F. Toncar and James M. Munch.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Important<\/strong>. Participants in the Toncar study saw ads with metaphors as 26% more important than ads with literal claims.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Memorable<\/strong>. Ads with metaphors were remembered almost twice as well as ads with literal descriptions in a study by Edward F. McQuarrie and David G. Mick.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Readable<\/strong>. An archival study of 854 ads showed that Starch Read Most scores \u2014 the percentage of people who read most of the ad \u2014 were higher for ads with a metaphor in the headline than with a literal headline. Audience members also may spend more time processing metaphors than just plain facts.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Likeable<\/strong>. Speakers and other communicators who use metaphors are deemed more appealing than those who do not. They\u2019re seen to be more competent and dynamic and to have better character. And readers like metaphors because it <a href=\"https:\/\/revvingupreadership.com\/2021\/04\/why-do-writers-use-metaphors-and-similes\/\">feels good to figure them out<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Tip: Use this list next time one of your approvers wants to strip the metaphors out of your copy.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:center; font-weight:bold;\">Bottom line: If you\u2019re communicating technical, scientific or complicated information, use metaphor.<\/p>\n<div id='MC-AOS-MP' class='widgets_on_page wop_tiny1  wop_small1  wop_medium1  wop_large1  wop_wide1'>\n\t\t\t<ul><li id=\"custom_html-40\" class=\"widget_text widget widget_custom_html\"><div class=\"textwidget custom-html-widget\"><a title=\"Master the Art of Storytelling - Ann Wylie's creative-content workshop\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wyliecomm.com\/corporate-communications-training\/writing-classes\/business-storytelling-training\/\" target=\"\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.wyliecomm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/storytelling-workshop.png\" alt=\"Master the Art of Storytelling - Ann Wylie's creative-content workshop\" title=\"Master the Art of Storytelling - Ann Wylie's creative-content workshop\" width=\"auto\" height=\"auto\" border=\"0\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 250px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 250\/250;float:left; text-align:left; margin: 0 auto; margin-right: 10px; margin-top: 1px; margin-bottom: 5px; background-color: #ffffff; font-size: 18x; line-height: 22px; padding: 0px; color: #FFFFFF; max-width:100%; max-height:100%;\" class=\"img-max lazyload\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wyliecomm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/storytelling-workshop.png\" alt=\"Master the Art of Storytelling - Ann Wylie's creative-content workshop\" title=\"Master the Art of Storytelling - Ann Wylie's creative-content workshop\" width=\"auto\" height=\"auto\" border=\"0\" style=\"float:left; text-align:left; margin: 0 auto; margin-right: 10px; margin-top: 1px; margin-bottom: 5px; background-color: #ffffff; font-size: 18x; line-height: 22px; padding: 0px; color: #FFFFFF; max-width:100%; max-height:100%;\" class=\"img-max\"><\/noscript><\/a><h3>How can you tell better business stories?<\/h3>\r\n<p>Stories are so effective that Og Mandino, the late author of the bestselling <em>The Greatest Salesman in the World<\/em>, says, \u201cIf you have a point, find a story.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Learn to find, develop and write stories that engage readers\u2019 hearts and minds at <a title=\"Master the Art of Storytelling - Ann Wylie's creative-content workshop\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wyliecomm.com\/corporate-communications-training\/writing-classes\/business-storytelling-training\/\" target=\"\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Master the Art of Storytelling<\/strong><\/a>, our content-writing training workshop.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>There, you\u2019ll learn how to find the aha! moment that\u2019s the gateway to every anecdote. How to start an anecdote with a bang \u2014 instead of a whimper. And how to use \u201cthe most powerful form of human communication\u201d to grab attention, boost credibility, make messages more memorable and communicate better.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<div class=\"btn btn--depth\" style=\"text-align: center;  margin: 10px 0 20px; width:100%;\"><a id=\"btnTT\" style=\"\" title=\"BOOK NOW\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wyliecomm.com\/corporate-communications-training\/writing-classes\/business-storytelling-training\/\" target=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-width=\"91\">BOOK NOW<\/a>\r\n<!-- [if mso]>\r\n<p style=\"line-height:0;margin:0;\"><v:roundrect xmlns:v=\"urn:schemas-microsoft-com:vml\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wyliecomm.com\/corporate-communications-training\/writing-classes\/business-storytelling-training\/\" style=\"width:153px\" arcsize=\"8%\" strokecolor=\"#D96237\" filled=\"t\"><v:fill type=\"gradient\" angle=\"180\" color=\"#f16522\" color2=\"#f16522\"><\/v:fill><v:textbox style=\"mso-fit-shape-to-text:t\" inset=\"0px,11px,0px,11px\"><center style=\"font-size:16px;line-height:24px;color:#FFFFFF;font-family:sans-serif;font-weight:bold;mso-line-height-rule:exactly;mso-text-raise:4px\">BOOK NOW<\/center><\/v:textbox><\/v:roundrect><\/p>\r\n<![endif]--><\/div>\r\n<\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div><!-- widgets_on_page -->\n<p>____<\/p>\n<p>Sources: Chip Heath and Dan Heath, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/gp\/product\/1400064287?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=wwwwyliecomco-20&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=1400064287\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die<\/em><\/a>, Random House, 2007<\/p>\n<p>George Lakoff and Mark Johnson, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Metaphors-We-Live-George-Lakoff\/dp\/0226468011\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>Metaphors We Live By<\/em><\/a>, Chicago, University of Chicago Press, 1980<\/p>\n<p>Edward F. McQuarrie and David G. Mick, \u201cVisual and Verbal Rhetorical Figures under Directed Processing versus Incidental Exposure to Advertising,\u201d <em>Journal of Consumer Research<\/em>, March 2003<\/p>\n<p>Edward F. McQuarrie, \u201d The development, change, and transformation of rhetorical style in magazine advertisements 1954-1999,\u201d <em>Journal of Advertising<\/em>, Dec. 22, 2002<\/p>\n<p>David L. Mothersbaugh, Bruce A. Huhmann, George R. Franke, \u201cCombinatory and Separative Effects of Rhetorical Figures on Consumers\u2019 Efforts and Focus in Ad Processing,\u201d <em>Journal of Consumer Research<\/em>, March 2002<\/p>\n<p>Richard Preston, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Demon-Freezer-Richard-Preston\/dp\/0345466632\/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1295809494&amp;sr=1-1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>The Demon in the Freezer<\/em><\/a>, Random House, October 2002<\/p>\n<p>Pradeep Sopory and James P. Dillard, \u201c<a href=\"http:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/publication\/228057308_The_Persuasive_Effects_of_Metaphor_A_MetaAnalysis\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Persuasive Effects of Metaphor: A Meta-Analysis<\/a>,\u201d <em>Human Communication Research<\/em>, July 2002<\/p>\n<p>Mark F. Toncar and James M. Munch, \u201cThe Influence of Simple and Complex Tropes on Believability, Importance and Memory,\u201d <em>Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice<\/em>, Dec. 31, 2003<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>People learn through metaphor <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":26427,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[48],"tags":[47,231],"class_list":{"0":"post-26426","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-metaphor","8":"tag-metaphor","9":"tag-storytelling","10":"entry"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v23.4 (Yoast SEO v23.6) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Why is a metaphor effective?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Baby, you can drive my car: Grandpa didn\u2019t know from automobiles; he called this a horseless carriage. 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