Syllabus for Spring, 2025 here
Tell all the truth but tell it slant —
Success in Circuit lies
Too bright for our infirm Delight
The Truth’s superb surprise
As Lightning to the Children eased
With explanation kind
The Truth must dazzle gradually
Or every man be blind —
this shirt is a metaphor
metaphor@oxford 2025
metaphor 2025
metaphor
others:
Paul Thibodeau and Lera Boroditsky found that metaphors can influence reasoning “covertly”—even when people can’t remember the metaphor or when they didn’t identify it as influential. What are the implications of this finding for how we think about decision-making and free will? How much of our reasoning might be shaped by linguistic frames we’re not consciously aware of?
The study found that those who self-identify as Republicans were less influenced by the metaphors than Democrats and Independents. What might explain this difference? How do ideological commitments interact with metaphorical framing effects?
Thibodeau and Boroditsky suggest metaphors may be particularly influential for complex policy issues because they offer “welcome relief from cognitive complexity” (p. 7). What are the benefits and risks of using metaphorical frameworks to reason about difficult social problems?
What ethical implications arise from this research about the use of metaphorical framing in political communication and media coverage? Should communicators be more transparent about their metaphorical frames?
Ian Bogost, “Shaka, When the Walls Fell”
Emotional Implications of Metaphor Consequences of Metaphor Framing for Mindset about Cancer
Cancer Research and $90 Billion Metaphor
VICE PRESIDENT JOSEPH BIDEN: We know that it is – there is no silver bullet.
And as for when he’d make his proposal?
BIDEN: I’m shooting for Tuesday. I hope I get it done by then.
Bite the bullet
Ride Shotgun
Straight-shooter
Hot-shot
Shot in the dark
Go ballistic
Shoot from the hip
Gun shy
Chainsaw as a visual metaphor
Destructive power: represents overwhelming force that can cut through obstacles but with little precision or subtlety.
Efficiency with consequences: symbolizes getting things done quickly but potentially at the cost of finesse, nuance, or collateral damage.
Loud and attention-grabbing: suggests an approach that demands attention and cannot be ignored.
Indiscriminate cutting: implies removing everything in its path without careful selection, suggesting blunt solutions to complex problems.
Dangerous if mishandled: communicates that powerful tools require skilled handling, or they risk causing harm to the user and others.
In different contexts, we might say someone “took a chainsaw approach” to editing a document (ruthlessly cutting large sections), or describe a blunt diplomatic statement as a “chainsaw rather than a scalpel” (lacking tact but effective). Elon Musk with Jacier Milei
“Catching up” as a metaphor
Perpetual inadequacy: implies always being behind, suggesting a state of constant deficiency where you’re never quite where you “should” be.
Anxiety-inducing pressure: suggests a stressful pursuit where rest brings guilt and the finish line keeps moving further away.
Zero-sum competition: frames life as a race where others are ahead and you’re behind, reinforcing unhealthy comparison and scarcity mindset.
Devaluing the present: focuses attention on what hasn’t been accomplished rather than appreciating current circumstances or progress.
False narrative of linear progress: promotes the idea that everyone should follow the same timeline or path, dismissing diverse journeys.
This metaphor can be especially damaging when internalized, creating a treadmill effect where satisfaction always seems just out of reach.
(two-week spring break)
Higinbotham metaphors legal violence
A Veteran on Covid-19 War Metaphors
Constraints, Wired
Constraints, Source
“Litany,” by Billy Collins (“It seems that many poets believe that the answer to the rather insulting question, ‘what do women want?’ is quite simple: ‘metaphor.'”)
Dave: “no birds”:
- https://www.thebodypro.com/article/to-understand-challenges-black-men-with-hiv-face-o
- https://www.davidserenolaw.com/life-after-prison/
- https://hopeforprisoners.org/
- https://www.ahaprocess.com/st-vincent-de-paul-prison-reentry-programs-use-bridges-getting-out/
- https://news.umich.edu/facilitating-a-smooth-technological-transition-for-citizens-returning-from-prison/
- https://www.a2ndchancebailbonds.com/second-chance-act-expected-to-give-old-and-sick-prisoners-a-reprieve/
Metaphors are more Emotionally Engaging
Michael Boudin Antitrust Doctrine and the Sway of metaphor