Tuesday, March 3rd - Metaphors
The most salient idea from this week's readings is the concept of metaphors as explicated by Waymer (2018). I appreciated how he detailed the history and various theories contributing to metaphors, especially breakdown of a metaphor into the tenor and the vehicle. The tenor is the subject of the metaphor, and the vehicle is the object from which a rhetor takes attributes in order to describe the tenor. One example Waymer cited was Lakoff and Johnson's time as money example; he described how the perception of time (the tenor) as a valuable resource that we must "spend" wisely changes how we as cultural members perceive time.
One recent example of a metaphor I can recall is from the Netflix film Miss Americana, which is a documentary about Taylor Swift. It was released in January of this year. There were various media references included throughout the documentary (both positive and negative). One example stated that "Taylor Swift is the music industry" (Wilson, 2020). I thought this was an interesting example to further examine, since this is such a bold claim. First off, I want to clarify that Swift would be the tenor, while the music industry is the vehicle.
One thing mentioned in the documentary amongst these positive media reviews is that in her album 1989, she made no cultural references, which makes her an anomaly. In modern pop music, it is extremely common to reference other artists or things that the target audience would be familiar with. In short, Swift moves the music industry forward by introducing new ideas lyrically and conceptually through her music. Another attribute of the music industry is its pervasiveness in American popular culture. Swift is both a household name and artist; most Americans are familiar with one or more of her songs. The icon status that she has worked her way up to is larger than the music industry itself. The documentary showcases her political engagement and influence (for her fans to be politically involved), even to the extent that President Trump made a quote about it. As detailed by these examples, this metaphor of Taylor Swift as the music industry is nuanced yet valid. Metaphors, whether they involve single people or organizations, are a powerful way to frame publics' perceptions of organizations.
Waymer, D. (2018). Spades, Shovels, and Backhoes Unearthing Metaphors in Organizational Rhetoric. The Handbook of Organizational Rhetoric and Communication, 245.
Wilson, L. (Director). (2020) Miss Americana [Film]. Tremolo Productions.
One recent example of a metaphor I can recall is from the Netflix film Miss Americana, which is a documentary about Taylor Swift. It was released in January of this year. There were various media references included throughout the documentary (both positive and negative). One example stated that "Taylor Swift is the music industry" (Wilson, 2020). I thought this was an interesting example to further examine, since this is such a bold claim. First off, I want to clarify that Swift would be the tenor, while the music industry is the vehicle.
One thing mentioned in the documentary amongst these positive media reviews is that in her album 1989, she made no cultural references, which makes her an anomaly. In modern pop music, it is extremely common to reference other artists or things that the target audience would be familiar with. In short, Swift moves the music industry forward by introducing new ideas lyrically and conceptually through her music. Another attribute of the music industry is its pervasiveness in American popular culture. Swift is both a household name and artist; most Americans are familiar with one or more of her songs. The icon status that she has worked her way up to is larger than the music industry itself. The documentary showcases her political engagement and influence (for her fans to be politically involved), even to the extent that President Trump made a quote about it. As detailed by these examples, this metaphor of Taylor Swift as the music industry is nuanced yet valid. Metaphors, whether they involve single people or organizations, are a powerful way to frame publics' perceptions of organizations.
Waymer, D. (2018). Spades, Shovels, and Backhoes Unearthing Metaphors in Organizational Rhetoric. The Handbook of Organizational Rhetoric and Communication, 245.
Wilson, L. (Director). (2020) Miss Americana [Film]. Tremolo Productions.
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