Thursday Thesaurus

Metaphor - n

My handy, dandy thesaurus suggests: analogy, image, symbol, among others.

Writers use metaphors all the time. You may not realize it, as some are very skillfully used, and some, well they're just lazy or weak writing.

Stephen King's use of blood in Carrie is a perfect example of symbolism. He didn't do it conciously, and only took notice of it after the first draft of the story. However, he used it to its full advantage, because whether the reader realized it or not, very few people ever think of blood as a good thing. So, blood as a metaphor for change? For death & destruction? For power? These are used almost universally and connect with the reader.

Metaphors used by writer which are considered weak or lazy, (usually called cliche's) in my opinion fail to engage the reader. There's still a universal connectivity, but the readers' senses aren't engage.

For example: To describe a villain, a writer might write this:

The man didn't care for anyone or anything. He had a heart of stone.

As a reader, I get the general idea here. We've all known people like our villain, and if I were to read this in a story, the words would paint a vague and quick description. One to which I wouldn't give very much thought. (This is also telling instead of showing.)

I use weak metaphors sometimes in my first draft and then strengthen them during revisions. In the second draft, it might look something like this:

Apathy clung to his skin, shrouded him. Protected him from all the destructive emotions others seemed to be afflicted with. His right front tire thumped, and in the rearview mirror he noticed a small dog writhing on the pavement. Damn! He'd have to get the front end aligned again.

Granted, it's not a great example, but doesn't it give you a more clear picture? Not only does it show he doesn't care about the poor dog's suffering, but this obviously isn't the first time he's run over an animal, or perhaps worse.

If you're tempted to use metaphors in your writing, do so in the first draft. Then weed them out. (Couldn't resist using one more.)

Jessie