Identifying Metaphor Exercise: Baby Names We have several approaches to naming our children.

Sometimes we name after our relatives or heroes, sometimes we like the sound the name makes, or maybe we give the child a name from our religion. However, at times we are making a description of the child through metaphor. For example, though Tiger Woods was not born a Tiger, his name instantly spells out a personality through metaphor. Such is the role of metaphor in the baby-naming process. Most of these names will describe the child as having the qualities of beauty, power or preciousness. Some, through a coincidence of language, may seem like descriptions but have no connection in meaning. To differentiate, one may look to the second meaning the name has, and see if it is a strongly positive metaphorical description of a person, and if so, it is likely a metaphor for that very purpose. This simple lesson provides a list of both girl's and boy's baby names that are also words, along with definitions the word also has. The student is to look at the definition and evaluate whether the word was chosen to describe the child, or if it is probably not a metaphor. The student will be challenged in the following ways:
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recognizing metaphor in a typical setting. expanding on the meaning of a given metaphor. exploring cultural differences in values, and its impact on naming. differentiate between descriptions of personality, appearance and worth. use the Internet as a research tool.

The questions below can be led by the instructor or issued as a handout. For an advertising-free text version of the full list of names, please contact the author. 1) Pick ten names at random from the List of Baby Names That Are Also Words (a page will open in a new window). Determine whether the meaning of the word would be be a positive description of a child's personality, appearance or worth. 2) For each name that you determine is a metaphor, explain how this metaphor describes a personality, appearance or worth. 3) Choose one name from the list that would describe the child in a positive way in our culture, but maybe not in another culture. Explain why. 4) How many children in your classroom have names that are also words? How many of these names are metaphors being used to describe the child's personality, appearance or worth? 5) Find three names from the list that could be used to describe yourself or how you would like to be. Copyright John D. Casnig. Permitted use only.

Living and Dead Metaphor Exercise Questions and rhetorical answers for class discussion.

Note to Teachers: This series of questions aims at helping students identify living and dead metaphor. Each question is followed by an answer in question form, designed to aid in class discussion. Students will explore their own individual understanding of each metaphor to determine whether they find it personallyliving or dead.

1. Is "the growth of the economy" a dead or living metaphor? Why? A: Is "growth" exclusively for living creatures, or does it simply mean "to become 'larger' or 'more'"? 2. Is "raising his voice above the cries of the opposition" a dead or living metaphor? Why? A: Does "raising" mean "lifting in altitude" or simply "increasing" ? Does "above" mean "higher in altitude" or simply "more" ? 3. Is the phrase "we are all in the battlefield" a living metaphor? A: Really, honestly, are we in a battlefield...? 4. Is " in the fight against our unseen enemy" also a living metaphor? A: Does the enemy have qualities that can ever be seen? Can a human be a vehicle for the enemy, without being the enemy itself? 5. Why is it difficult for us to draw a clear distinction between dead metaphor and living metaphor? A: When a graffiti artist puts a "throwup" on the wall, are they a) tossing an object upwards against the wall? b) vomiting on the wall?

c) quickly painting their name? Bonus "answer": Label a), b) and c) from above with "Living metaphor", "dead metaphor" and "matter of fact".

Below are a few popular metaphors that can help us see why metaphor is an effective tool of figurative language. Teachers are encouraged to ask students to explore each term, searching for the reasons that each metaphor works.

Rug Rat: Rug rat = infant. An infant crawls on all fours and chews on everything it can. Often the child is on a carpeted floor to prevent injury. Babies are known for their constant drooling and uncleanliness, and their willingness to eat indiscriminately. Compare this description to our common perception of a rat. The rug rat is an effective metaphor because we visualize a cross between rat and baby - something that has an air of both sarcasm and truth, and may also reveal something sinister about how our culture perceives early childhood parenting. "...neither shall ye defile yourselves with any manner of creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth." (Lev.11:44, referring to Kosher diet). Couch Potato: Couch potato = lazy person. A lazy person buries themselves in the cushions of a couch (sofa, chesterfield, La-Z-Boy) in safe, sedentary comfort, "vegging out" mindlessly in front of the TV, eyes in a fixed, submissive stare. A couch potato never leaves the home, and cannot be motivated, having everything nearby so they never have to move. Compare this to the potato, which is buried in the comfort and providence of soil and to which the only escape from its lifestyle is death. Covered in eyes, but without a brain or muscle, the potato is snuggled and unmotivated. A comfortable sofa is fertile soil for the couch potato. Road Hog: Road hog = territorially aggressive driver. The territorially aggressive driver takes up far more space than they need. They tend to push aside other drivers in their efforts for territory and destination, and in doing so, are impolite - even outright greedy, and are deemed unintelligent. This matches our concept of the hog, with our many phrases like "greedy as a pig", "you're making a pig of yourself" or "corporate pigs". One can visualize the pig at the feeding trough with other pigs, grunting and shoving with their self-centred intentions.

Passive drivers fatten the road hog.

Metaphor & Simile Test

After you have learned the difference between metaphor and simile, take this test to see how well you can identify these popular parts of figurative language in context.

Each line below is from a song. Underlined is a word that is being used as either a metaphor or a simile; decide which it is, and explain why. Answers can be found here. . 1) Love is like oxygen: you get too much, it gets you high; not enough and you're gonna' die. (from the song "Love Is Like Oxygen", by ***Sweet.) . 2) I say love, it is a flower, and you its only seed. (from the song "The Rose" by Bette Midler) . 3) Television, the drug of the nation... (from the song of the same name, by The Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy) . 4) Remember when you're talkin' to the man upstairs, that just because he doesn't answer doesn't mean he don't care... (from the song "Unanswered Prayers", by Garth Brooks.) .

5) See how they run - like pigs from a gun... (from the song "I Am The Walrus", by The Beatles) . 6) Have you come here to play Jesus, to the lepers in your head? (from the song "One", by U2) . Bonus Questions!

a) Identify any similes or metaphors that you can find in the following sentence, taken from an interview with Edge, member of the band U2:

"A great song is like a salad dressing: you need just the right amount of sweet, sour and salt to get it right and when you do you only notice the balance of flavours, not the ingredients." b) Compare the following two lines, and determine which - if either - is a metaphor. Explain your reasoning.

"You are the sunshine of my life..." (from the song of the same name, by Stevie Wonder) "A day without orange juice is like a day without sunshine." (Florida Citrus Commission slogan)