Again with the Metaphors?!

Have you ever considered the world around you? How almost everything you see can be turned into a  symbol? Some symbols found in our everyday lives are almost anywhere. Take a hospital sign. This, though not a metaphorical symbol, is a symbol telling you about the location of hospital. Symbols like these give direction, get the attention of its audience, and serve to inform.

Though these kinds of symbols are important, the symbols we, as a society, need to understand are metaphorical symbols. Almost everything about our society can be turned into a metaphor. One common symbol is the American flag, symbolizing our freedom.  As pointed out in Neil Postman's book Amusing Ourselves to Death, even major cities can be a metaphor for our society as a whole.

I find myself agreeing with Mr. Postman about metaphors and how "conversation" is a metaphor for every technological way of communicating with one another or modes of communication. The way to communicate new products, or new ideas is to express through the best way possible. As Americans, we watch tons of commercials depicting good looking people advertising products. Would that product still sell the same if someone like myself(average-looking, non-actor) was trying to sell you the same product? Everything from our Presidents down to the lowest forms of advertising are all based on the metaphor of the person or the metaphor of communication.

Symbols have always been around us, and always will be. Our society should not take these symbols for granted, as symbols can change through time.


And to be funny,

Ha Ha Ha Ha,

Alyx