Stylistic semasiology

Metaphorical group. Metaphor. Metaphor is a transfer of the name of an object to another object on the basis of similar­ity, likeness, affinity of the two objects. At the same time there is no real connection between them, as in the case with meton­ymy. The stylistic function of a metaphor is not a mere nomina­tion of the thing in question but rather its expressive characteri­zation. E. g.:
«The machine sitting at the desk was no longer a man; it was a busy New York broker...» (O 'Henry).
Metaphor has no formal limitations: it can be a word, a phrase, any part of a sentence, or a sentence as a whole. Metaphors are ei­ther simple or complex (prolonged). A simple, elementary meta­phor is that which has no bearing on the context: it is a word, a phrase, a sentence. A prolonged metaphor is elaborated in a series of images logically connected with one another producing a general description of a character, a scene, etc.
Metaphor is a relation between the dictionary and contextual logical meaning based on the imposition of some inherent property of an object on another object which by nature is deprived of these properties. In a metaphor we find a complete replacement (identification) of one object by another.
e.g. The news you bring me is a dagger to my heart.
• Metaphors are created on the basis of different types of similarity: of shape, of colour, of sound etc. Metaphor can be embodied in all meaningful parts of speech: in nouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs.
e.g. These thoughts melted away.
Leaves fell sorrowfully.
The grey-eyed warm smiles of the frowning night.
Metaphors have a tendency to fade away if used frequently. As some sci­entist wittily observed: "The language is a dictionary of faded metaphors". According to the degree of unexpectedness we distinguish genuine metaphors — when we perceive the two meaning simultaneously; trite metaphors — time-worn and well-rubbed in the language — the two fold perception is felt (half-alive) but the originality is lost (e.g. a wall between two people), and dead metaphors (e.g. to plant the seeds).


Prolonged (sustained, developed) metaphor