Where Most of My Writing Happens
When thinking about human communication it is easy to understand why the first humans would have developed a word for “water,” or “poison.” This terminology was necessary in order for human ancestors to fulfill basic needs and keep out of harm’s way. However, language development did not end here. This same system of symbols continued to evolve, and gave rise to a higher level of communication that articulates abstract and intangible thoughts and ideas. Why did communication not stop at the basic level? What was the language system trying to keep up with? I believe this cognitive shift occurred when humans began to develop a wider and deeper array of needs, an evolvement from less biological to more psychological needs.
Our human ancestors realized in order to find enough food for everyone to eat they needed to break up into smaller groups and develop a way to communicate with one another. Foraging in small groups worked to our ancestors’ advantage, and a sense of community amongst members began to form.[1] Now that they were able to successfully stay safe and find sustenance, relationships began to grow amongst community members and our ancestors began to develop different kinds of needs, growth needs.[2] These needs refer to intangible things – cognition, aesthetic appreciation, and self-actualization (Maslow, 372). Our ancestors began to develop needs for belonging, love, and affection; a need of respect from others to gain confidence and self-esteem; a need of morality and creativity. In order for humans to reach the greatest level of personal potential and self-fulfillment, a more specialized system of language became required.
Today, we live in a society with a great sense of social organization, and we continually communicate abstractly through the use of facial expressions and bodily gestures, as well as through the use of tropes, non-literal verbal extensions. Thinking more narrowly about non-literal forms of communication, metaphor (a figure of speech that uses a tangible object to represent some intangible quality of one idea, in terms of another) is a major trope in human perception and action.[3] People have the ability to communicate about abstract and intangible experiences because there is a close-knit relationship between metaphors and human cognition. Metaphors help to synchronize mind and body, which is necessary for the conceptualization of the real by rendering the unfamiliar more familiar. This higher level of cognition and intelligence contributes to our full humanity.
Metaphors may actually be people’s primary mode of mental operation. Because the mind experiences the world through the body in which it resides, people cannot help but conceptualize the world in terms of body perceptions. Metaphors create individual realities and therein shape human communication. Without metaphors humans would not be able to reason, create, and explore; They would lose full ability to perceive, interpret, and enhance understanding of the unfamiliar.[4] Without metaphors human minds would remain empty vessels, and would be unable to survive.
Metaphor plays an important role in the teaching-learning process. Educators should be aware of the powerful tool metaphors make when it comes to determining and expressing one’s educational philosophy. Metaphors use symbolism to link ideas about teaching and learning to something more familiar. Analogies are an effective learning tool for reinforcing thinking skills and conceptual understanding, and so educators should also recognize the large impact metaphors have on each individual’s life, and incorporate lessons on the usages of linguistic devices for both speech and writing. Good educators know how to use metaphors and analogies to make new and unfamiliar concepts more meaningful to students by connecting what they already have knowledge of to what they are learning. Education is a time for wonder and reflection; a time for creativity, responsibility, problem-solving, and self-motivation. When educators recognize that education is a journey and not a destination, students will be given the best opportunity to open their minds, develop their strengths, and prepare to explore life’s vast opportunities.
[1] Bickerton, Derek. Adam’s Tongue: How Humans Made Language, How Language Made Humans. New York: Hill and Wang, 2010. Print. Further reference to this source in parentheses (Bickerton, p.#).
[2] Maslow, A.H. “A Theory of Human Motivation.” Psychological Review 50.4 (1943):370-396. PsychINFO. Web. 18 Sept. 2012. Further reference to this source in parentheses (Maslow, p.#).
[3] Salzmann, Zdenek. Language, Culture, & [and] Society: An Introduction to Linguistic Anthropology. Boulder: Westview, 1993. Print. Further reference to this source in parentheses (Salzmann, p.#).
[4] Hymes, Dell H. Foundations in Sociolinguistics; an Ethnographic Approach. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania, 1974. Print.
Metaphor: Making the Abstract Concrete and Visual 