Blog 15: Metaphor Paper
Throughout history, the terms metaphor and politics seemingly go hand in hand. Metaphors are continuously being used in all aspects of politics such as legislation, elections, etc. When thinking of politics, it’s hard not to think of Democrats and Republicans. These parties have helped shape, organize, and model what the U.S. government, economy, and lifestyle is today. Even with something so important such as political parties we see metaphors. Since the mid to late 1800’s, a donkey depicts the Democratic Party, while an elephant has depicts the Republican Party. These are two interesting characters to use for representation of a political party because of the many other choices of animals. The metaphor presented by each party has a considerable effect in how people interpret the party. The essence of this metaphorical analysis is to show how the connotations of each symbol have changed over time and how these symbols relate to each of the parties today.
I like the connection you made to politics! I never thought of that
flygirl12 said this on April 21, 2009 at 4:03 pm
Interesting paper topic. I bet there’s a ton of material to research for this.
freedy89 said this on April 21, 2009 at 4:21 pm
I’ve always wondered how the elephant came to represent the Republican party while the donkey became the Democratic “mascot”, I’ve just never actually looked it up! I’m sure you will come up with a lot of interesting information. Metaphors seem crucial in describing politics in aspects ranging from the economy, war, legislature… everything. Good luck!
kienecd said this on April 21, 2009 at 5:24 pm
This is a very interesting topic because it goes beyond verbal and written language that is normally associated with metaphor and brings in the ‘visual’ aspect. Good luck!
vredenke said this on April 21, 2009 at 6:29 pm
This appears to be a great topic. I think that focusing on the significance of the animals is a great way to look at politics because it could otherwise be a bit overwhelming.
felderba said this on April 21, 2009 at 6:53 pm
I never thought about this that much but it definitely sounds like you will be able to create a strong argument and a great paper.
dottsee said this on April 21, 2009 at 7:07 pm
Great idea. This should make for a very interesting paper. It has some good relevance due to the polarity of politics these days. It will be interesting to see how these images relate
thumabr said this on April 21, 2009 at 9:57 pm
i like this. you could also do something with the colors, how democrats are blue and republicans are red and why that is so.
automobilely said this on April 27, 2009 at 3:06 am
Very interesting topic. The way you interprete the metaphor is going to determine the theme of your paper. Cuz sometimes politics can be serious!
Good luck!
lyf0117 said this on April 27, 2009 at 5:44 pm
Nice idea for a topic, something we have all seen and can relate to, especially since we just elected a new president last November. It would be interesting to know where these symbols came from and what they mean to each party and to outsiders. I am sure you will be able to find plenty of examples and topics to talk about with this paper. Good luck!
atownace said this on April 27, 2009 at 11:00 pm
This is a good idea for the topic. I really have no idea why they use the animals they use for political parties so it will be interesting to see what you come up with.
sarah said this on April 27, 2009 at 11:39 pm
Good idea. I read your paper in the groups, and I really liked what you came up with. Excellent thinking, and good luck!
redhawk31 said this on April 28, 2009 at 2:04 am
The idea of using the metaphors seen in politics is an excellent idea, there is a lot you can do with this.
vmd2012 said this on April 28, 2009 at 4:53 am
That is a very good idea of using the elephant and donkey images as a metaphor. I do not think that many people, especially me, have thought of what these metaphors mean. If you can find evidence to back up what the metaphors mean then i think this is a great paper.
cookeem said this on April 29, 2009 at 1:28 am
Interesting idea. I never thought about the symbols of either party being a metaphor. Good luck.
hankinsjj said this on April 29, 2009 at 4:08 am
Sounds like you have a lot of things to focus down on. There should be a ton of metaphors to choose from. I would definately focus in on one topic or genre to say the least of these metaphors and develop a paper/thesis around that. good luck.
vince2012 said this on April 29, 2009 at 6:34 pm
That is a very good topic. I’m sure that is something most people notice about the political parties but fail to ever learn why. I would be interested to see what you have found while writing your paper. Good job.
08tcoc said this on April 29, 2009 at 9:37 pm
Politics are always using metaphors in their speeches. There is so much metaphoric language that can be applied to this subject. Good luck on your paper
stephenenglish112 said this on April 30, 2009 at 5:32 am