Preview

Analysis Of Northrop Frye's The Motive For Metaphor

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
722 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Analysis Of Northrop Frye's The Motive For Metaphor
In the essay “The Motive for Metaphor,” Northrop Frye describes levels of the human mind. The first level of the human mind is consciousness and awareness. In this level of the mind you identify the differences objects from yourself. You name objects with nouns. Also on this level you qualify these objects to differentiate them. You describe the nouns with adjectives. The second level of the human mind is social participation. The language of this level are verbs and actions. This level describes your degree of participation in a community or society. The third level of the human mind is imagination. The language of this level is the desire of language. Examples of the desire of language are literacy language, language of math, music, poems …show more content…
In the essay “Darwin’s Middle Road”, Stephen Jay Gould describes Darwin’s process on his theory of natural selection. Gould describes the process of scientific creativity with inductivism and eurekaism. Darwin’s thought process also incorporates Frye’s three levels of the human mind. Darwin begins his thought process aboard the Beagle. During these five years, Darwin makes observations of the bones of giant South American fossil mammals. He focuses on the turtles and finches of the Galapagos. According to Gould he mentions “The first ̶ inductivism ̶ held that great scientists are primarily great observers and patient accumulators of information. For new and significant theory, the inductivists claimed, can only arise from a firm foundation of facts.” (Gould 1018). Darwin uses his consciousness and awareness; to identify and give qualities to the turtles and finches. Darwin builds his foundation of facts. Darwin transitions his thinking process to social participation. Darwin takes his facts on finches and brings them into human shape. Darwin begins researching and studying the nature of the finches. Darwin uses social participation to contribute to science. Inductivism corresponds to the first and second levels of the human mind. In addition, Darwin uses the third level of the human mind to create his theory. Darwin’s theory is survival of the fittest through natural selection. Darwin experiences …show more content…
According to Frye “There are two main kinds of association, analogy and identity, two things that are like each other.” (Frye 1044). Frye relates identities to metaphors. Identity is the state or fact of remaining the same one or ones, as under varying aspects or conditions. Frye relates analogies to similes. An analogy is a form of reasoning in which one thing is inferred to be similar to another thing in a certain respect, on the basis of the known similarity between the things in other respects. Associative language is used in science. There is no kind of scientific language that is not associative. Frye explains “The native language takes precedence over every other subject of study: nothing else can compare with it in its usefulness. But then you find that every mother tongue, in any developed or civilized society, turns into something called literature.” (Frye 1037). Darwin associates to the mother tongue. Before Darwin can study finches he must first identify his environment. The identifications that Darwin makes are his observations in the Galapagos. Darwin associates to literature. After Darwin identifies his environment; he can study finches to create literature and analogies about his theory. The analogies that Darwin makes is inferring natural selection to be similar to society and population. Darwin’s scientific language uses associative

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    12. Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection, or the idea that nature “selects” its survivors, has six main points. He states species populations remain more or less constant because only a small fraction of offspring live long…

    • 886 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Metaphor is for most people device of the poetic imagination and the rhetorical flourish--a matter of extraordinary rather than ordinary language. Moreover, metaphor is typically viewed as characteristic of language alone, a matter of words rather than thought or action. For this reason, most people think they can get along perfectly well without metaphor. We have found,on the contrary, that metaphor is pervasive in everyday life, not just in language but in thought and action. Our ordinary conceptual system, in terms of which we both think and act, is fundamentally metaphorical in nature.…

    • 3927 Words
    • 16 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Ray Bradbury’s novel, Fahrenheit 451, the main character is an individual Montag seeks pleasure in his job as a book burner. Through imagery, metaphors, symbolism, and personification, Ray Bradbury conveys that Montag is a man who has a sense of adoration towards his job.…

    • 481 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The primary subject of the text "Metaphors We Live By," by George Lakoff and Mark Johnson is that metaphors have been adapted into our daily lives and they have become a part of society. They have the ability to help us understand and comprehend what is being described to us. The bottom line is that "Our ordinary conceptual system is metaphorical in nature." (1) We have found ways to describe how we identify, think, and react. Even though some metaphors are easier to point out then others, they are used multiple times throughout our day.…

    • 532 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    “The Writer” by Richard Wilbur makes use of metaphors and poetic devices such as assonance to show the journey of a girl’s struggles to overcome the obstacles of adolescence and gain independence. This poem uses two metaphors to convey its message. The first metaphor is comparing the girl’s journey to a journey across the sea. The daughter is writing “in her room at the prow of the house”, so her house is like her ship (1). The typewriter keys sound “like a chain hauled over a gunwale”, a sound you would hear if you were voyaging at sea (6). Even her typing is like the motion of rowing, “a bunched clamor / Of strokes” (14-15). Her obstacles are “a great cargo”, and her father wishes her luck with them. She is trying to become independent and…

    • 414 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Beak of the Finch is important and relatively timely book for at least two reasons. It addresses the fact of evolution and natural selection thus proving how evolution is possible and I fact the explanation for all the theories we are aware of today. Secondly, Weiner's novel provides a scientific base which in a convincing manner that not only supports the claims of Creationists, but also of the critiques of many evolutionary theorists concerning the sufficiency of Darwinism. Weiner uses his ability draw the reader in by exhibiting thrilling documented theories of the continuing operation of what Darwin had laid the groundwork for . Darwin's theories turned out to be the major strength in proving evolution, or better known as natural selection. This process is presented not as something that occurred only one time, or only in secluded area but rather occurred constantly. He notes this is happening all around us and is accessible for all to see.…

    • 908 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Atticus Finch tells his children that it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird. The metaphor is only stated a couple of times, but the meaning is relevant throughout the book. As the story progresses, it’s easier to understand what that meaning is. So, what is it and why is it used?…

    • 481 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Biology Quiz

    • 1235 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Describe the two main points that Darwin made in his book On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection.…

    • 1235 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Darwin was never good with bird species so he just killed them and brought their preserved bodies to an ornithologist to help him figure out similarities between the birds. The ornithologist was John Gould, and he found out that the birds were actually twelve different species of finches and that Darwin did not collect a mixture or finches and blackbirds. Charles Darwin’s first big accomplishment was for his work on barnacles for which he received the Royal Society’s Royal medal in 1853. (Charles Darwin – English Naturalist and Philosopher- Biography) With the barnacles Darwin was able to find “homologies” that theorized part of his idea that began with the finches.…

    • 1022 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Essay On Metaphors

    • 469 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Nick: Uhh…. the essay is just a draft, for the test you should define a metaphor.…

    • 469 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The well known ecologist Charles Darwin exhibited the hypothesis of natural selection. He went on numerous trips to the wildlife, taking after his interest of the nature and the change that happens in the nature. After examining different kinds of living organisms, he clarified Natural Selection as "preservation of favorable variations and the rejecting of injurious variations."(900). Darwin utilized relations and demonstrations to show that distinctive changes happened in the same specie, which assisted them with adapting to their environment.…

    • 714 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Metaphors merge two superficially incompatible concepts to create symbolism. Metaphors have entailments through which they highlight and make coherent certain aspects of our experience. (Lakoff and Johnson, 1980:132). Metaphor is pervasive in everyday life, not just in language but in thought and action.…

    • 85 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Darwin believed that a natural process of animals and species occurred through evolution, which in turn started a natural selection of people who were more superior to others. Following Charles Darwin’s philosophies, Herbert Spencer’s theories and interest in natural and social sciences led him to believe that the natural process of developing a superior race started through evolution. Herbert Spencer believed that in order for society to become developed, it would require a superior race of human intelligence to do it. His ideals and scientific works showed Americans that free competition was the most beneficial path to economic progress and survival. Through superior economic progress, he made popular the phrase, “survival of the fittest.” Only the superior race will succeed and survive.…

    • 554 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Charles Darwin after studying the beaks, concluded that each shape seemed to serve a purpose suited to the particular island (Lee 15). He concluded that finches who had short, fat beaks mostly ate nuts and on islands where the main food source is insects the finches had long, skinny beaks (Lee 15). Based on this evidence Darwin developed a theory that at some point in the past, one type of finch arrived at the islands and then evolved differently on each island (Lee 15). This theory is called natural selection, which ensures that traits that promote survival will win the struggle for existence (Akert, Aronson, Sommers, and Wilson 43). This theory also states that any trait that lowers our chances of survival, such as those that cause life- threatening diseases, reduce the chances that we will produce offspring and pass traits to other generations (Akert, Aronson, Sommers, and Wilson 316). However, if traits are not passed on to different generations, there would be no mechanism through which traits could reappear in subsequent generations and therefore there will be no way for a species to…

    • 652 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Darwin’s theory of evolution is based on the theory of natural selection. Natural selection is the the process whereby organisms better adapted to their environment tend to survive and produce more offspring. This theory is now widely believed by many people throughout the world. Charles Darwin’s theory includes the idea that fossils of extinct animals turn up where similar animals live today. Darwin came up with this theory when he discovered fossils of animals that were very similar to the animals that were living today. Darwin also observed that the Galapagos tortoise’s had different shapes of their shells depending on which island they came from. Darwin believed that these tortoises were adapting to their environment by changing their shell…

    • 235 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays