Understanding Metonymy and Metaphors

What is metaphor? 

Metaphor designates a relation based on substitution; in a multimodal work, one mode can metaphorically represent or stand in for another, as when an animation of a word dynamically represents its meaning. It is a relation based on similarity between elements in different modes (Sorapure, N.D.).

What is metonymy? 

Metonymy designates a relation based on combination; modes can be metonymically related when they are linked by an association, as when lines from a poem are combined with a melody from a song. It is a relation based on contiguity between elements in different modes (Sorapure, N.D.).

Using metaphor and metonymy in this way gives us a language for talking to students about the relations they are composing between modes and a way of explaining where a multimodal project is effective or weak (Sorapure, N.D.).

How did you apply the concepts of metaphor or metonymy? How well did you apply them? Give an example from your presentation of information.

I made slides with photos and minimal words to convey the game of Chess.  I used “Checkmate” as a metaphor to indicate that is what terminology is used when the game is over.  That is the only metaphor I used in my multimodal presentation of information.  

Classmates Good Examples of Metaphors and Metonymies

Cara Pinti's

    Very cute example of getting comfortable using a metaphor of a lazy “couch potato”!

Joyce Harris-Thacker's

 This is a good example of a metonymy from my "Recycling" presentation. When we think of the word recycling, this is what we see in our minds.

 

References

Sorapure, Madeleine.  (N.D.)  Between Modes: Assessing Student New Media Compositions.  Retrieved from http://english.ttu.edu/kairos/10.2/coverweb/sorapure/between_modes.pdf  on June 5, 2014.