Cinematic Metaphors

Metaphor and Film- Varieties of Cinematic Metaphor
*What is being investigated are specific occasions when figuartive meanings are deemed to be present in films and by what strategies those meanings are made manifest
*pointing = a line or phrase when it is neccessary to ensure that the  audience does not miss it
similarly - certain cinematic metaphors may be regarded as "pointed" these we designate as marked metaphors
*this chapter focuses om marked metaphors, considering not only how they function but also how the "pointing" is done

Explicit Comparison: A is like B
*Is it possible to have purely nonverbal tropes based in explicit comparison in cinema?
*Recognizing the role of like in a literary simile. Like instructs the reader to note the similarity between two ideas
*The three main strategies are ..
1. Two objects with some shared aspect, or some well-known affinity, maybe be placed markedly side by side
2. Some inherent common feature of each may be sttressedby the way the objects are presented cinematically
3. A similiarity not inherently present in the objects themselves may be constructd by the way the objects are presented cinematically


Identity asserted A is B:
*Asserted identity generally implies that the essence of something is not what we normally take it to be,but something different
*Asserted identity is a forceful figure, often accompanied by a strong emotional charge
*3 mian ways film can identify one thing with another
1. By context which forces the audience to see A as B
2. By distortion of A in process of filming so that it appears to be another object B
3. By presenting certain selected features of A that it holds in common with B but presenting them in such  a manner that there may be some genuine doubt as to whether  it is A or B we are looking at

Substituion A replaced by B:
*A new term based on substitution from an alien domain, replaces the customary term.
syntax has a set of rules for sustitution: A sentance remains grammatical so long as it as an adjective that qualifies the noun and governs the verb.
*Metaphorical substitution normally stretches semantic rules not syntatic
* An example is in The Best Years of Our Lives, the air-force vetreran recalls his memories of war by climbing into the cock pit of a plane, its presented through the use of score and means of moving the camera and changes the shooting angles

Juxtaposition A/B:
*Significant contiguity in time or space, one that establishes a special relatyionship between A and B
*Example: Enstein on montage, A close-up of a grave plus a close-up of a woman in mourning may lead us to assume she is a widow, but the deduction involves no intermingling of categories and juxtaposition does not result in a metaphor.
*Films rely on collocations and audiences have become adept at seeing implications aned making connections. There are more often literal than figuerative.

There are 4 strategies whereby the filmmaker can ensure that juxtaposition generates a metaphor
1. The audience is preconditioned to anticipate metaphors
2. Something in the manner of presentation itself serves to signlify that a particular juxtaposition is to be interpreted figuratively
3. No satisfactory literal explanation presents itself, so that the audience is fored to look for a figurative explanation. In practice this usually means that the continuity of this narrative has been markedly disrupted.
4. A literal explanation is acceptable, but there is something sufficiently resonant about the juxtasposition to invite further search for figurative implications

Metonymy (assosciate idea substituted) Ab so b
Metonymy and synecdoche are tropes that entail condensation through deletion: "A rehtorical figure, rathan than a precis results because the items delted are not those which seem logically the most dispensable
*this is  a subspecies of the substituion metaphor

Synecdoche (part replaces whole) : A stands for ABC
*It involved compression through deletion, the figurative meanings, generated by it derive from the illogicality of the deletion made, it is always recieved

Objective Correlative: O stands for ABC:
Example: In Kinfe in the Water there are scenes where the husband listens to sports on the radio by an ear plug. This is given literal motivation -he is a sports commentator, and his wife objected to the sound of the radio- in contect this correlates with and exemplifies his self-centeredness, which makes him oblivious to the feelings and needs of others.

Distortion:
Implifies a deviation from what is normal, if all the letters in this sentance are the font they are then A is a distortion. Wheres as is all the print were like A then it would not be a distortion.
*It can not be derived from ordinary life because most film images deviate from that, the lens of the camera does not capture what an eye alone would see.
*What is natural ana dhwta the mind accepts as natural, Conventions and cinematic devices can easily become so transparent we forget they are present. Distortion then must be understood as a deliberate deviation from what is expected in a specific context.