[IS.15 - Struggling Learners]

The goal of this lesson is to recognize the characteristics of an effective metaphor and the ways in which a metaphor affects the literary work in which it appears.

• The initial activity using “Fog” will indicate whether students can identify a metaphor. Note students who need additional instruction and provide individual or small-group reteaching.
• As students complete the additional activities, continue to observe and provide feedback on students’ identification and use of metaphor.
• As groups are working on their own metaphors together, move from group to group to help with any problems. The presentation students make after creating their first metaphor will indicate which individuals or groups need additional assistance.

Focus Question: What are the characteristics of an effective metaphor, and how does it affect the literary work in which it appears? [IS.10 - All Students]

Say, “During this lesson, we will be examining the structure of metaphor—a figure of speech in which two very different things are compared—and the ways in which it affects the literary work in which it appears. You will also need to add at least three examples of effective metaphors to your collection, along with an explanation of how each one affects the work in which it appears.”

Part 1

Have students read Sandburg’s “Fog” and ask them to write the metaphor used in the poem. Walk around the room as they are writing to see whether most students can identify a metaphor. [IS.11 - ELL Students]

Ask, “What similarities between a cat and fog are identified in the poem?” (dainty, silent, and watchful) “What do you know about the fog because it is compared to a cat? What is unexpected about the comparison?” (Dainty and watchful are characteristics you wouldn’t have associated with fog.) Point out that a good metaphor does precisely that: it makes the reader look at something in a new way. Also, a metaphor frequently suggests deeper similarities between the two items compared. For example, both the fog and a cat are associated with mystery, so a reader could feel that a mysterious mood is also being suggested here.

Ask, “What would happen if this poem had no metaphor?” (There would be no poem. In this case, the metaphor provides the poem.) Lead students to understand that an effective metaphor is always an essential part of the literary work, not simply a decoration that can be easily removed.

For additional information about metaphors, refer to Related Resources.

Part 2

Have students read “Dreams” by Langston Hughes, a simple but powerful poem, which is directly linked to Dr. King’s speech by the connection of freedom and dreams.

Ask, “What two metaphors are used in the poem?” (“a broken-winged bird/That cannot fly” and “a barren field/Frozen with snow”) Discuss the meaning of each metaphor and help students discover the following: [IS.12 - Struggling Learners]

• A person should be able to soar and to reach for the heights, but without dreams, the individual is no more able to fly than a “broken-winged bird” is. Both must sit and watch others achieve the heights, knowing that it can never happen for them.

• A “barren field” is one in which nothing will grow; there is no chance of a crop. A life without dreams will bear no fruit for the person living it. That person will have no prospects for the future.

• Together the two metaphors emphasize the bleak hopelessness and paralysis of a life lived without dreams.

Say, “Now we’re going to look at metaphor that is a vital part of a prose selection.” Show students a video of the “I Have a Dream” speech by Martin Luther King Jr. At its close, have small groups read the speech carefully, noting the metaphors. Examples include the following:

• the Emancipation Proclamation = “great beacon light of hope”

• extended metaphor: Constitution and the Declaration of Independence = “a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir,” and this connection is explored through several other references

• segregation = “dark and desolate valley”

• “racial justice” = a “sunlit path”

• “The sweltering summer of the Negro’s legitimate discontent”

• “an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality”

• “The whirlwinds of revolt”

• “Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred.”

• “the palace of justice”

• the biblical quotation “justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream”

• “the valley of despair”

• “the heat of oppression”

• “an oasis of freedom of justice.” [IS.13 - Struggling Learners]
  

Have several groups briefly share their examples and discuss why these metaphors are vital to the speech and why they think Dr. King chose to use them.

Part 3

Say, “Metaphor is a powerful tool in thinking and communicating.” Have students examine the metaphors in Lincoln’s “A House Divided” speech and in Shakespeare’s “All the World’s a Stage” speech (see Materials). Remind students to examine metaphors closely to appreciate them completely. Point out that these powerful metaphors have become part of our history and culture. Discuss the following questions:

• “What are some similarities between our government/country and a house?” (Both provide shelter and protection; both are created by people––and therefore can be destroyed by them; both may be large, small, or differently designed.)

• “What similarities do you see between the world and a stage?” (Both have interactions among people, usually changing scenes— sometimes drama, sometimes comedy—according to religious and philosophical beliefs. Some might feel that both are scripted.)

Part 4

Display “Using Metaphors in Creative Writing” (see Materials) on a screen and guide students through a brief review of metaphors, along with the reasons for using them and creative ways for doing so. [IS.14 - Struggling Learners] Encourage students to discuss the examples and why they are or are not effective.

Invite students to create some metaphors of their own. Have students work in small groups to make two lists: one of tangible items, the other of intangible ones. Then have the group create a metaphor together with two dissimilar items, one from each list (For example, hammer and anger could become the hammering of his angry voice or his anger hammered the group into submission; loneliness and clouds could become loneliness drifted over him, blotting out the sun and darkening the day.)

Have all groups share their metaphors and choose one or two favorites to analyze.

Extension:

• Students who may be going beyond the standards can complete a brief exercise. Most students will probably be familiar with the metaphor of life as a journey. Ask students to come up with as many metaphors for shopping, sports, or school as possible. Give students a few more minutes to write briefly about each one. Encourage students to share their lists. Then have students work individually or in small groups to rank the metaphors inoriginality.
• Use “What Is a Metaphor?” (see Related Resources) for students who need additional opportunities for learning.