The mesmerising world of metaphors  

By Niyati Bali

A thing that fascinates me the most about the world of creative writing is the use of figures of speech. The cleverest of them is: metaphor. Metaphor can be defined as the comparison of two objects or ideas. Mostly, the metaphorical references pull out an ongoing phenomenon and relate it with poetry.

The writers and poets use metaphors in their works. Primarily, it adds depth to their work. Secondly, the ‘show but not tell’ aspect of writing is achieved effortlessly through it. The writers share their thoughts and at the same moment, they beat around the bush by using a metaphor.

Another intriguing feature is its open-endedness of interpretation. These metaphors let the readers engage and run their imagination wild to explore all the possible elucidations.

The utilisation of metaphors has been the pillar of literature since ages. Some of my favourite metaphorical references are; “Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart” by William Wordsworth. The above line resonates with all the writers because a writer trusts the paper to hold his or her truest, rawest views without judgement.

Another classic reference from the greatest works in English literature ‘As You Like It’ is: “All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players. They have their exits and their entrances.”

This simply translates to how the world is a simple theatre set with pre-written scripts of our fate, our entries (births) and exits (deaths). A famous modern writer, Virginia Woolf once wrote “Books are mirrors of the soul” which is so true because what you read and understand is the reflection of your soul.

Taking reference of a song, ‘Mirrorball’ with the lyrics: “I’m a mirror ball” – simply translates to a thought that is just like a mirror shattered into a million pieces to become a beautiful, shimmering and glistening mirror ball. We are also met by so many hurdles and obstacles which try to break us down but somewhere or the other this makes us even stronger.

All in all, metaphors enliven a literary piece by demarcating it with excitement, joys, sorrows, suspense, catharsis and so much more.