RdtFbBiixclxm '. ,

(Free Adti{E1;lty. of,t56mtu):Metaphor, Value @, Sratus

March 1992

Series AGeneral &Theoredcal@nIlper No.319

Cqyright by R. Bisschops

nerxpalcE4BLA.U.D.I ingui,cti€ Ag€roq, Uniw{sityof Duisburg

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rvtETApHoR., VAI-rJE Ar\[I) STAT{JSI

Tb funcXion of tb .iojgh-arrt-Io,- Deltap}rlricsin tle transtission of value representatiorrs

Ralph BISSCHOPS

special doctoral grad, Ilational round for Scimtific Research, Belgirn, Free University of Bnssets

(v.0.8. )

1. The metaphorical predicatei has three possible functions:a. A descrj.ptive function [i.e. the description of the inage-receiver" in any respect (appearance, condition, constitution,etc. ) l.b. An explanatory function (i.e. the stating of a reason or acause).c. A rhetorical function (i.e. the arousing of a certainattitude in the mind of the adressee, or even the motivationfor any kind of decision.)

2. The threefold performance of the metaphor can be set forthwith the following example : in Irtozarts (or rather Da pontes)Wedding of Figaro, the page boy Cherubino, who courts every

' The present paper has first been published in the REVUEBELGE DE PHfLOLOGIE Ef DTHTSTOIRE (LXVIfr-L99O-3, pp. G36-G43)under the title of tetapher, Wert und Rang and has beentransLated into English by l.{rs. Edith BUKOWSKI.

' On the predicative nature of the netaphor see: paulRfCOEitR, La n6taphore vive, paris Lg?S, p. 223 f.

' The image-giver is that part of the metaphor that isused to give netaphorical neaning to an object, whereas theinage-receiver is the object to lrhich the netaphor applies. Inthe exampLe '!New york is a magnetr, the idea of {he magnetfunctions as an image-giver and New york as an image-receirier.

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woman, is called a rrbutterflyu ' (rifarfalLone amorosol)' with

respect to its threefold perfornance, this metaphor can be

explained as follosrs:2.1. It describes cherubino in view of the structure of his

personallty, tlhich it characterizes as being unstable' It thus

fulfills its descriptive function'2.2. LL also has an explanatory function' in the sense that

this instability is also given as a cause for Cherubino's

conduct : his wonanizing would thus be caused by an alleged

inconsistency of character' That this is indeed a noti'vation

elearly appearB f,rom the fact that the netaphor categoricallyprecludes another possible cause, in casu pulsion'

cherubino's frivolity is therefore explained as the expression

of a quality (or a tendency), that seems to be best illustrated

by the forn and the fluttering of a butterfly (if this

allegation is true, is another matter)'2.3. Finally, the metaphor contains a value judgrment'

cherubino's goings-on are dedramatised by the image of the

butterfly, since in the European - but also in the Indian and

Aztecan - ernbleuatics and iconography, it is the s1mbol of the

soul (psych6) freed from the body' The Greek word ttpsychErr

stands for both trsoultr and rtbutterflyrr" Cherubino's weakness

therefore appears to be the fraitness of the ethereal' It is

for this reason that the motive and the metaphor of the

butterfLy were particularly popular with the French libertinesin the 17th and lath century' It was used to dj'ssociate the

debaucheries of these fine genttenen from the suspicion of

inpulsive behaviour and to nake them appear as an expression

of refinement. This function of the metaphor is called

' Act L, scene 2. BeauDarchais uses instead the netaphorof the noiseau bleun ai.-* the iblue birdi ) , (Les

'l@ces de

Fiqaro, aci- 2, "".t! lilrt"t can be exPlained analogically in

r"!p"c[ of its three functions'

'z cf . Pierre CHATTBATNE, Dictionnaire 'tyrctqique

de 7a

Tangue gtdcque, Paris 1968

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Itr:hetoricaltt, becauie it arouses a certaj-n state of rind and

depicts a behaviour, one could eventually reprehend, as

excusable or even sublirne.As to the descriptive and expLanatory functions of the metaphor,the example shous that metaphors can aLso be used in order todistort ceriain phenonena, to give false reasons (or notives)for specific events (or bearings) or to preclude the realreasons behind these facts. This is specially the case when therhetorical function dominates.

3. In the course of the last two decades there has been a

tendency to emphasize the descriptive and explanatory functionsof the metaphor. the netaphor is thought to be an instrunentin the search for truth, it would allow for the winning of new

insights'.The example above also indicates hos describing, explainingand valueing are entwined in the metaphorical discourse.

4. This is further illustrated by the automaton metaphor,whichthe French natirialist LA T,IETTRIE (L7og - r-75L)2 used in orderto grasp the dependence of the splritual on the physica).. Inthis metaphor the heuristie function clearly predominates. The

author of L'honae-machine was fully aware, however, that thismetaphor bereaves man of the rank given hi.n in Christiantheology.

5. In some cases the netaphor fulfills an exclusively rhetoricalor evdluative function, so that any search for truth isaltogether out of the guestion. when we call som€ron€ a trpearlrr,

it by no neans entails that we are trying to find a more

suitable way to refer to him. In this exanple re uerely Bant

' see the outline of recent theories of the netaphor byProf. Jean-Pierre VAN NOPPEN in Erinnern um lveues zu sagei.Frankfurt arn Main, L988, p. 7 ff.

' L'homBe-nachine, Denoel-Gonthier, Paris 1981, p. 145

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to confer a value to the image-receiver' The motivation for this

conveyance lies rather in the value represented by the image

of the pearl, than in a supposed sinilarity'

6. We are not dealing vrith a valuation according to clearly

defined standards' The acquired value is the result of the

apposition of an objeet in which this value is inherent' Yet

an object with an a priori val"ue is in fact an enblem' In the

aforementioned example we are not concerned with the pearl' as

a natural phenorenon, but as the incarnation of dignity' The

dinension of its rneaning is given beforehand' And thus the

assumption that in the netaphor the unknown is grasped through

the better known', loses its ctaim to universality' our knowledge

of pearls and their origin is no prereguisite for our referring

to someone as a pearl. The circumstance that we know pearls to

be rare and expensive uas clearly decisive in our choice of this

metaPhor.

7. With regard to their enblenatic nature the possible inaqe-

givers form some kind of a hierarchy : there are va1uable and

Less valuable objects, noble and less nobie, pure and less

pure. Light, for instance, always slnubolises a positi've value'

lrhereas darlmess embodies a negative one' Emblenatic objects

take up a sell-defined position within an hierarchy of values'

Henceforth, the metaphorical predicate situates the

inage-receiver within this hierarchy. The value judgiment that

is passed in the netaphorical predicate thus appears to be the

determination of a rank (i. e. status). .Ihis performance of the

uetaphor becomes partlcularly obvious ehen it aims at a

devaluation. In Der ,'la,I,- ohne Eigensclnften' Robert Uusil

proved hinself a [aster in the use of such metaphors and

allegories : the inperial castle, where nagnificently uniformed

guards ningle with colourlessly clad clerks' is compared with

' cf. A1fred BrEsE, Die PhiTosophie des lletaphorischen inerunatiiei iatqestelti, Harnburg-Leipzig 1"893' p' 33'

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. the practice of a dentist rrwho is unable to draw a line betweenhis office and his private quarters,, '.

8. In comparison to the valuation, the determination of a rankappears to.be as follows: it doesn't represent a specific orexplicit value judgement, but rather an indefinite multiple ofmainly inplicit appraisals. In calling Tolstoi rra summittr ofliterature, I vaLue hin positively in every respect, and notmerely on account.of his style, his themes, his descriptions,his sense of psychology, his outlook upon life, etc.The conferring of a rank affects the subject as a rrhole. (Thisappears i.a. in such phenomena such as the adoration for thehigher in rank, which often concerns all their gualities, eventheir most futile d€fects, resulting in desire for initationand fetishisn. Analogically, the inverse applies to the contemptfor the lower in rank. )

In calling Tolstoi a rtsumnittt we bring about a conplex of valuejudgnents that in fact inplies too much. The netaphor trsunmittt

(that we are indeed dealing uith a metaphor will be exposedlater on) represents in fact an over-determination. On theother hand, it doesnrt contribute much to a concrete evaluationof Tolstoi. This kind of classification merely aims at inspiringrespect for the author in the addressees mind. The conferringrof a rank thus appears to be a neans of protecting an object(a person, an object, a deed or doings, or a principle), notby presenting it as valuable according to unequi.vocal criteria,but by rnarkinq it as rigoodtr (or sound, sterling, beautiful,) inmany respects that are, however, not specifically mentioned.9. The conferring of a rank is particularly useful when wewant to represent sonething (a person, an act, an object or aprinciple), over the soundness of which no consensus exists,as being valuable. Dictator N. Ceaucescu lras extolled by hiscourt poets as the rrlight that defies the sun itselfrr or as the

' Der lllannHanburg !978, p"

ohne84

Eigenschaften, Rowohlt, Reinbeck bei

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rttreasury of wisdomt.t his wife was praised as a rrbeam of liqhtthrough the aeonst'. Uetaphors of this kind are chiefly neant

to muzzl€ all criticism.

l-0. In hierarchical deternination one involuntarily uses the

expressions rthightt and itlowrr. nHighertr things poss€ss more

value than rloirerri ones. We night call these adjectives

metaphors, since the relation between the valuable and the

worthless is not a spatial one' Yet in the study of metaphors

these notions are rarely accepted as such' The reasons given

for this refusal are, firstly, that these netaphors are so

comnon in everyday language that they could at best be calledndeadtr netaphors, and, secondly, that the drop in tension

betreen inage-giver and image- receiver is either very seak or

not felt at all.I irould like to counter these prejudices with the following

renarks:The assumption that a uetaphor is only a real metaphor if a

strong tension arises between the irnage-givef and the inag€-

receiver, has come about in the reah of poetics' It is in

fact more of a value claiu than a criterion for metaphoricity'

In studying the function of the metaphor in the rendering of

values, all netaphors should be considered' and particularllz

those classifled as ndeadtt or as having very little tenslon'

Those metaphors, that are not directly perceived as such' are

particularly suited for the suggestion of value notions' It

seems to me that George LAKOFF and llark JoHl{soN have done a

pioneering job in their study of everyday metaphors" such as

lttime is noneytr, and in the disclosure of the visions of lifeunderlying then.

11. Por tlris reason Iindications used for

sha1l henceforth consider all spatialdifferentiation in value or rank, as

' iletaphors Ye Tive bY, chicago 1980

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metaphors. In the present study rre will only be dealing withthose spatial netaphors that sten frorn the transrnission of a

vertical axis. This axis is constituted either by the oppositionbetween high and ]ow, or by the contrast between depth andsurface. In this case I shalt confine nyself to the rrhigh-and-Iowrr netaphorics.Ehe rhetoribal and explanatory perfornance of these.metaphorswill be closely exanined. It will become obvious thatnetaphorization along the vertical axis is not only used forthe illegitirnate introduction of value distinctions, but thatas such it already contains a specifie system of values. Or,clearly put : in hierarchic thinking it is very clear fron thebeginning what is atop and (nore inportantly) uhat lies waydown.

L2. Case-stualy : we hri1l now look at a few excerpts fron thepolitical manifesto Gli uomini e 7e rovine', by the ptasticartist and philosopher Julius Evola. The forraer futurist anddadaist pleads for an aristocratic and hierarchical societalorder, tbat uould be the opposite of Uarxisn and capitatisn.In these paragrraphs spatial metaphors are used in a constitutivefunction for the reactionary doctrine the author rrants to putforward.

1-) The Tegitiaacy ot polrer. nBhe State is the irruptionand tl;e nanitestation of a bigbe1 order which ta&es thetorm ot a rule (... ) In the Ronan worTd ( ... ) this ntle,aTso perceived as nantctoritas", remairis a Tuminous force,

"con:ing froa above, a sacred povero ( p.3O ) .

2) The anagogicaT function of the state , "(...) Xhe,,sociali or "societaTil conception of the state js a signof regression ( ... ). The ,anagogicaT" finaTity ot the State- as an eTevati4g torce - js thus totaTTy denied." (pp.3L-32). "The highest and traest Tegitination of a r-eAlpoTitical order ... resjdes jn its anagogical tunction,that is to say in the tact that jt arouses arld supports a

' Edizj.one dellrAscia, Rona 1953. Since we couldnrt gethold of the original ltalian edition, we use the Frenchtranslation : .Les hoames au niljeu des rttines, paris 1984.

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readiness in tbe individuaT to act and ta think, to 7ive,to strirze and, possibTy, to die for a goal that surpasseshis own individuaTity.., {p.58)3) The vaJ.ue ot work : "The ethicaT vaLue and dignity otwork are but an absurd faTlacy brougllt about in order tomake man torget a77 higher concerns.,' (p.87).

4) The vaTue of economic objectives: "(...) Novadays vecome dovn fron a 7eve7 of being, at which the vital- andthe uateriaL are subordinated to higber taculties, forcesand goa7s, to a Tevel of being which doesn,t possess thissuperior part or, vorse even, in which this province,through som kind of inversion, is tterett ot its ann reaTityand sery€s Totter functions which, in the in&ividaal,correspo.nd to hjs physical part. In a Targe organism, suchas the State, the physical corresE0nds roughTy ta theeconamy." (p.87 ).5) The meaning of buman lite : The reaT antithesjs js nottha one that opposes capitaTism and Marxism, but Tiesbebteen a system in vhich tlte econoay is supreae (... ) andone in vhich it is subordinated to extra-economic factors,within a mtch more coaprehensive order that vouId conterdeeper meaning to hunan Tite and a77ov for the deveTopmantof its suoeriar possibiTities.t (p.go).

5) War and contempTation as ilsu?eiior" activities : In theniddTe ages the human personality was considered to bavetwo vays to seTfaccompTishment. one Teading towards action,the otlter to contemplation, the first being connected withthe empire, Xhe Tatter with the church. (...) GhibeTinistthi*inq claimed that through an earthLy 1ife, cdnceivedof as discipTine, combat and serl/ice, the individual couTdbe brought to surpass hinself ( ... ). In analogical fashionXo the relation existing betreen the church and the cTergy,the Rnights and the great orders of knighthood definedthemseTves with respect to the empire. They were not somuch founded oD a poTiticaT idea, as on ethics andspiritualityt ot even on asceticism, aTthough not of amonasXic or contempTaXive, l}.rt nartial nature.n (p.i-44).

l-3. fhis exampLe indicates hon deci.sive the spatial netaphorof the trhighern and the rlowerrr can be in political rhetorics.The introduction of the idea of a higher principle a11ows forthe following statements:a) The State is said to be the nanifestation of a nhighertr

order. Its authority and legitimacy would stem from this orderrather than from the representation of the people.

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b) This ohighern principle is presented to override theprecedence of economic Aoals and thus to remove the antagonisnbetween capitalisn and Uarxism.c) A11 vital needs are subordinated to this tihighertr principle.The pursuit of trhighern matters should arouse in the individuala readiness to die for the State.Concerning the content of these supposedly trhighern natters,the reader has to content himself with vague references to theideal of contenplation and the values of knighthood. The factthat these systens of values are in truth contradictory(contenplative values are peaceful, whereas knighthood isheroic), apparently doesn,t bother the author. The hiEherprinciples that are to justify the establishment of ahierarchical and undemocratic societal order, remain relativelyvague.As to the so-calIed tllorer matters[, Evola is definitely norespecific. In his scale of values work ranks losest. He is evenvery much against- the glorification of worki- the preponderance of the economici- the faith in progress [he nakes a case for an innobilestructure of the Statel.He also challenges the universality of justice [he believesin tbe principle of trsuun euique tribuerer and rrprinceps alegibus solutuss2. Furthermore, Evolars antisernitist' and racism.lhe advocates the policy of apartheid) are also noterrorthy.14. In dealing with Evola we do not aiu to ncriticiserr hisextrenist right wing doctrine. Anyone believing in denocraticprinciples would scoff at his opinions. Evola only interests

' op. cit.,' op. cit.,

' op. cit.,' op. cit.,

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143, p.

2L2

p.

p.

p.

p.

2L7, p. 181 f.

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us fron a certain vantage point : the irhigh-low'r netaphors alsoappear in contexts other than right wing extrenisn, yet Evola

represents a particularly extreme use of them. His way ofthinking is hierarchical to such an extent that the 'high-low"metaphor is about the only instrument of rhetorics he resortsto. The question we ask is what is in fact achieved through theuse of this netaphor.f'or this purpose ue would like to put foreard the followingfundamental considerations: Work, production and justice airn

at the relief of human distress and the satisfaction of human

needs. fhey are valued as a confirnation of life and a neqation

of death. For this reason we consider it to be evident thatwork, the production of goods and justice are given a certainvalue. It is clear to anyone that poverty, hunger and illnessshould be fought against and that death should be delayed as

long as possible.And t ho would care to contest that a society should meet toits utnost the desire to develop all human faculties, such as

tasting, smeIling, touching, seeing, hearing, reading, painting,rnaking nusic, dancing, speculating, celebrating, writing poetry'

contemplating, meditating? There isn't the slightest reason why

any of these ski1ls should be subordinated to the other'!,taterial needs shouldn,t be put above i'spiritualti desires (such

as contenplation), since they precede these anlnl,ay' And the

latter don't need to be given any surplus vaIue, unless theyare fulfilled at the cost of the satisfaction of material needs.

The question then is how the necessity came about to subordinatework to a supposedly fihighertr principle. In which particularcase is this conferring of a certain val'ue not totallysuperfluous? OnIy when all human needs (basic and spiritual)cannot b€ satisfied eguatly and rrhen slavelabour is needed toa110w for the idleness the elite needs in order to cultivatespirituality and refinernent. The spatial metaphor !1owtr istherefore introduced to deny the prioritY, i. e. the urgency,

of the satisfaction of naterial needs.

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Consequently, the higher ranking of rrspiritualrr activity isneant to give those, who cannot afford to enbark upon such

activities (for laek of tine or noney), the impression thatthe idling elite does in fact do sonething particularlyvaluable. Therefore, Evola's deniaL of the economic principleappears to be untruthful : it is precisely the circumstancethat both time and lneans are wanting to guarantee everyone thedevelopnent of his faculties that couLd give some sort ofmeaning to the introduction of the hierarchical order (without,however, justifying it). This accounts for Evola's clain thatvital things should be subordinated to rrhigherl ones (cf.fragment nr. 4). Every hierarchical order eventually puts deathabove life. The Ithigherrr is but the mask of death, eitherthrough renouncement (which explains the influence of theoriental outlook on life', or through heroic death (uhichexplains the glorification of knightly virtues). Thisreconciliation with death is meant to arouse a wiltingness todie a little, that is to say to resign ourselves to thecurtailment of our vitat faculties.

15. As we have seen with the example of the butterfly netaphor,metaphors falsify causal relations uhen their rhetoricalfunction dominates. Does this aLso apply to trhigh-lowrr

metaphors? The answer to this question is yes. rn this case thedependence of the spiritual on the physical is denied. In thesecond quotation it is said that the state, by means of an

active rhighertr principle, exerts an eLevating force that wouldbe its finality. Higher, or spiritual life would therefore notbe dependent on rrlohrertr or rnaterial life, but represents initself the real cause. Any other explanation would sap thehierarchj.cal order: the surplus vafue of the higher cannot becaused by the lower, which sould thus partake in the trhiqhertr

and rob the order of its ontological foundations. If the dignity

' op. cit., p. !42.

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of the fhighes't is to be preserved, causality has to be reptacedwith finality. This anounts to saying that those exploiting thelabour of their fellowmen, donrt owe the latter anything. Thiswork is seen as a sacrifice due to those hightir in rank.

16. Conc1us.i-orrs

a) t{etaphorisation along a vertical axis (high-Iow) appearsto be a neans to turn around relations of precedence : inregard of the satisfaction of human needs the urgent natterslose their claim to priority to the so-called trhigherr ones.This transfer sinilarly turns around causal relations. Finalitytakes the place of causal.ity. Thus the dependence of thetrhighern on the trlowertr, or rather of the spiritual on theeconomic, is denied.

b) As soon as we operate a scale with a graduation accordingto rank, we declde beforehand what will be nupr and what willbe trdowrtr on this scale. fn our case-study it appeared that theproductive, or economic activity of man would probably rankvery low in a hierarchical pay of thinking.

c) way up on the hierarchical scale woutd be death (throughrenouncenent or a heroic act). One resorts to a rank orderuhen one sants to put an end to the satisfaction of a need orto the clain of a right. Towards the higher in rank we feelrerrpect, fear or admiration, yet at least sorne form of coyness.Rank paralyses activity.A hierarchical thought is also a nihilistic one.

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