Special Assignment on Metaphors

1.) I missed the metaphor because I didn't see anything in the post to suggest to me that it was a metaphor. I thought it was just a STRANGE assignment from Dr. Strange and just accepted the whole thing at face value. I also would've never thought that we would have an assignment as "deep" as using metaphors. Predominantly in this class we have learned about all types of technology, and then we have had a few blog posts that have made us think about life and the "deeper" side of how we really want to live life a.k.a The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch. I haven't thought about metaphors since I was in high school and EDM 310 was the last place I thought we would be learning about them. But I was wrong...obviously!

2.) I went to church last Wednesday and the college intern read from Matthew 13:24-30. It's the Parable of the the Wheat and Weeds. Jesus tells a story about a garden that becomes infested with weeds because the gardener's enemy planted weeds in it. Therefore, when it comes time to harvest, it is a mixture of good fruit and the weeds. Everything symbolizes something else: the weeds are the evil people, the master gardener is Jesus, the enemy who planted the weeds is the Devil, the harvest is the end of the world, and the harvesters are the angels. I know this isn't a simple metaphor like "It's raining cats and dogs," but this story is still definitely a metaphor. The story just stuck out to me and I knew I would use it in this blog post when we read it at church last week.

3.) I think we need to teach our students to think more "outside the box". If we teach our students to think more analytically and creatively from the beginning then our students won't be like us in EDM 310 and not know we're reading a metaphor. I really don't think we need more projects on metaphors, because I personally think those are boring. Also, if students know they are working on a "metaphor" project then they will be able to decipher it better. If students are just reading a normal story and assume from the beginning it's to be understood at face value, then they will miss the metaphor. Students should be able to look at anything in life and see the deeper meaning, not just when they are told to do so.

4.) I think we use metaphors to express what life is all about in a different way--a way that isn't boring, but can be creative and fun. I honestly am not a fan of metaphors because I'm a woman of straightforward talk and ideas being black and white, but that being said, I think metaphors are a good tool to use to help spur creative thinking.