Metaphors
When thinking about metaphors, it is important to note how we use language and words to give a name to an object or concept, as this is a significant human ability. For example, the word “rabbit” refers to a furry animal with split lip, long ears, and short legs that jump around and eat grass. However, if a person does not use the English language, it is difficult for a foreigner to make the association. In every culture, every people always have used words to describe or name anything that we are exposed to or come into contact with. A good example is vegetables. The Western culture has a different variety of vegetables than Eastern culture, meaning that there are no Western names or words for some vegetables from the East. Similarly, in Chinese culture, the sun is described as red, while it is described as golden in Western countries such as the United States. Metaphorically, a full moon is described as “a silver plate” in Chinese culture. These are metaphors that reflect various worldviews held by different world civilizations.
In a manner, thinking about language as “world-maker” is a good way to scaffold students’ conceptualization of language and how words are used. As discussed in class and the readings, like our senseless naming of objects and concepts we encounter in our lives, metaphors are abstract ways of thinking in describing the reality we see in our world. Metaphors are a good way for us to reflect on and depict our worldviews, a tool that the ancient Greek philosophers such as Aristotle and Plato used in describing their own which survived and are understood by generations after them.
“America is (not) the world’s policeman”
As the title indicates, there is a metaphor that uses “policeman” to describe America, or American foreign policy. America is known throughout history to spread its ideology of “democracy.” It seems that the US has set democracy as a standard and has been measuring other countries’ policies with that of the US. In other words, democracy is the law, so to speak. Or it so appears to Americans. This is why Americans have shunned away from anything that slightly disagrees with their ideology of democracy, and tries to change their government by “partnering” with them. For example, during the Vietnam War and Korean War, America made the effort to help the countries in the name of democracy. Of course, America had ulterior motives in helping those Asian countries, as it is always the case with foreign policies. Today, the people of South Korea still strive for democracy; obviously, US efforts hadn’t worked as effectively as it thought it should. So can we say America is a successful policeman as evidenced by the historical record? I don’t think so.
It is also because of self-determination that America has wanted to spread democracy; it is because of this self determination and ethnocentricity of the Americans that the Native Americans have lost much of their culture, land, and organization, although the Native Americans do not occupy foreign countries overseas. To say America is the world’s policeman is an understatement; as crazy as it may sound, I think America had actually wanted to dominate the world, when looking at its history of foreign policy.
In a similar light, we can also say that, if a person loyal to a country that disagrees with democracy sees the metaphor “America is the world’s policeman,” he/she would agree, but would resent the metaphor because of the parts of American history with Asia that Americans do not learn in the US. At a time in history, America and other Western countries really feared China to become a world power because the country was very prosperous. All the Western countries decided to blockade trade with China in the 1950′s (see page 101). Only the Soviet Union traded with China. So can we say it never existed? Many in China who have lived during that time remember it well, and students in China study it too. This is my effort to make the piece of history known. So we can say that America’s goal of spreading democracy is very hypocritical and biased. However, in this day and age where states are linked to each other by interdependence, mutual acceptance is mandatory for policies such as reducing effects of climate change and nuclear weapon containment to be implemented.
Also, the audience of the metaphor is as important as its speaker. If a politician uttered the words that make up this metaphor, we could see the political indoctrination of the remark. And if the audience is unreceptive of democracy, the intended effect also will backfire and insult some people in the audience.
In conclusion, the metaphor “America is the world’s policeman” could offend some audiences, pending on which ideology they identify with. A metaphor can sometimes bring back a part of history that should only be left in the past for one party, but revived for the other, as instanced in the coalition of blockade acted upon by the Westerners in times of famine. However, no matter what memories those metaphors evoke in us, words, language, and metaphors are mechanisms we human beings use to describe our world; without any of these, we would lose our characteristics and purpose as true human beings.
