Ideas as Persons or Other Animate Beings

-- to examples of the metaphor

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COPYRIGHT: John Barnden, 1997. This page of the databank may be freely copied for non-commercial research/instructional use provided this copyright notice is included.

DESCRIPTION OF METAPHOR:

Ideas as Persons or Other Animate Beings

Under this metaphor, ideas, thoughts, hopes, desires, images, etc. are viewed as animate beings: people, animals, ghosts, or whatever.

QUASI-SPECIAL-CASE OF:

Ideas as Physical Objects

Since animate beings are almost always physical objects, the metaphor is essentially a special case of Ideas as Physical Objects.