Chapter One : The Motive For Metaphor.
The motive for metaphor is the desire to associate and identify the human mind with .
what goes on outside it. In chapter one of The Educated Imagination, The Motive for Metaphor, .
Northrop Frye questions literature; What good is it? What is the social value? What is the place .
of the imagination that literature addresses itself to in the learning process? Will we outgrow it? .
To try to answer these questions, Frye uses a series of comparisons : objective and .
subjective worlds, intellect and emotion, arts and sciences, what we have to do versus what we .
want to do, and necessity versus freedom. He also writes about the three levels of mind. The first .
one being the level of consciousness and awareness where the most important thing is "the .
difference between me and everything else". Next, is the level of social participation, the .
technological language of teachers , preachers and politicians, known as "the language of .
practical sense." Last, the level of imagination, which "produces the literary language of poems .
and plays and novels.".
The main point Frye focus's on in this chapter, is the idea that literature cannot .
evolve. As time goes on, more and more literature is produced which makes great leaps harder to .
make. The shock value of anything seems to be lost now. Which makes me wonder, at what .
point in time did we stop being original? Can nobody ever have a new idea anymore? It's mind .
boggling, as well as disheartening. I find it depressing to know that this is as good as it gets, for .
the next millions of years of literature, there will be nothing really new, just the old, slightly .
modified.
.
.
Chapter Two : The Singing School.
.
In chapter two, The Singing School, Frye begins by summarizing chapter one, The .
Motive for Metaphor, reminding us of the three main attitudes : consciousness or awareness, .
practical attitude, and imaginative attitude and that literature uses figure of speech for the .
